Matches with Philadelphia Union are always intense for FC Cincinnati. No one said they have to be or encouraged them to be by some animus. But when these two teams meet, everyone knows there's a competitive spirit and desire to win that takes the matches to another level.
Preseason, regular season, postseason and cup competition, the familiarity of the two sides breeds a natural rivalry, and now, with shared experiences in knockout stage matches, there is a growing history of moments with high tensions and high stakes.
“For me, even when I arrived here, no one told me specifically ‘oh Cincinnati and Philly is intense.’ I saw it myself. So when you know these games, immediately you know it feels different. You see both teams want to win,” Obinna Nwobodo said Monday ahead of the match. “It doesn’t matter if it’s a friendly game in Clearwater or a Playoff game, everyone wants to win. So we try to protect ourselves in terms of keeping our winning streak against them.”
FC Cincinnati and Philadelphia Union have met in knockout matches in each of the last three seasons, and Philly will face FC Cincinnati in the MLS Cup semi-finals in 2022 and 2023. The two clubs are intrinsically tied by the personnel attached to them. Still, as time goes on, those connections become secondary to the performances seen on the field.
“(We) always look at the recent games and form and personnel to try to guide how you prepare,” Pat Noonan said of the matchup with Philadelphia Union. “This would've been a different conversation if we were matched up against each other a month or two ago because of how many missing pieces that were on both sides. So I think both teams come into it as close to full strength as possible.”
Since Chris Albright joined FC Cincinnati and brought then-Union assistant coach Noonan to Cincy as Head Coach, the Orange and Blue have been 4-1-2 against Philly and undefeated at TQL Stadium.
“We have some pieces now available that weren't in the last month or two. It sets up for a good matchup but hopefully, the preparation over the last couple days is enough to understand what the game is gonna look like and who can make plays,” Noonan added on the matchup. “I know that sounds pretty simple, but a lot of times when you are familiar with it, it's tough to break teams down. They defend really well. I think we've been better defensively. Both have different ways of knowing how to create and cause problems for their opponents. So, who can make plays?”
FC Cincinnati vs Philadelphia Union – Tuesday August 13, 2024 – 7:30 p.m. ET – TQL Stadium
Stream: MLS Season Pass on Apple TV
TV Talent (English, Apple): Steve Cangialosi (PxP), Danny Higginbotham (Analyst)
TV Talent (Spanish, Apple): Bruno Vain (PXP), Andres Agulla (Analysis)
Radio: ESPN 1530
Radio: La Mega 97.7 FM
Radio Talent (English): Tom Gelehrter (PXP), Kevin McClosky (Analyst)
Radio Talent (Spanish): Gustavo Luques (PXP), José Romero (Analyst)
Against Philadelphia Union
The rivalry continues to grow between these MLS Eastern Conference sides as once again FC Cincinnati and Philadelphia Union meet in a knockout stage game, marking not only a rematch of the MLS Cup Playoffs Eastern Conference semi-final in 2023 but the MLS Cup Playoff Eastern Conference semi-final in 2022 as well.
All-time, across all competitions, FC Cincinnati has a 4-6-3 record against the Philadelphia Union. However, since Pat Noonan departed the Philly club and took over FC Cincinnati in 2022, the tides have turned, and FCC is a dominant 4-1-2 with an undefeated record at TQL Stadium. This is the first time these clubs have met in the League Cup.
FC CINCINNATI NOTES
Liga MX awaits – The club to advance out of the FC Cincinnati-Philadelphia Union fixture will host the winner of an all-Liga MX Round of 16 matchup between Mazatlán FC and Cruz Azul at Audi Field. Cincy or Philly will host the victor this weekend in the Quarterfinals.
Working 9 to 5 – FC Cincinnati’s matchup with the Union will mark just the sixth all-time game for the Orange and Blue on a Tuesday. One came last season, a dramatic shootout victory over the
New York Red Bulls in the U.S. Open Cup Round of 16. After this matchup, Cincinnati will have played on all seven days of the week this season.
