Live Updates: Yuya Kubo nets brace, FCC moves to top of table in 6-1 win over Inter Miami

It's as big as a regular season game can get for FC Cincinnati Saturday night, who welcome in Inter Miami CF as the Orange and Blue look to sweep the week.No Lionel Messi? No problem for The Herons, who are unbeaten since the start of June, including having won four-straight matches by a 2-1 decision.FCC is also on a bit of a winning streak, having won two straight and are 4-1-0 since the start of June.The ball will kick off Saturday night with Cincinnati and Miami holding the top two spots in the Supporter's Shield race. A win for FCC will see the catapult into first place for the first time this season. Any other result will see Miami remain atop the MLS. Stay with us tonight, as we'll have live updates and analysis throughout the match from TQL Stadium, which was announced as a sellout prior to first kick.Be sure you're also following me on X, the website formerly known as Twitter, for up-to-the-minute updates and analysis.FINAL: FC Cincinnati 6 - Inter Miami CF 1What an impressive effort from The FC this evening, who now find themselves atop the MLS table.It's the first time FCC has scored six goals in a match since a 6-0 win against San Jose on Sept. 10, 2022.Our full recap can be found here. Thanks for hanging with me tonight as FCC makes a statement against a Messi-less Miami, and the rest of MLS, with their six-goal output and five-goal win.72' - 6-1, FC CincinnatiWelcome to the party, kid.Gerardo Valenzuela - subbed on for Luca Orellano earlier in the half - has his first MLS goal as Miami has now allowed six goals.I'm still looking, but this might mark the first time they've ever allowed six in an MLS match.62' - 5-1, FC CincinnatiMiami is losing composure, and fast. The Herons have been shown five yellow cards in the span of 10 minutes, including a double-yellow for midfielder Sergio Busquets, who was sent off.Inter Miami is now down a man, and down four goals.58' - 5-1, FC CincinnatiYuya Kubo: Brace.Orellano had the ball on the end line, found Kubo at the top of the goal area, and #7 did the rest.54' - 4-1, FC CincinnatiThis has been the most uneventful portion of the game, to this point, as FCC seems content on letting Miami try to take the game to them.We do have dueling yellow cards issued, though: Miami's Benjamin Cremaschi was carded after a challenge on Miles Robinson and FCC's Obi Nwobodo received a card in the 55'.He'll miss next week due to yellow card accumulation. 45' - 4-1, FC CincinnatiThe second half is underway.45+4' - 4-1, FC CincinnatiWhat a statement 45 minutes from FC Cincinnati tonight. Just wow wow wow wow.Yamil Asad with the goal to end the half. Truly remarkable football, that was.39' - 3-1, FC CincinnatiLuciano Acosta is making a strong, strong case to defend his MVP honors.He took on two or three Miami defenders around the PK spot and deked not once...not thrice...but four or five times before notching his 50th goal as a member of the Orange and Blue.Have you voted him for All Star Captain today?Meanwhile, as I'm typing the previous paragraph, FCC works a corner kick and Pavel Bucha nets his fourth goal of the season.The vibes are immaculate...if not a little stunning. Miami looks like they don't know what hit them.33' - 1-1We're across the 30-minute mark, still knotted at one a piece.We've also definitely come down to some sort of equilibrium. FCC doesn't nearly have the feel of dominance as they did in the opening moments, but still own a 54% possession advantage, and are controlling the pace of play in the attacking half of the field.Meanwhile, Miami is having to find their offensive opportunities on the counterattack. While that can be dangerous, it hasn't spelled disaster for the Orange and Blue so far.20' - 1-1Over the last five or so minutes, things are starting to even out a bit, and Miami puts a goal on the board to help put an exclamation point on that fact.The Herons' goal came via a corner kick - Julian Gressel sent it in and it found the head of Serhiy Kryvtsov, who was running towards the ball and never stopped, who headed it the other way.Miami has seemed to have a bit more possession as of late, and Cincinnati's passes don't feel as crisp as they did in the opening 15 or so minutes.So, back to even as we're nearly halfway to halftime.10' - 1-0, FC CincinnatiSome soccer matches, a team is crisp, has all the chances, and it just doesn't matter.This was not one of those matches.FCC's early possession advantage and crispness with the ball is rewarded early, with a Yuya Kubo goal - his eighth of the season - from a Orellano feed into the penalty area.I'll have to catch a replay of the full sequence to see what built up to it, but FCC is proving productive not only with the ball, but on the counter attack in the early moments.8' - 0-0We're scoreless in the early going, but not without chances. Each team has already had two corner kicks, with Miami the better shot on net off the set piece, but Cincinnati had a chance from the doorstep but couldn't capitalize.FCC has been very crisp with the ball in the early going, and have most of the possession - 55% to 45% - so far. The best chance of the match to this point came in the sixth minute, when Luciano Acosta slipped the ball to a streaking Luca Orellano, who dribbled to the goal box but was unable to capitalize.KICKOFF - 0'Are you ready for some futbol?FC Cincinnati are in blue.Miami is in pink.We've got some a mid-season showdown on our hands.LINEUPSPat Noonan has unveiled a bit of a new formation for this evening.I'm honestly not sure what you'd call it: A 5-2-2-1? A 5-4-1? A 5-2-3? Regardless, the FCC backline will continue to prove to be the difference maker, while Yuya Kubo moves to the top of the field and is flanked by captain Luciano Acosta and Luca Orellano, who is coming off a brace in D.C. on Wednesday.Aaron Boupendza, Corey Baird, Kip Keller and Kevin Kelsy are the most notable subs on the bench for the Orange and Blue. And for the visitors:PREVIEWSaturday night, fireworks will extend into the Fourth of July weekend as FC Cincinnati welcomes in Inter Miami, with major Supporters' Shield implications on the line.After Wednesday night's results, The Herons and the Orange and Blue sit one and two, respectively, atop the leaguewide table, with two points in the standings separating them.Miami (47 points, 14-3-5) sits in first place, while Cincinnati (45, 14-4-3) sits in second.Both teams scored multiple times in their wins on Wednesday: Cincinnati tied an MLS record for consecutive road wins with a 3-2 victory against D.C. United while Miami scored in the final five minutes to secure a 2-1 win at Charlotte.It won't just be an important matchup but a historic one as well.According to the Elias Sports Bureau, one of the leading statisticians for professional sports in the U.S., Saturday's match will be just the second in 10 seasons in which the top two teams in the Supporters' Shield standings will meet 21 or more matches later into the season.Saturday's match will be the 22nd MLS match played by Cincinnati and the 23rd played by Miami.The other match under this criteria came during the 2018 season, when the New York Red Bulls (second place) beat Atlanta United (first place), 2-0, on Sept. 30 in Harrison, New Jersey.FCC and Inter Miami will meet Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. at TQL Stadium.