FC Cincinnati is unbeaten in their last six games in MLS action, and have at least in part shifted the tides of their season in that stretch. But after weeks of salvaging results and grinding out both draws and victories where it felt like losses were inevitable, the shoe was on the other foot Saturday night in Charlotte, North Carolina.
After taking a 2-0 lead into halftime, created by some dazzling actions from both Kévin Denkey and Evander, FC Cincinnati conceded twice in three minutes in the early stages of the second half to move from winning position to a draw. So despite earning a point on the road in a place that has been a bit of a house of horrors for The Orange and Blue, it felt like FCC left two points behind at Bank of America Stadium in a 2-2 draw with Charlotte FC.
“I thought it was a really strong performance that was a little bit overshadowed by a poor 10 minutes to begin the second half,” FC Cincinnati Head Coach Pat Noonan said in a statement to open his postmatch press conference. “That, I think, is the difference and, certainly, the result. But on the road, against a good Charlotte team, , I thought there was a lot of good stretches and ideas.”
Part of what may frustrate some is the optimism this match sparked. In the micro, a dreadful three to ten minutes sunk FC Cincinnati’s victory; but when taking a slight step back you might see that, save for those ten minutes, FCC played some of their best soccer of the year in large stretches. And when combined with the last few weeks of results, a trend is emerging.
“The 10 minutes out of the break is a good lesson for how the momentum shifts…outside of that, the guys did a lot of good things,” Noonan further explained in his press conference Saturday night. “I thought we did a good job after we conceded, and really, probably, that 10-minute stretch, 15-minute stretch, but then the last 30 minutes, it looked a lot like the first half.”
“I think it's a tough one, because obviously there were results this year where we were down and we were able to salvage a point. Now we were up, and lost out on three points. So, it's a learning step for us,” defender Matt Miazga added after the match. “The last, I would say, four or five weeks we’ve taken a good step, and I think now it's a good time for us to continue to grow.
“I think we had a really good first half. I think we really enjoyed the ball and obviously scored two great goals. Then we had a spell, ten minutes in the second half…these are things that we need to learn from and continue to grow. But I think we’ve made some steps in the right direction.”
FC Cincinnati played some of its strongest, most connected offensive soccer in the first half and earned a lead because of it. They put Charlotte FC under constant pressure, moved with ideas and creativity, and played under control on defense to counter the Charlotte attack when need be. Then, when the moments came, the stars were ready to shine and get them over the edge.
The first goal came over a free kick that Evander bent and blasted to the upper corner of Charlotte’s net. It first seemed like despite CLTFC goalkeeper and former MLS Goalkeeper of the Year winner Kristian Kalina’s best efforts, the ball had trickled past the goal line. The refs, though, ruled he had made the save, and so Kévin Denkey took no chances and he made sure to tap in the rebound.
The second was even more dazzling from Evander, who, while standing on the edge of the box, chipped a ball so perfectly that you couldn’t have placed it any better. He sent the spinning ball with the perfect loft, pace and trajectory to float over the keeper’s head, then down into goal where it nestled tightly into the netting just below the upper 90 of the goal post.
“This is three games running, where we're talking about this (version of) Evander. So that's been pretty consistent for a good stretch now,” Noonan explained of Evander. “That's him in a spot to do something special… not many players are capable of that. So, we go into half in a really good way because of how he was able to impact the game."
That lead took them into the halftime break. Charlotte responded with two goals in two minutes of halftime — a struggle that multiple players and Noonan described as an “important lesson” — but then perhaps the most interesting thing of the match happened.
FCC regained their balance, got resettled, and then returned to the high quality of play they had in the first half.
They couldn’t get over the hump, score and retake the lead, but if there was a team in this match who was going to…it was going to be FC Cincinnati.
“You conceded two in quick fashion like that. Now, it's about regaining control of our play, not just with the ball, but with how the game looks,” Noonan explained. “I thought we did a good job after we conceded.”
“It wasn't like we were in total control,” Noonan clarified. “But when we had the ball, we were moving the ball. We got into some good spots. They defended really well in the second half, and we couldn't really unlock some of the spaces and find some of the movements. But that part is where I think it got a little bit better.
“We talked about control before the game. It's not just about the ball, but it's about decisions, and it's about how it connects the game in a more controlled fashion when we're making good decisions as we move the ball field, and we got into that rhythm again in the second half."
“I think we had an amazing first half. I think we controlled the game and played the right way, had patience on the ball and created good chances. But we need to do that for ninety minutes,” Evander said from the locker room after the match. “I think the first five to ten minutes of the second half…we didn't have control, so the first five to ten minutes cost us two goals. So we need to be more aware, but alert, and get better in that aspect.”
The Orange and Blue closed the night by outshooting Charlotte, out possessing Charlotte, completing more passes and doing so at a higher completion rate, but ultimately not getting the finish they needed despite coming close on a few occasions.
So while yes, FC Cincinnati could not snag all three points, what they did do is once again out chance their opponent, improve their overall season record to 4-4-4, have now earned points on the road more often than they’ve lost, and, have a team with momentum, confidence and belief at their back.
“I think we still did well, of course, but we gave away two points because we had the game in our hands,” Evander said. “So we need to learn and move on, and we will.”
“We have a little bit of an unbeaten run now, which is nice, but we want wins,” Miazga added at the end of the night. “We have high standards here, so we want to get three points every game. But it's a trend in the right direction. Obviously, the start of the season wasn't great. So now we're turning a page in our season where we continue to grow. We've been having a lot of good training sessions, a lot of good weeks that we're building on…and I think you can see it, I think a lot of guys have stepped up in ways that benefit the team.”
FC Cincinnati face a tough week ahead, with matches against Inter Miami CF at home and then a trip out west to San Diego FC right after that to complete the trifecta of matches in a week. So while yes, all three points would have tasted a lot sweeter…there’s a lot to be pleased with about a point on the road in Charlotte.
