CINCINNATI – FC Cincinnati fell to Inter Miami CF, 3-2, in the club’s first-ever match at TQL Stadium on Sunday afternoon. Alvaro Barreal and Nick Hagglund scored FC Cincinnati’s first two goals at the venue.
Inter Miami CF (3-2-2, 11 pts.) opened the scoring in the seventh minute when Gregore played a ball from the edge of the attacking third to the far post, where Brek Shea stabbed it into the back of the net. FC Cincinnati (0-3-1, 1 pt.) nearly equalized at the half-hour mark when Alvaro Barreal sent a left-footed shot from outside the box just wide of the far post.
The away side doubled their lead in the 38th minute as Gonzalo Higuain trickled the ball beyond Kenneth Vermeer. The Orange and Blue battled back, however, when Alvaro Barreal scored FCC's first-ever goal at TQL Stadium in the 59th minute.
FCC equalized in the 82nd minute via a Nick Hagglund header, however, Inter Miami scored the game-winning goal just minutes later.
Three FC Cincinnati players -- Geoff Cameron, Gustavo Vallecilla and Kenneth Vermeer -- made their FCC debuts and earned their first starts with the club in today’s match.
FC Cincinnati will return to action next weekend when the club heads to Fort Lauderdale, Fla. to play the Montreal Impact at DRV PNK Stadium on Saturday, May 22. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. ET, and the game will be televised on WSTR 64, carried on the radio on ESPN1530, streamed regionally on fccincinnati.com/stream, out of market on ESPN+, while an audio stream will be available via the iHeartRadio app.
For up-to-the-minute information about FC Cincinnati, visit the team’s official website at fccincinnati.com, or follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook at @FCCincinnati. Additionally, fans are encouraged to download the team’s official mobile app on the Apple App Store or Google Play for instant access to mobile tickets, team content and match notifications.
Information about seating options at the club’s state-of-the-art TQL Stadium is now available at TQLstadium.com. For more information about 2021 Season Ticket Memberships, which are now on sale to the general public, visit TQLstadium.com or the stadium’s social properties on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram at @TQLStadium, or by calling the team’s sales and service staff at 513-977-5425.
Inter Miami CF 2, FC Cincinnati 1
TQL Stadium | Cincinnati, Ohio
May 16, 2021
SCORING SUMMARY
MIA – Brek Shea (Gregore, Lewis Morgan) 7’
MIA – Gonzalo Higuain (Federico Higuain, Sami Guediri) 38’
CIN – Alvaro Barreal (Ronald Matarrita) 59’
CIN – Nick Hagglund (Luciano Acosta) 82’
MIA – Gonzalo Higuain (Lewis Morgan) 85’
FC Cincinnati:, Kenneth Vermeer, Ronald Matarrita, Gustavo Vallecilla (Nick Hagglund 78’), Geoff Cameron (Brandon Vazquez 86’), Joseph-Claude Gyau, Allan Cruz, Yuya Kubo (Haris Medunjanin 74’), Luciano Acosta ©, Calvin Harris (Jurgen Locadia HT), Brenner, Alvaro Barreal (Isaac Atanga 74’)
Bench: Przemysław Tytoń, Zico Bailey, Edgar Castillo, Nick Hagglund, Haris Medunjanin, Caleb Stanko, Isaac Atanga, Jürgen Locadia,
Stats: Shots 11, Shots on goal 5, Saves 4, Corner kicks 7, Offsides 2, Fouls 16, Possession 52.6%, Passes 456 (86.6%)
Inter Miami CF: John McCarthy, Sami Guediri (Joevin Jones 64’), Leandro Gonzalez Pirez ©, Ryan Shawcross, Brek Shea (Jay Chapman 78’) Victor Ulloa, Blaise Matuidi, Gregore, Federico Higuain (Julian Carranza 78’), Lewis Morgan (Rodolfo Pizarro,
90’), Gonzalo Higuain (Christian Makoun 90’)
Bench: Dylan Castanheira, Edison Azcona, Joshua Penn
Stats: Shots 10, Shots on goal 7, Saves 3, Corner kicks 7, Offsides 2, Fouls 17, Possession 47.4%, Passes 422 (81.3%)
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
CIN – Ronald Matarrita (caution) 14’
MIA – Sami Guederi (caution) 23’
CIN – Calvin Harris (caution) 40’
CIN – Gustavo Vallecilla (caution) 41’
CIN – Allan Cruz (caution) 65’
CIN – Geoff Cameron (caution) 69’
MIA – Gregore (caution) 88’
MIA – Leandro Gonzalez Pirez (caution) 88’
Referee: Ramy Touchan
Assistant Referees: Eric Boria, Cory Richardson
4th Official: Ian McKay
VAR: Kevin Terry Jr.
