After an emotional victory Saturday night on the West Coast, FCC have returned home and will turn the page quickly for a midweek tilt with Philadelphia Union at TQL Stadium Wednesday night.
The trip to California resulted in three points for The Orange and Blue, but with injury adding to the absences along the defensive back line questions have emerged as to how FCC will respond. FC Cincinnati Head Coach Pat Noonan confirmed Monday that center back Matt Miazga, who exited Saturday’s match with a leg injury, will not be available and with Miles Robinson away on international duty, the depth of the roster will be tested.
“I still feel good with them, with what we have,” Noonan said Monday of his available defenders. “But of course, when you lose key pieces, the experience, the leadership, the quality, especially in that position, we'll take a hit.”
“So we'll look at our options and see what the best combination is. But yeah, we're talking about losing two key pieces. But our opponent for Wednesday is missing a lot of pieces too. So that can't be an excuse.”
Philadelphia enter the match struggling but have always played FCC tough, especially since Pat Noonan, who left Philly to take over as FCC’s Head Coach. So while the table may reflect a poor matchup with FCC as clear favorites, Noonan is clear eyed in his understanding of the opponent and how tough a game this is expected to be.
“They've been stable for a long time, and when you're stable and at the top of the league for so long, anytime there's a stretch where you're not winning games, you're not getting results, there's going to be criticism. That's a part of what we're all dealing with. So I think the compliment there is it's been so long since we've seen them have struggles. But I can tell you, with Jim (Curtin) and with some of those leaders, they're going to be fine.”
“That's my view of it, and it doesn't make me any more comfortable about Wednesday. If there's anything that you know, anytime their backs are against the wall, these guys step up. Jim knows how to lead that group, so we have to be very cautious about an opponent that, while they might be struggling with results, has been in these situations before and come out on top.”
FCC enters Saturday’s match in second place in the Supporters’ Shield table, two points back with two games in hand over leading Inter Miami CF. The Orange and Blue though does lead MLS in points per game with 2.12, well ahead of last season's 2.03 points per game pace that earned FCC 69 points and the 2023 Supporters Shield.
FC Cincinnati vs Philadelphia Union – Wednesday, June 19, 2024 – 7:45 p.m. ET – TQL Stadium
Stream: Free on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV
TV: FS1
TV Talent (English, Apple): Jake Zivin (PxP), Taylor Twellman (Analyst)
TV Talent (Spanish, Apple): Alejandro Figueredo (PXP), Jamie Macias (Analysis)
TV Talent (FS1): Luis Omar Tapia (PxP), Tony Meola (Analyst)
Radio: ESPN 1530
Radio Talent: Tom Gelehrter (PXP), Kevin McCloskey (Analyst)
All-time vs Philadelphia Union
In a rematch of the 2023 MLS Eastern Conference Semifinals, FCC will host Philadelphia Union at TQL Stadium. In that last visit, FCC triumphed with a 1-0 victory thanks to a late goal by Yerson Mosqeura to secure the victory.
The playoff victory improved FCC’s all-time record against The Union, to 3-6-3 but owns a 3-2-1 record when playing at TQL Stadium. Since Pat Noonan joined The Orange and Blue after serving as an assistant coach under longtime Union gaffer Jim Curtin, FCC has gone 3-1-2 against his old club, with the lone loss coming in the 2022 MLS Cup Playoffs.
It is the first visit with Philadelphia this season but in 2023, FCC were undefeated against Philly, earning a 1-0 win at TQL Stadium on April 8 and a 2-2 draw at Subaru Park on September 16.
FC CINCINNATI NOTES
Wednesday Warriors – Under Pat Noonan, FC Cincinnati have historically fared well on Wednesday. Since 2022, across all competitions, FCC are 11-3-5 in 19 matches falling on a Wednesday. The Orange and Blue are 2-1-0 on Hump Day, with five more scheduled Wednesday matches this season, including against Philadelphia.
