LEXINGTON, Ky. – Lexington Sporting Club is set to hit the road to face off against CV Fuego FC in USL League One action. The contest is set to take place at 11 p.m. ET from Fresno State Soccer Stadium in Fresno, Cal.
Lexington SC (2-6-4, 10 points) is coming off a penalty kick victory over One Knoxville SC in the USL Jagermeister Cup. The win marked the first over Knox and the third consecutive point-bearing result in a row for the Greens. Amal Knight earned his fifth shut-out of the season in the result.
CV Fuego FC (3-7-2, 11 points) will enter the match off a home loss against Union Omaha, also in the USL Jagermeister Cup. The loss snapped a two-match winning streak for Fuego FC as it sought to turn things around in year one under Jermaine Jones.
TUNE IN:
- The match will be streaming live on ESPN+.
- For in-game content, follow Lexington SC on Twitter and Instagram.
- For in-game stats, head to the Match Center.
GAME NOTES
Lexington SC will be facing off with CV Fuego FC for the fifth time in club history. Both clubs currently hold a 1-1-2 record against the other, though Lexington SC was triumphant on penalty kicks in one of those draws, a USL Jagermeister Cup fixture from earlier this season (May 11). In that last meeting of the pair, Cameron Lancaster and Ates Diouf found the net in the 2-2 draw before Jorge Corrales scored the winning penalty kick.
Lexington SC has a new man in charge for the 2024 season with Darren Powell taking the reins for the club from interim head coach Nacho Novo. Sam Stockley, the club’s first gaffer, remains in his sporting director role, overseeing all men’s and boy’s soccer with the club.
The trip to California will mark the third time the Greens have ventured to Fresno, but just the second time this season the Greens will venture out into the far west. LSC traveled to Spokane (Washington) on June 23 for the first trip. The Greens still have a trip to Colorado later this season.
Multiple current Greens have scored against CV Fuego in the past. Nico Brown, Tate Robertson, and Cameron Lancaster have all scored at least once versus Fuego FC, but it’s Ates Diouf who stands above the rest, having logged FOUR goals against Fuego including a brace in a 2-2 draw on September 10, 2023.
Multiple Greens were ruled out for the competition in California as reported to league officials. Two who were active last week, Azaad Liadi and CC Uche, were among the list of Greens who will not make the trip. Others, such as Michael Agboola, Ebenezer Ackon, and Austin Causey continue to recover from impairments that have kept them out for multiple weeks.
Shavon John-Brown is the man to watch for CV Fuego FC. In league play this season, John-Brown has taken the pitch 11 times with two goals and one assists, but even when he is not directly contributing to the Fuego attack he remains one of the highest rated members of the squad. Possessing a very high success rate with aerial duels and attacks, the midfielder is one that should not be overlooked as a key piece when Fuego is successful. If the Greens hope to pass the home side in the standings and stand triumphant, limiting the success of John-Brown will be key.
About Lexington Sporting Club
Lexington Sporting Club is a U.S. Soccer professional soccer club competing in USL League One (U.S. Soccer third division men’s professional soccer), and in USL Super League (women’s professional soccer launching in 2024). The two professional teams are the pinnacle of the soccer ecosystem in Lexington that features more than 1,000 players within its youth and academy systems. Lexington SC in the process of building the club’s formal stadium, performance center and training fields.