The New York Red Bulls (11 wins, 8 losses, 7 draws) will host FC Cincinnati (8-8-9) Saturday. Kickoff from Red Bull Arena is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. ET. Below, we preview the New York Red Bulls vs. FC Cincinnati odds and lines, and make our best MLS bets, picks and predictions.
FC Cincinnati is coming off a disappointing home draw against Atlanta FC. Once soundly in playoff position, FCC has drawn a ridiculous 7 of their last 9 games.
The team is led by a duo of All-Star attackers, M Lucho Acosta and F Brandon Vazquez. The former has 14 goals and assists while the latter has 19 and ranks tied for the 2nd-most goals in the league.
As for the Red Bulls, they sit 4th in the Eastern Conference and 7 points above the playoff line.
The Red Bulls have the 4th-fewest goals allowed in the conference. They have given up 32 goals in 26 matches. On the other end, New York is led by F Lewis Morgan, who has 11 goals on the year.
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New York Red Bulls vs. FC Cincinnati odds, lines, picks and predictions
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 8 a.m. ET.
- Money line: New York Red Bulls -135 (bet $135 to win $100) | FC Cincinnati +350 (bet $100 to win $350) | Draw +300
- Over/Under: 2.5 (O: -155 | U: +122)
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Prediction
New York Red Bulls 1, FC Cincinnati 1
Money line (ML)
LEAN DRAW (+300).
There is some bad blood between these teams after the last time they met FCC captain Acosta left the match with a red card and was awarded a 2-game suspension.
One could argue New York barely got out with a draw, though, as it scored on a penalty pick and had just 2 shots on target.
Given Cincinnati has drawn 7 of its last 9 and 3 of its last 4 on the road, the momentum sides with betting the draw, and the value is certainly there to back it up.
New York has tied or lost 9 of its 12 home matches, making the -102 for Tie or FC Cincinnati also a reasonable play. At this value, my favorite play on the money line is a DRAW +300.
Over/Under (O/U)
BET UNDER 2.5 (+122).
New York has one of the best defenders in the MLS in captain D Aaron Long.
He should be able to help tame the elite FCC attack. The Red Bulls did just that at TQL Stadium in the lone matchup between these teams this season. The match ended 1-1 with just 6 shots on target.
New York has gone Under this in 5 of its last 8 matches. While the trend for FCC is far different, it is just 2-3 O/U this total against teams with a top-4 defense in the East.
Given that, this is a solid bet, especially at plus-money odds.
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