RECAP | New England Revolution 1, FC Cincinnati 2

FC Cincinnati defeated the New England Revolution, 2-1, Sunday afternoon at Gillette Stadium to earn the club’s first win over the Revolution since nearly five years ago to the day – March 24, 2019. Yuya Kubo and Luciano ‘Lucho’ Acosta each scored their first MLS goals of 2024 in the 52nd and 54th minutes, respectively.

The Orange and Blue improve to 2-0-2 (8 points) to sit in third place in the MLS Eastern Conference standings through four games. The Revolution remain winless in league play (0-4-0). 

Acosta and Luca Orellano, two FC Cincinnati substitutes who did not start following Thursday’s Concacaf Champions Cup match in Monterrey, Mexico, made an immediate impact as they entered to begin the second half. The duo combined for a goal which was ruled offside just 30 seconds into the half but set the stage for a Cincinnati offensive barrage to open the second half.

AS IT HAPPENED
CIN: Yuya Kubo, GOAL – 52’ (0-1) – Cincinnati’s early half offensive onslaught was rewarded after quick passes led to New England conceding a corner kick. Substitute Luciano Acosta sent in the corner kick which cleared everyone in the middle of the box and found Yuya Kubo waiting at the back post to head in a goal which crossed the goal line, despite goalkeeper Henrich Ravas getting a hand to it.

CIN: Luciano Acosta, GOAL – 54’ (0-2) – The Orange and Blue doubled their lead just two minutes after the game’s opener. After Sergio Santos was fouled just outside New England’s penalty area, Acosta lined up to take the free kick, which he fired near post under the Revolution’s jumping wall.

NE: Giacomo Vrioni, GOAL – 62’ (1-2) – A Cincinnati turnover in the midfield found New England Designated Player Giacomo Vrioni in a counter against the FCC defense, which Vrioni deposited into the bottom left corner of the net.

The win improved FC Cincinnati’s stout record under Head Coach Pat Noonan when playing on two-days rest. The Orange and Blue have played all four of their league games this year on two-days rest and are 14-2-5 all-time under Noonan when playing a game just three days following another, across all competitions.

The Orange and Blue return home to TQL Stadium next Saturday, March 23 to take on New York City FC. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET and the match will stream on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV. Tickets are available at FCCincinnati.com/Tickets or by calling (513) 977-5425 (KICK).

GAME NOTES
- FC Cincinnati improved to 2-5-3 all-time against the Revolution, snapping an eight-match winless streak against the MLS charter club … The lone other win came in the first matchup between the clubs, FC Cincinnati’s fifth-ever MLS match.
- FC Cincinnati went 4-2-2 (all competitions) in the first eight games across 25 days to begin the 2024 season. 
- Luciano Acosta has scored in each of his past three MLS matches for FC Cincinnati when coming off the bench as a substitute (March 17, 2024 at NE; 10/4/23 vs RBNY; 6/10/23 at VAN). 
- Acosta’s eight career assists against the New England Revolution are his most against any club … He is one of only 12 players all-time to have recorded 8+ career assists against the Revolution. 
- Acosta is two goals shy of matching Brandon Vazquez’s club record of 43 goals across all competitions. 
- Acosta extended his club record in total games with multiple goal contributions (2+ goals or assists) to 23 across all competitions, 20 in regular season play. 
- FC Cincinnati have won in back-to-back matches on turf (August 30, 2023 at ATL) after entering the Atlanta match failing to win on turf since the 2019 match at Gillette Stadium (0-7-5). 
- Yuya Kubo scored his first MLS goal since September 10, 2022 vs San Jose Earthquakes
- FC Cincinnati started two FCC Academy products, with Gerardo Valenzuela earning his first career MLS start.

FC CINCINNATI GAME REPORT
FC Cincinnati at New England Revolution
Date: March 17, 2024
Competition: MLS Regular Season
Venue: Gillette Stadium
Attendance: 14,557
Kickoff: 2:10 p.m. ET
Weather: 57degrees, clear

SCORING SUMMARY: 1-2-F
NE: 0-1-1
CIN: 0-2-2

NE – Giacomo Vrioni 62'

CIN – Yuya Kubo (Acosta) 52’, Luciano Acosta 54’

LINEUPS
CIN: Roman Celentano, Yuya Kubo, Kipp Keller (Ian Murphy 74’), Matt Miazga (C), Miles Robinson, DeAndre Yedlin, Pavel Bucha, Malik Pinto (Luca Orellano 46’), Gerardo Valenzuela (Luciano Acosta 46’), Corey Baird (Stiven Jimenez 87’), Sergio Santos (Aaron Boupendza 66’)

Substitutes not used: Evan Louro, Arquimides Ordoñez, Alvas Powell, Nick Hagglund, Bret Halsey

Head Coach: Pat Noonan

NE: Henrich Ravas, Dave Romney, Henry Kessler, Nick Lima (Ryan Spaulding 66’), DeJuan Jones, Ian Harkes (Emmanuel Boateng 86’), Mark-Anthony Kaye, Esmir Bajraktarevic (Nacho Gil 66’), Tomás Chancalay, Giacomo Vrioni, Carles Gil (C)

Substitutes not used: Earl Edwards Jr., Jonathan Mensah, Thomas McNamara, Noel Buck, Andrew Farrell

Head Coach: Caleb Porter

STATS SUMMARY: NE/CIN
Shots: 17 / 13
Shots on Goal: 7 / 5
Saves: 3 / 6
Corner Kicks: 7 / 3
Fouls: 12 / 13
Offside: 0 / 4
Possession: 59.1 / 40.9

MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
NE – Ian Harkes (Yellow Card) 48’
CIN – DeAndre Yedlin (Yellow Card) 63’
CIN – Luca Orellano (Yellow Card) 69’
CIN – Luciano Acosta (Yellow Card) 72’
NE – DeJuan Jones (Yellow Card) 83’
CIN – Pavel Bucha (Yellow Card) 85’
NE – Giacomo Vrioni (Yellow Card) 90’+4
NE – Nacho Gil (Yellow Card) 90’+8
CIN – Aaron Boupendza (Yellow Card) 90’+9

OFFICIALS 
Referee: Richonne Clark
Ast. Referees: Albert Escovar, Diego Armando Parra
Fourth Official: Lorant Varga
VAR: Dave Gantar