No Silver Linings for FC Cincinnati Despite Clean Sheet Performance

March 10, 2024 – Major League Soccer (MLS) – FC Cincinnati News Release

FC Cincinnati are undefeated on the season, but you would never know it postgame based on the reactions from players and coaches. Despite earning five points through three league matches all while competing in continental competition and rotating heavily, FCC set the bar higher than that. Given their recent performances, they know they should be winning games, not drawing them.

“An overall frustrating afternoon in terms of the overall play and certainly trying to figure out how to score goals,” head coach Pat Noonan said in his opening statement. “That’s kind of the missing piece of the end result at the moment. Keep trying to find some answers as to why we can’t find the goals at the moment. But a disappointing result.”

For the third time in four games at TQL Stadium this season, FC Cincinnati was held off the score sheet despite creating multiple chances and looking the better team for the balance of the match in each of them. In this case, FCC out xG’d (expected goals) D.C. United by over 1.5 and limited their opponent to one high danger moment and just four shots on target total.

But there is no silver lining.

Noonan, who was concise and direct in his press conference Sunday afternoon making his thoughts clear in both his words and his demeanor, didn’t want to hear about lineup rotation or schedule congestion. He didn’t make excuses for the outcomes. Noonan’s thoughts were clear in both his words and demeanor. The expectation is to get finishes, and more particularly, wins at home.

“We’re accustomed to winning games at home and we’re not doing that right now. So, I wouldn’t expect anybody to be happy about the results,” Noonan added. “I think the play has been good enough to get results in different ways. … That’s why it’s disappointing because I think there was a win out there for us today.”

“We’re in our house and we couldn’t get what we wanted today, to give that for the fans, give three points,” captain Luciano Acosta said. “We need to keep working. … That’s all we can do is just keep looking at what we have done well, what we haven’t done well, correct those errors and keep doing what we’re succeeding at. But at the end of the day, it’s just keep working.”

“We’re a team that goes into every game wanting to win, expecting to win. Especially at home,” Corey Baird added. Baird had multiple shots miraculously saved by the D.C. goalkeeper, adding to the frustration as he searches…