Going down 2-0 at halftime to the defending Eastern Conference champs while playing without your own MVP favorite establishes an awfully high degree of difficulty to grasp a point from a match. FC Cincinnati accomplished that task Saturday evening, rallying to nab a 2-2 draw in Philadelphia. Entering tonight’s match in Montreal, FCC (58 points) boasts an eight-point advantage atop both the East and the Supporters’ Shield standings.
Photography by Joseph Guzy
With Lucho Acosta suspended in Philly for yellow card accumulation, a victory against the Union—former employer of head coach Pat Noonan and General Manager Chris Albright—was going to be a mighty hill to climb. Top four in the league in goals, assists and key passes, Acosta scored the lone goal in the team’s April meeting in Cincinnati.
Saturday’s first half was defined by a pair of Philly’s goals—a blistering strike from distance and a penalty kick—and the “soccer” played around it. In the first half alone, the teams combined for 24 fouls and seven yellow cards, including a caution for each of FC Cincinnati’s starting central defenders. Less The Beautiful Game, more minor league hockey on grass.
The introduction of Aaron Boupendza at halftime flipped FCC’s fortunes. Just hours after arriving back in the U.S. following international duty with Gabon, the striker scored four minutes into his shift. A lovely buildup preceded the goal, with Brandon Vazquez’s clever redirect pass slipping Yuya Kubo in behind the Philly back line. Kubo kept his composure to deliver a solid cross for Boupendza to tap in.
Boupendza turned delivery man for the equalizer, with luck admittedly playing a vital role. Jumping on a poor back pass, he centered the ball for Vazquez, whose shot was blocked up into the air but possessed enough friendly spin to find the back of the net. The goal and assist earned in just 41 minutes played earned Boupendza a spot on MLS’s Team of the Week.
The match finished with 14 cards issued. Philly and FCC each garnered a red card, with Yerson Mosquera the guilty party for FC Cincinnati; he’ll serve a one-match ban tonight. Montreal, who enters eighth in the East (36 points), fares much better at home (nine wins) than on the road (two wins).
“I think the game will look like what we saw in Philadelphia and (against) Orlando, teams are vying for spots. They’re trying to climb the table,” Noonan said pre-match. “Every game from here on out is going to have that intensity, in my opinion, because there’s nine playoff spots and everybody we’re playing is vying for something.”
Despite FC Cincinnati being north of the border, there will still be big-time soccer played at TQL Stadium this week. Playing for the first time since its disappointing Round of 16 exit at the Women’s World Cup, the U.S. women’s national team will take on South Africa in a friendly match Thursday evening. Local product Rose LaVelle won’t suit up, but Cincinnati natives Aubrey Kingsbury (goalkeeper) and M.A. Vignola (defender) could feature. The contest will double as a goodbye to Julie Ertz, who was capped over 100 times for the Americans and won World Cup titles in 2015 and 2019.
Grant Freking writes FC Cincinnati coverage for Cincinnati Magazine. You can follow him on Twitter at @GrantFreking.
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