Higher Stakes – Tuesday will be the 17th single-elimination knockout stage match for the club since 2019, and the third against Philadelphia Union. The club is 7-4-5 in the 16 prior win-or-go home matches (2-3 in shootouts).
ReUnion – Tuesday’s the eighth matchup for Cincinnati Head Coach Pat Noonan against his former Philly side, where he previously was an assistant coach (Jan. 2018 - Dec. 2021). His record is 4-1-2 against the Union across all competitions with FCC. During Noonan’s time with the Union, they won 49 regular season games and captured the 2020 Supporters’ Shield. He was hired by the former Union Technical Director Chris Albright, who was named FCC GM on Oct. 4, 2021. Albright served as Philly’s Technical Director since his retirement from playing after the 2013 season.
Scouting Philadelphia Union (6-10-9, 27 points, 10th in MLS Eastern Conference, 2-0-1 in Leagues Cup 2024)
The Philadelphia Union went through a brutal stretch in the lead-up to Leagues Cup 2024 but have found their footing and looking dangerous again. With a six-game losing streak highlighting a stretch of 12 games where the club went 1-9-2, Philly has since won twice heading into the tournament and is undefeated in the group stage. A 2-0 win over CF Montreal in the Round of 32 then earned them the right to play FC Cincinnati in the next round at TQL Stadium.
Tai Baribo, who scored twice against FC Cincinnati in the regular season matchup earlier this year, scored both goals for Philly in the Round of 32 match. Baribo, an Israeli forward who also scored in the group stage, has six regular season goals and has stepped up offensively for Philly since the departure of Julián Carranza. Carranza's departure to Feyenoord in the Netherlands Eredivisie left a significant hole in the Philly offensive scheme. Still, Baribo, along with more regular contributors like Daniel Gazdag and newcomer Samual Adeniran, have reformed the offense and made their pressure-based system effective.
The underlying familiarity with Philadelphia Union and FC Cincinnati makes it. Hence, both players and managers understand their opponents in a more intimate way than other matches make for. FCC is very aware of the dangers of the 4-4-2 formation Jim Curtain and Philly utilize. Philly is very familiar with the 5 in the back formation, which has helped make FCC so successful. So much so that when the two meet up, one or both sides are liable to switch formations to get a leg up in the chess match of tactics and try to give their side the edge.
"We don't know them so well that we know exactly what tomorrow is gonna look like," Noonan said of the depths of familiarity with his former club. "They've played different shapes against us, different personnel. So we've prepared for a couple things, but on the other side, they know us very well, so it's no different. We will hopefully be up for a good test and understand what type of game it's going to look like. It'll look different than Santos in a lot of ways, so knowing how to switch from one type of game to another is important. The speed of thought, I told these guys the speed of thought, with the ball, without the ball is going to be very important in us having success."
Philly's captain and calming presence, Andre Blake, will most likely be in net. The Jamaican goalkeeper, known league-over for being one of the league's top shot-stoppers and distributors, was absent from the match earlier this season with an injury. Still, since returning, he has been back to his dominant self.
On the back line for Philly in their match with Montréal was 2022 defender of the year Jakob Glesnes, SuperDraft selection Jack Elliot, German attacking wing Kai Wagner and HomeGrown star Nathan Harriel, back from his time at the 2024 Summer Olympics with Team USA. When needed, due mostly to absences over the summer, Damian Lowe and Olivier Mbaizo have also started in the back four.
Jim Curtain, who has led the Union since 2014 and was on the staff as an assistant prior to that, has led one of the most successful eras of Philadelphia Union soccer in its history. He was named MLS Coach of the Year in 2020 and 2022, making him the youngest multi-time winner in MLS history. He is currently 9th all-time in MLS wins by a coach.
Last season, Philadelphia Union fought their way to the semifinals of Leagues Cup before falling to eventual tournament champions Inter Miami CF. The Union bounced back and defeated CF Monterrey in the third-place game 3-0 at Subaru Park to clinch The Union's automatic place in the 2024 Concacaf Champions Cup. In that path, Philadelphia also defeated D.C. United in penalty kicks and New York Red Bulls in penalty kicks.
