February 26, 2024 – Major League Soccer (MLS) – FC Cincinnati News Release
A clean sheet is something to be proud of, but FC Cincinnati made it clear postgame that their nil-nil draw at home with Toronto FC wasn’t what they were looking for.
FC Cincinnati started their 2024 season on Sunday afternoon in celebration, but ended in disappointment, or rather, frustration. After raising a banner for winning the 2023 MLS Supporters’ Shield and recognizing 2023 MLS MVP Luciano Acosta in his 100th cap as captain of The Orange and Blue, FCC was held scoreless for 90 minutes while only generating 1.3 xG on seven shots on target.
From the get-go, FCC struggled to create chances in the final third, with TFC (last year’s last-place finishers in MLS) happy to sit back and defend their end, and when major opportunities did arise, the home side lacked that final touch of quality needed to secure a goal.
“A sloppy, slow game,” head coach Pat Noonan said to describe the afternoon matchup. “You can see just rhythm, intensity, quality, all of that was lacking specifically on our side. … There wasn’t a ton out there for us, in terms of our attack on a consistent basis. Sergio (Santos) had a good look, Lucho had a good look, but a lot of half chances.”
It was just the third time in Noonan’s tenure at FC Cincinnati that the club had played to a nil-nil draw, the first in nearly a year. While FCC hasn’t always been offensive juggernauts, going through the ebbs and flows any team does, it is a rare result for Noonan’s club.
The pace of the game was the thing most clearly affected for FCC. Last season and into this preseason, FCC has looked the part of a quick, dynamic, flexible squad. Part of that identity seemed missing in the season opener. Missed chances, short passes, and other tempo issues plagued the FC Cincinnati offense from start to finish.
There are multiple potential causes for that. In all likelihood, a combination of all three created Sunday’s frustrations.
The growing pains, in some ways, were clear. FCC started five newcomers to the roster, including two new center-backs, a wingback, a midfielder and a striker. On top of that, Yuya Kubo made his regular season debut as a wingback. Aaron Boupendza started the match as a reserve due to a minutes restriction, and Santos took over as the striker. FCC was utilizing an essentially new, never-before-seen lineup.
On many occasions, you could see, for example, Acosta and one of those new players, Luca Orellano, building…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at OurSports Central Major League Soccer MLS News…