It’s not often that a FC Cincinnati coach declines to hold a post-game press conference. In fact, it never happened before Wednesday’s game against the Chicago Fire.
But Pat Noonan’s choice not to speak to the media despite being shown a red card late in the game was a reflection of the mood surrounding the night’s events at TQL Stadium.
FC Cincinnati lost to Chicago 1-0, scored in the 69th minute. Before that moment, FC Cincinnati was desperate to win despite the absence of star player Luciano Acosta due to injury, and the suspension of central defender Miles Robinson, who will now leave to participate in the men’s soccer tournament at the Paris Olympics.
“We expect to win every game,” said Cincinnati FC defender DeAndre Yedlin. “It doesn’t matter who we play on the field. Since I’ve been here, I’ve noticed that the foundation of this club is hard work, competition, effort, and then the little things that add up to that — the things that Lucho can do, pulling things out of a hat. For some reason, the last few games it’s not looking right. Nobody from the outside can fix that. It’s up to us. It’s up to us to look deep inside the team and find that competitiveness again.”
Not only did Cincinnati lose, they were sent off after defenders Alphas Powell and Noonan were sent off. Both players were booked and sent off late in the game.
Powell received his second yellow card in a row in the 88th minute for repeatedly jostling as the ball went out of play. Noonan appeared to receive his second yellow card for protesting referee Filip Dujic’s decisions on a night that saw his club awarded 17 fouls to just eight for the Fire.
After receiving the red card, Noonan climbed onto the pitch and appeared to continue arguing with Dujic.
“I don’t know what he said or what happened, but at the end of the day, it doesn’t stop us from continuing to believe in ourselves and trying to score a goal,” Yedlin said after the game, which saw Noonan sent off. “Unfortunately, in the last two weeks… we’ve lost a lot of leaders, but it’s up to other players to step up and become leaders now. That’s how great teams are born and that’s how great teams stay.”
It all came before Brian Gutierrez’s goal for Chicago in the 69th minute, which proved decisive. Cincinnati defender Kip Keller mishandled a header near the halfway line, setting up a Chicago counterattack and an easy goal by Gutierrez.
The goal was particularly frustrating because it canceled out the performance of a Cincinnati FC team that had looked deserving of the win throughout the second half.
“I think we outplayed them for most of the game,” Cincinnati’s Gerardo Valenzuela said. “We made the mistake and they scored but that’s what happened. We could have taken advantage of our chances… The team played well but we didn’t get the result we wanted.”
FC Cincinnati’s expected goals for the match was 1.6. Chicago finished the match with a 2.2 “xG” rating, a measure of the probability of a goal being scored from a given shot.
Consequences of Losing for Cincinnati Football Club
FC Cincinnati’s record dropped to 15 wins, 6 losses, and 3 losses. The club also suffered a second losing streak in 2024.
The team’s last loss was in two consecutive matches last April, which represents the first losing streak since 2022.
FC Cincinnati also relinquished first place in the MLS Supporters’ Shield race. Inter Miami CF won to return to the top spot about ten days after FCC beat Miami 6-1 at TQL Stadium.
Powell and Noonan will be suspended for Saturday’s game against the New York Red Bulls at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey.
Noonan’s last absence from a FC Cincinnati game was on July 12, 2023, also against the Red Bulls at Red Bull Arena. Assistant coach Dominic Kinnear was the acting head coach for that game. It was unclear late Wednesday how Cincinnati would handle his coaching situation for Saturday’s game.
Most importantly, FC Cincinnati will try at Red Bull Arena to end its losing streak in the last two matches.
“We are going through a tough moment,” Yedlin said. “I’m sure Noonan is frustrated as well. It’s frustrating for everyone but at the end of the day I’ve never been in a situation like this where negativity is the thing that gets you out of a situation. We have to stay positive and keep looking forward to the next game.”
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Live updates from the match:
FC Cincinnati was down to a man but still pushed for a goal. But after conceding a goal in the 69th minute, the team unexpectedly began to collapse and the scoreline took on a decidedly negative tone due to two red cards. FC Cincinnati dropped to 15-6-3 and relinquished first place in the Supporters’ Shield standings.
FC Cincinnati coach Roberto Mancini received his second yellow card of the game in protest at referee Filip Dujic. Noonan took to the field to get his pay. He will miss Saturday’s game against RB New York.
The physical altercation turned into frustration, and some shoving, for Cincinnati’s Alvas Powell. He received two yellow cards from referee Filip Dujic as a result. Cincinnati will finish the game with 10 men.
Kip Keller’s attempted header near midfield bounced back, sending the ball into Chicago’s path. With a solo run, Brian Gutierrez easily scored the first goal.
Suddenly, Cincinnati looked like they were in scoring mood. Luca Orellano started finding space to shoot, Yuya Kubo started finding space. Sergio Santos came on to start the second half. Cincinnati wasn’t going to settle for a draw.
FC Cincinnati settled down after some obvious nervousness at the start of the match. In the end, FC Cincinnati managed to control 60% of the ball and managed to score a number of good goals. However, the team seemed to be missing several quality players.
A set piece from the west side of TQL toward the south end resulted in four separate shots in a row for FC Cincinnati. Two of the shots were cleared off the goal line as Chicago desperately scrambled to clear the ball from the danger zone. Cincinnati’s final four shots in the series went to Pavel Bocha, but it slipped wide and out of play.
Slow progress for FC Cincinnati (19′)
Cincinnati and Chicago managed to cut possession in half, according to the scoreboard stats, but FCC had just registered its first shot, which came from Yamil Asad and was not much of a threat.
No Lucho or Miles Robinson at Cincinnati Football Club (1′)
We’re at TQL Stadium now, and FC Cincinnati has some starting lineup issues due to the absence of Luciano Acosta (injury) and Myles Robinson (suspension). On any other night, would you rather have FC Cincinnati play Chicago. Tonight? We’ll see.
FC Cincinnati and Chicago Fire starting lineups
- Cincinnati FC starting lineup: Roman Celentano (GK), Kip Keller, Luca Orellano, Yamil Asad, Ian Murphy, DeAndre Yedlin (Captain), Obinna Nwobo, Yuya Kubo, Pavel Bucha, Corey Bird, Gerardo Valenzuela.
- Cincinnati seat: Alphas Powell, Aaron Boupendza, Brett Halsey, Sergio Santos, Kevin Kelsey, Paul Walter (GK), Isaiah Foster, London Agedo, Ivan Louro (GK).
- Chicago Fire starting lineup: Chris Brady (GK), Arnaud Socket, Rafael Chicos, Wyatt Omsberg, Jonathan Dean, Marin Haile Selassie, Chris Muller, Fabian Herbers, Gaston Jimenez (captain), Hugo Kuipers.
- Chicago seat: Tom Barlow, Tobias Sahlquist, Brian Gutierrez, Spencer Ritchie (GK), Georgios Kotzias, Mauricio Pineda, Kellen Acosta, Javier Casas, David Poreba.
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