AVAR: Walt Heatherly
Weather: 72 degrees and cloudy
GAME NOTES
- With tonight’s loss, the Orange and Blue are now 0-3-1 through four MLS matches … FCC are now 0-1-0 in home matches … FC Cincinnati’s all-time, all-competition record against Inter Miami CF moves to 0-2-0 … The Orange and Blue are now 0-3-1 against Eastern Conference opponents this season
- Tonight’s contest was FC Cincinnati’s first match at TQL Stadium … in five professional seasons in USL and MLS, the Orange and Blue posted a 38-24-23 record at Nippert Stadium across all competitions … in MLS regular-season matches, FCC were 4-15-7 in games played at Nippert Stadium
- FC Cincinnati’s TQL Stadium is one of three venues to debut this season … Austin FC will host the San Jose Earthquakes in the Q2 Stadium opener on June 19 … Columbus Crew SC will open New Crew Stadium against the New England Revolution on July 3
- Alvaro Barreal scored his first career FC Cincinnati goal in today’s match … in addition, Ronald Matarrita picked up his second assist of the campaign
- Nick Hagglund scored his second FC Cincinnati goal in the 82nd minute of today’s match … Luciano Acosta recorded his first FCC assist and became the first FCC player to record both a goal and an assist this season
- Three players made their FC Cincinnati debuts and first FCC starts in today’s match: Goalkeeper Kenneth Vermeer, defender Geoff Cameron and defender Gustavo Vallecilla … Vermeer made four saves in his FCC debut …. Cameron started and played 86 minutes before he was replaced by Brandon Vazquez … Vallecilla started and played 78 minutes before he was replaced by Nick Hagglund
- Head coach Jaap Stam made five changes in today’s starting lineup from the match against New York City FC on April 24 … Kenneth Vermeer, Geoff Cameron, Gustavo Vallecilla, Allan Cruz and Calvin Harris replaced Przemysław Tytoń, Nick Hagglund, Tom Pettersson, Kamohelo Mokotjo and Jurgen Locadia.
- Franko Kovacevic, Tom Pettersson and Maikel van der Werff were excluded from the matchday roster because of injuries.
POSTGAME QUOTES
FC Cincinnati head coach Jaap Stam
On tonight’s match
“That’s been beautiful. Everybody’s been looking forward to the first home game again in the new stadium, the atmosphere was fantastic. The fans were great as well. It’s good to know, even when we were behind, they keep on cheering and making noise and helping the team, and I think that is a very important thing because it helps the players. They feel more comfortable, they feel the excitement from the fans as well as they were pushing them forward, you could see that today. Hopefully within a short amount of time everybody can join in and the stadium can be a sellout. The fans have done a great job and that gives us a great feeling and hopefully we can show them many good games in the future.”
On the response from the halftime deficit
“The response was good. In the first half we could have done a lot better, maybe should have as well, and everybody knows that. We could have used the space a lot better, we should have made it a lot better, to make it more difficult. The second half we came back and scored two goals, two very good goals as well coming back into the game. That’s what we’re looking for, that tells you a lot about the team. They want to keep going for a result, that’s why after conceding the third goal everyone is disappointed, because everybody is feeling that we need to have that little bit of luck, maybe that can change a whole game. That’s a little bit of positiveness can make a big change in soccer. We’re going to be back at it tomorrow working to get a result in the next game.”