Top Man – Yuya Kubo was voted the Major League Soccer Player of the Matchday for Matchday 20, the league announced Monday. He earned the seventh MLS Player of the Week/Matchday honor in FCC history, and became the first Japanese player in MLS history to win the award.
Re(Union) – Wednesday’s the seventh 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 3-1-2 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.
Forward Sergio Santos (75 GP / 47 GS - 19G, 7A w/PHI -2019-22) and Defender Alvas Powell (5GS / 4 GP w/PHI - 2021) each spent part of their MLS careers with Philly.
Debutants – FC Cincinnati have already had nine players score their first goal with the club in 24, the second most in the club’s MLS history. In 2019 (the club’s first season in MLS) FCC had 13 players score, and in 2021 the club had nine. This season the nine players are (in order): Malik Pinto, Alvas Powell, Isaiah Foster, Gerardo ‘Dado’ Valenzuela, Miles Robinson, Luca Orellano, Corey Baird, Kevin Kelsy and most recently Pavel Bucha.
Record Breaking – After his three assist performance Saturday night, Luciano Acosta is now tied for 10th all-time with 91 assists and will solely own the 10th place spot with his next assist. The effort tied MLS legends Cobi Jones and Diego Valeri, further cementing Lucho’s spot in the history of the league.
Scouting Philadelphia Union (3-11-2, 11 points, 14th in Western Conference, L-T-T-T-W)
The Union find themselves in unfamiliar territory entering the match Wednesday and with many absences due to injury and international duty Head Coach Jim Curtain said after their most recent loss to Inter Miami CF that they would need to solve these problems together if they looked to get back to those winning ways.
Philadelphia enter the match with a 4-5-8 record, but have been far better on the road this season than they have been at home. With a 1-5-3 record at Subaru Park they have struggled, but on the road Philly is undefeated with a 3-0-5 record. But with most of those results coming in the opening nine weeks of the season, it has been a struggle in recent weeks as the club has only secured six points from their last seven matches.
The struggles hit a fever pitch last weekend when despite playing two men up thanks to red cards for Inter Miami CF, The Union not only failed to find a match winner but conceded late to fall 2-1.
FCC will have a difficult time predicting their opponent this weekend as the Pennsylvania club will have several players unavailable for them due to international duty or injury. Dániel Gazdag will be away with Hungary at EURO 2024, Damion Lowe (Jamaica), Jose Martinez (Venezuela), will be away at the 2024 Copa America, and Alejandro Bedoya could be unavailable due to injury. Julian Carranza could also be absent from the match as The Union are reportedly close to finalizing a move to transfer the 24-year-old to Dutch side Feyenoord. Starter and star keeper Andre Blake has also been out long term as the keeper recovers from injury.
“It's tricky, because we've seen different structures from their group in our particular matchups. You know, (Jack) Elliot comes back into play. Maybe Bedoya looks potentially out but I can't say that with certainty, so, knowing some of these players in a strong group, it could, it could look like a five (man backline) it could look like a four (man backline). It's just a matter of what they see as their best 11,” Noonan said of Philadelphia.
“But we've seen two different real structures (from Philadelphia) with a 5-3-2, if you will, and the diamond with a back four. I know these are all just numbers but it's typically been what we've seen from our matchups. And we just, we have to look at both, because, you know, it's a unique situation with player availability for them and who they're going to field…we still have to be prepared for what will be a very challenging game, despite some key pieces that they're missing.”
For the most part, Philadelphia has been one of the better clubs in the east in terms of scoring goals. The Union are third in the east with 28 goals and sixth in goal differential with +3.
Starter and star keeper Andre Blake has also been out long term as the keeper recovers from injury. Oliver Semmle has taken over for the Jamaica star and has started 13 matches while conceding 21 goals. Semmle, a German native who came to the United States to attend Marshall University (and win the 2020 NCAA National Championship) and was selected by the Colorado Rapids in the 2023 MLS SuperDraft but went unsigned. After a season with Louisville City in USL, Semmle joined Philly before the 2024 season.
