FC Cincinnati defeated FC Motagua, 4-1, Wednesday night in the first leg of Round One of the 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup at Estadio Nacional Chelato Uclés in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. The win gives Cincinnati a commanding aggregate lead heading into next Wednesday’s second leg at TQL Stadium.
Cincinnati will first turn to Saturday’s MLS Regular Season Opener at TQL Stadium against the New York Red Bulls at 7:30 p.m. (MLS Season Pass on Apple TV | FCCincinnati.com/Tickets).
Pavel Bucha opened the scoring and led the way for the Orange and Blue, registering a brace in the match with newcomers Kévin Denkey and Evander also scoring in their respective FC Cincinnati debuts and adding to the total.
Seven FC Cincinnati players debuted for the club Wednesday, with Lukas Engel assisting Bucha’s second goal to join the scoresheet alongside Evander and Denkey. Evander, who was acquired by Cincinnati on Monday and entered the game in the 60th minute, additionally assisted Bucha’s second goal.
AS IT HAPPENED
CIN: Pavel Bucha, GOAL – 28’ (0-1) – Obinna Nwobodo linked up with Kévin Denkey on a long through ball which brought Denkey into the Motagua box. Denkey held possession, evading two defenders before rolling a pass back to Yuya Kubo at the top of the box. Kubo fired towards goal, but his attempt was blocked into the path of Pavel Bucha who followed up with a second effort, picking out the top left corner of goal.
MOT: Rodrigo Auzmendi, GOAL – 41’ (1-1) – Motagua controlled play down the right wing of the Cincinnati half against the run of play. Rodrigo Gómez whipped in a dangerous right footed cross which found the head of Rodrigo Auzmendi in the center of the box who snapped the effort in at the left post.
CIN: Kévin Denkey, GOAL – 49’ (1-2) – Denkey held possession for Cincinnati as the play developed for the Orange and Blue and played wide left for Lukas Engel. Denkey followed his distribution out to Engel with a charging run into the box where Engel sent a return ball in towards the target forward. A skillful touch and turn set Denkey up for a low shot which beat goalkeeper Jonathan Rougier.
CIN: Pavel Bucha, GOAL – 77’ (1-3) – A quick succession of short passes between Denkey, Bucha and Evander ended with Evander finding Bucha at the top of the box after drawing the attention of multiple Motagua defenders. Bucha received the pass and curled a composed goal into the net, matching his first half effort.
CIN: Evander, GOAL – 87’ (1-4) – Evander sealed the night with the fourth goal for Cincinnati with a leaping, first-time strike from close range. Alvas Powell set Evander up for the acrobatic finish with a soft, lofted cross from the left side of the penalty area. Evander connected with the pass from the six-yard box as his attempt clipped the underside of the crossbar on the way into the back of the net.
FC Cincinnati begin the 2025 MLS Regular Season on Saturday, February 22 at TQL Stadium against the New York Red Bulls, with kickoff set for 7:30 p.m. Limited tickets remain at FCCincinnati.com/Tickets, or call 513-977-KICK, to learn more.
The Orange and Blue and Motagua meet for the second leg of the Round One Champions Cup fixture next Wednesday, February 26 at TQL Stadium. Kickoff for the match is set for 6:30 p.m., with tickets also available at FCCincinnati.com/Tickets.
GAME NOTES
- Wednesday marked the 23rd match in FC Cincinnati history of the club scoring four-plus goals, the first since August 31, 2024 against CF Montréal.
- FC Cincinnati are 16-8-8 in 32 non-MLS Regular Season matches since 2019.
- Pavel Bucha netted his second career brace for FC Cincinnati (7/3/24 at DC).
- Seven players made their FC Cincinnati debuts on Wednesday night: Noah Adnan, Tah Brian Anunga, Stefan Chirila, Kévin Denkey, Lukas Engel, Evander and Gilberto Flores.
- Miles Robinson wore the captain’s armband for FC Cincinnati for the second time in his career (8/31/24 vs MTL).
- In starting Wednesday night, Noah Adnan became the fourth FC Cincinnati 2-contracted player to appear in a first-team match via short term agreement (Kai Thomas: 9/21/22 vs CDG, Leagues Cup Showcase; Bret Halsey: 6/21/23 vs TOR; Ben Stitz: 7/12/23 at RBNY).
FC CINCINNATI GAME REPORT
FC Cincinnati at FC Motagua
Date: February 19, 2025
Competition: Concacaf Champions Cup Round One, First Leg
Venue: Estadio Nacional Chelato Uclés | Tegucigalpa, Honduras
Attendance: 2,917
Kickoff: 10:06 p.m. ET | 9:06 p.m. CT
Weather: 67 degrees, clear
SCORING SUMMARY: 1-2-FT
MOT: 1-0-1
CIN: 1-3-4
MOT – Rodrigo Auzmendi (Gómez) 41’
CIN – Pavel Bucha 28’, Kévin Denkey (Engel) 49’, Pavel Bucha (Evander) 77’, Evander (Powell) 87’
LINEUPS
CIN: Roman Celentano, Lukas Engel (Gilberto Flores 84’), Alvas Powell, Miles Robinson, Noah Adnan (Tennage Hadebe 46’), DeAndre Yedlin, Pavel Bucha, Obinna Nwobodo, Yuya Kubo (Tah Brian Anunga 76’), Corey Baird (Evander 60’), Kévin Denkey (Stefan Chirila 85’)
Substitutes not used: Evan Louro, Paul Walters, Bret Halsey, Stiven Jimenez, Amir Daley, Peter Mangione
Head Coach: Pat Noonan
MOT: Jonathan Rougier, Giancarlo Sacaza, Cristopher Meléndez, Jonathan Núñez (Mathias Vásquez 67’), Raúl Santos (C), Sebastian Cardozo, Carlos Mejía (Jefryn Macías 68’), Riky Zapata (Clever Portillo 68’), Carlos Argueta (Yeison Mejía 32’), Rodrigo Gómez (Walter Martínez 67’), Rodrigo Auzmendi
Substitutes not used: Marlon Licona, Luis Vega, Edwin Maldonado, Héctor Castellanos, Edwin Munguía, Jordan García, Jordan García
Head Coach: Diego Vásquez
STATS SUMMARY: MOT/CIN
Shots: 11 / 16
Shots on Goal: 4 / 7
Saves: 3 / 3
Corner Kicks: 3 / 3
Fouls: 12 / 20
Offside: 2 / 2
Possession: 49 / 51
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
CIN – Noah Adnan (Yellow Card) 22’
MOT – Carlos Mejía (Yellow Card) 34’
CIN – Obinna Nwobodo (Yellow Card) 45’+1
CIN – Roman Celentano (Yellow Card) 70’
MOT – Walter Martínez (Yellow Card) 71’
OFFICIALS
Referee: Bryan López
Ast. Referees: Juan Tipaz, Cristian Alvarado
Fourth Official: Cristhofer Corado
