FC Cincinnati performed well in leg one of the competition and have now set themselves up for success in leg two, entering the match with a 4-1 lead.
In Concacaf Champions Cup, like many other continental competitions the world over, rounds are determined by a two-math, home-and-away, aggregate scoring, meaning FC Cincinnati now enters this second leg of Round One match with a big lead over Honduran side FC Motagua.
However, that lead, regardless of its size, is not changing the approach that Head Coach Pat Noonan is taking into this match and imparting to his squad.
"There's a desire to win." Noonan said Tuesday at the pre-match press conference held at Mercy Health Training Center. "Trust has to be there for who we put out there to go and get a result. So certainly, the first leg is positioned as well but doesn't guarantee anything for the second leg. Guys need to be prepared to go and perform."
In certain circumstances, some clubs may take the opportunity to use this kind of lead as a chance to play younger players, rest others, or experiment with new ideas. However, given the situation, FCC is in, there could also be a desire to get as many minutes on the field with its core group as possible, considering how few opportunities there were to do that in the preseason. It doesn't have to be all one thing or another, but the belief from Noonan's press conference is he expects whoever he puts out there to compete and earn a result.
"So there's no charity here for guys to get opportunities, you have to earn it," Noonan explained. "A lot is determined by the schedule, and we're obviously coming off our season opener with a quick turnaround. So we have to evaluate where players are with the recovery and take into account that on the back end of it, there's another game.
"So while we might approach it game by game, there's certainly an idea of how we see how players recover, and see how we make rotations, if we think that's something that we want to look at."
FC Cincinnati kick-off at TQL Stadium at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday before jetting off to Philadelphia to face the Union on Saturday. Should FC Cincinnati hold the lead and complete the two-leg victory, they will host Tigres UANL of Liga MX next Tuesday at TQL Stadium in the next round of the Concacaf Champions Cup.
FC CINCINNATI vs. FC Motagua (Hondurian Liga Nacional) – Wednesday, February 19, 2023 – 6:30 p.m. ET – TQL Stadium
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In the first leg
FC Cincinnati opened their competitive calendar in 2025 with a statement in the first leg of the matchup with Honduras' lone Concacaf Champions Cup entrant. Last week, The Orange and Blue traveled to Tegucigalpa, Honduras, to play at Estadio Nacional and defeated FC Motagua 4-1. The club's largest continental cup away victory.
Pavel Bucha opened the scoring before adding a second for a brace in the second half. In their debuts, Kévin Denkey and Evander scored to bring the score to the final. FC Motagua got on the board thanks to a cross in the 41 minutes that striker and leading goal scorer for the Honduran side, Rodrigo Auzmendi, headed to the far post for a goal.
FC CINCINNATI NOTES
Looking for three wins in three tries – For the second time in club history (2018), FC Cincinnati are a perfect 2-0-0 in the first two official games of the season. A win on Wednesday would mark the first time in the club’s 10th season that the Orange and Blue start a season 3-0-0.
Odds in FC Cincinnati’s favors – Aside from being ahead on aggregate by three goals, the Orange and Blue also bring four away goals scored in Honduras into Wednesday's fixture. If the aggregate score is tied after 90 minutes, the tiebreaker is away goals, which Cincinnati scored plenty of in Tegucigalpa.
Motagua must score at minimum four goals to take a 5-4 aggregate advantage. FC Cincinnati would also have to be held scoreless for that to go to the visitors’ advantage.
Tigres UANL await – Should FC Cincinnati advance to the Round of 16 in the Champions Cup, the Orange and Blue will meet Mexican club Tigres UANL. The first leg would be in Cincinnati on Tuesday, March 4, with a return trip to Monterrey set for March 11.
FC Cincinnati in non-MLS play – Wednesday will mark the 33rd non-MLS Regular Season match for FC Cincinnati since joining MLS in 2019. The club is 16-8-8 in the prior 32 matches, and 13-3-5 at home.
Last year in Round One – FC Cincinnati made club history last year in Round One of the Champions Cup, setting all-time team club records in shots (33) and shots on goal (17), both of which came in the second leg at TQL Stadium against Cavalier FC.
SCOUTING FC Motagua (4th place in Honduran Liga Nacional, 3-2-3, 11pts, 2023-2024 Apatura Champion and 2024 Central American Cup play-in winner)
FC Motagua have a great history of success in Honduran football and continental play. Founded in 1928, Ciclón Azul (Blue Cyclone) has won the top-flight Honduran league 19 times, won four domestic cups, and qualified for the Concacaf Champions Cup (or its successors) 19 times. In 2023 (the last time Motagua qualified), they made a run to the quarter-finals, defeating Pachuca of LIGA MX before falling to Tigres.
To qualify for this year's competition, FC Motagua defeated CD Águila of El Salvador in the Central American Cup play-ins after failing to make the semi-finals.
In their most recent match, though, FC Motagua lost 2-0 to Real Espana.
"We spent a good amount of time in our preparation to look at their previous games, to decide how we would approach it," FC Cincinnati Head Coach Pat Noonan said Tuesday. "But for me, it was more about our game that we focused on, because that's the best way to analyze playing a team again, is how we matched up against them."
"Certainly, there were things that played out in the first leg that were different than what we expected. But while we saw the result and looked at the lineup…we have an idea of what their strongest group is going to be, and we have no doubt that they're coming in with a strong group to try to change their fortune in this game. So for me, it's about our game against them that is the most important thing to look at to best prepare us for tomorrow."
Unfortunately, current reporting appears to suggest that three players, Sebastián Cardozo, Clever Portillo and Óscar Discua, will not be able to travel with the team due to Visa issues. Cardozo started the Leg 1 match for FC Motagua in Honduras.
Rodrigo Azumendi, an Argentine attacker, leads the team in the combined table with 12 goals between the Apatura and Clausura seasons. He also scored the lone goal for FC Motagua in Leg 1 and has a central point Pat Noonan has pointed out as quality.
Carlos Mejia, the younger of the brothers at 25 years old, leads the team in minutes played. He joined the club in 2021 after starting at Vida and made his Honduran senior national team debut in 2024. His older brother, Yeison, 28, made a brief stint in the MLS world in 2023. Playing 4 matches for Sporting Kansas City II in MLS NEXT Pro.
The job of goalkeeper has been split recently between Jonathan Rougier and Marlon Licona. Rougier, 37, has made over 240 appearances for Motagua and was called into the Honduran national team in 2024. He was also a candidate for Concacaf Goalkeeper of the Year in 2018. Licona, 33, has made over 150 appearances for FC Motagua and was also called into the national team in 2021 for the Gold Cup but did not appear. Rougier started the first match for FC Motagua.
FC Motagua is coached by Diego Vasquez, a legendary player and manager in the club's history. Vazquez coached the team from 2013 to 2022, when he left the club job to take over as Head Coach of the Honduras National Team. After a two-year stint, he returned to lead Motagua in 2023. As a manager, Vazquez has won the Honduran Liga Nacional five times and SuperCup once.