On the ability to score two goals after conceding two
“To go from down two goals to tying it up, there is a spark. It is positive, but that is not the only thing. We could have and maybe should have scored more goals ourselves; it isn’t only about Miami scoring three goals, they got these goals very easily. They outplayed in those situations and were a bit sharper in those moments. We need to work hard every day, at the end of the day and these moments especially in the second half and getting back into the game are very positive.”
FC Cincinnati winger Alvaro Barreal
On his first goal with FC Cincinnati.
“Bueno, feliz por hacer mi primer gol en el FCC (FC Cincinnati), con todo los fanáticos, la primera vez que juego aquí con fanáticos. Por ese lado estoy feliz, y a la misma vez triste por no haberles dado una victoria. Bueno, pedirles perdón de parte de mi y de todo el grupo a los fanáticos. Nos hubiera encantado regalarles una victoria.”
“Yeah, I am happy that I scored my first goal with FC Cincinnati, in front of all the fans. It was the first time I played here with fans. On that side, I am happy, but at the same time sad that we couldn’t give them a win. I would like to apologize to the fans from my part and from the group. We would’ve loved to give the fans a win.”
On the importance of his first goal
“Muy importante. Lo necesitaba. Lo estaba buscando en los últimos partidos. No se me estaba dando por mala suerte. Me vino muy bien en lo personal para darme más confianza para poder seguir creciendo, para poder aportar todo lo que puedo en este equipo. Unas de las cosas son los goles. Por suerte, se me pudo dar en el estreno del estadio. Estoy muy feliz por ese lado.”
“Very important. I needed it. I had been looking for it in the last couple of games. Unfortunately, it wasn't going my way. Personally, this is great for me. It gives me the confidence to keep growing and to be able to contribute all that I can to this team. One of the things that help is goals. Fortunately, It went my way in our first game at the stadium. I am very happy with that.”
On his first time playing in front of FC Cincinnati fans
“Muy buena, como dije antes, estoy muy contento por haber jugado mi primer partido con los fanáticos. Es muy lindo para mi conocerlos por ahora, aunque está habilitado para que vengan todos. Estoy muy entusiasmado por jugar con todo el estadio lleno. Hoy, me sentí muy bien. Muy comodo. Los fanáticos alentando todo el partido, eso mi ayuda. Me da mucha confianza. Otra vez, pedirles perdón porque nos hubiese encantado regalarles una victoria.”
“Very good. Like I said before, I am very happy that I was able to play my first game in front of the fans. It was really nice for me to get to know them, even though we cannot have the full capacity yet. I am excited to play in front of a full stadium. Today, I felt good. I felt comfortable. The fans were cheering the entire game, that helps me. It gives me confidence. Again, I am sorry we could not give them a victory.”
FC Cincinnati defender Nick Hagglund
On scoring in the first game at TQL Stadium
“Amazing to be honest. I’ve been hurt all week. I basically got in one training session. I knew that both guys maybe didn’t have 90 minutes in them, so I had to be ready, and to come on and score a goal in the home opener is a Cincinnati kid’s dream. To christen the stadium with a kid from Cincinnati scoring a goal hopefully will help other kids dream big like that as well.”
On the debuts in the backline and at goal
“Geoff (Cameron) and Gustavo (Vallecilla), Gustavo speaks Spanish, and they just met each other this week … and Kenneth (Vermeer) just got here as well. For me, there’s a lot of bright things there. The cohesion will only get better. Obviously, there are little things here and there, little miscommunications from not being used to each other, it’s been literally a week. But there are a lot of good things that I saw.”
On the difference in the second half
“Putting the 2-0 down and going after the next goal. Once we got that next goal, you could see the momentum shift and you saw the belief in the guys grow. Towards the end of the game, it was all us. Just the belief from scoring that goal and breaking the seal allows the guys to believe more and have confidence in each other and what they’re doing. Taking this momentum of being able to score two goals, being able to come back from two goals, believing in that and knowing we can do that is crucial moving forward.”
