In the immediate aftermath of FC Cincinnati’s Game 3 defeat in penalties to New York City FC in the East quarterfinal round last weekend, this column was going to begin by outlining the ways in which the loss was a plain ol’ bummer for the club and its supporters. We’ll get to that in a minute.
I must begin with a human loss that’s beyond tragic. FCC midfielder Marco Angulo, who spent the 2024 season playing on loan in his native Ecuador, died Monday night from injuries sustained in a car crash in Ecuador on October 7. Angulo, 22, was killed alongside a former youth teammate.
The deteriorating condition of Angulo, who appeared in 24 matches (nine starts) for his parent club in 2023, was surely on the mind of many of his former teammates for the better part of the last month. The Orange and Blue’s video tribute was touching, and it highlighted Angulo’s seemingly ever-present wide smile. The midfielder’s passing is another reminder of life’s cruel realities.
On the pitch, FCC’s display in the loss was of the not-quite-good-enough ilk that defined the second half of the season. In the end, the missing elements of crisper finishing and overall consistency that I feared would come back to haunt the local lads proved correct. Factor in the integration of newcomers throughout the season as well as injuries to Lucho Acosta and Matt Miazga, and the first-round exit becomes less shocking.
That’s not to say the L was without major bummers for FC Cincinnati and its supporters. For the second year in a row, the season ends with a post-regulation home loss against a lower-seeded opponent. Need I remind anyone of 2023’s exit?
Inter Miami and Columbus, the top seeds in the East, were also knocked out last weekend. Had the Orange and Blue advanced, TQL Stadium would have hosted the East semifinal match vs. New York Red Bulls, a potential East Final, and possibly MLS Cup.
Captain, talisman, and reigning league MVP Lucho Acosta appears to have one foot out the door, noting post-match that Saturday could have been his last with FCC. More on this bombshell news next week.
So the feeling of a missed opportunity—despite the squad’s clear limitations—is hard to shake. By any metric, FC Cincinnati should have been the winning side on Saturday. NYCFC was barely in spitting distance of Roman Celentano all night. The hosts notched their lowest expected goals outcome (0.3) of the season, equaling their showing from Game 1.
But the Garys had their moments. Luca Orellano in particular will rue his failed chances, the most notable of which was an Acosta-esque maze-like length-of-the-field run that nearly brought the house down to end the first half.
Penalties looked an inevitability midway through the second half. Once the spot kicks commenced, each side calmly converted their first three opportunities. At the end of the initial round of five kicks, Roman Celentano kept the season alive with a stop of NYCFC’s fifth attempt, the goalkeeper’s first penalty save of 2024. FCC failed on its final three attempts, however, and the visitors triumphed in the ninth round of PKs.
Next week will be my final column of the 2024 season. I’ll touch on the past nine months of footy, but I’ll chiefly be looking ahead to another offseason of change for FCC. General Manager Chris Albright and his staff have plenty of questions to address.
How real is Acosta’s potential departure, and how will that affect the team’s style of play? Is the next big-money striker investment already completed? Can Albright find another midfielder to ease the burden on the overused Pavel Bucha and Obinna Nwobodo?
Those questions and more will be addressed—and possibly answered—in these digital pages next week.
Grant Freking writes FC Cincinnati coverage for Cincinnati Magazine. You can follow him on Twitter at @GrantFreking.
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