After Leagues Cup heartbreak on Tuesday night, when The Orange and Blue couldn’t seal their own destiny and advance to the quarterfinals, FC Cincinnati are back in action on a short week as they travel to central Florida for a road matchup with Orlando City SC at Inter.Co Stadium on Saturday night.
FC Cincinnati make the trip after a busy last two weeks where the club played, effectively, every three days. So while they get an extra day's rest ahead of this one, it is out of the fire and into the frying pan for FCC as they head to the sweltering-hot mid-August sun in Orlando, Florida. With game-time temperatures expected to be in the mid-90s and real feel temps in the triple digits, FC Cincinnati are making no excuses and are looking to secure an important road result all the same.
“I think having the three days is enough for guys to turn it around as a starting point,” FC Cincinnati Head Coach Pat Noonan said Thursday before training on the trip to Orlando. “Is it difficult? Yes, with minutes and games adding up for certain players, it can be challenging.”
“A majority of the group have gotten a recovery at some point with the Pumas and Pachuca (games), so I feel comfortable that the guys are in a good enough state to turn it around for Orlando,” Noonan continued. “What we have to take into consideration is the extremes of the conditions, because it's going to be warm. How we start the game, how we finish the game, all those things become very important in the conversation…but I think they're in a good enough space physically and mentally.”
The Orange and Blue enter this match coming off a win in their last league match, having won five of their last eight matches overall, and having taken points in five of their last six road matches. But with an emotional letdown earlier this week in Leagues Cup, Pat Noonan is looking to build on those positives they gleaned over the last few weeks, while eliminating the small moments that are devastating their results.
“The message for guys to just continue to focus on getting better is the key, and it won't always be perfect, but we just need to eliminate some of those bigger mistakes,” Noonan said. “How do we improve as a team in these moments? It's moments. It's stages of cup play or a game. If you looked at the three games, it was a lot of good. But it's overshadowed by that last 15 minutes, and that's what we're trying to eliminate in being more engaged, understanding game management, and the emotional fragility. I think of the group when things don't go our way to have that on field leadership, to have the leadership from the touchline to navigate it in a better way.”
There is no reprieve for FC Cincinnati, as they return to TQL Stadium next Wednesday, August 19, to take on NYCFC and on Saturday, August 22, to host Seattle Sounders, capping a seven-match stretch in three weeks that opened in August.
FC Cincinnati at Orlando City SC – Saturday, August 15, 2026 – 7:30 p.m. ET – Inter.Co Stadium
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History vs Orlando
FC Cincinnati seek a second all-time season sweep over Orlando City (2022) after defeating
the Lions 6-2 at TQL Stadium back on May 23, the final match before the MLS pause for the
2026 FIFA World Cup. In that match. FC Cincinnati’s 6 goals equaled a club record for goals scored in an MLS match (9/10/22 vs SJ; 7/6/24 vs MIA).
FC Cincinnati are 3-0-1 at Orlando City SC under Head Coach Pat Noonan dating back to a 2-1
win in Orlando on March 12, 2022, which was his first-career win as FCC’s manager.
FC CINCINNATI NOTES
(Courtesy of *FC Cincinnati Communications*)
Back to MLS Action – FC Cincinnati return to Major League Soccer competition Saturday in the 15th all-time meeting with Orlando City SC, the seventh in Orlando. The Orange and Blue still have 16 matches to go, nearly half of the 34-match MLS slate, as the club seeks a fifth consecutive MLS postseason appearance
Evander – FC Cincinnati’s Evander has recorded an assist in five consecutive MLS matches, which is the longest single-season MLS assist streak in club history. An assist Saturday in his sixth straight MLS match would tie his MLS career high (July 13 - Sept. 18, 2024), which is tied for the fourth-longest streak in MLS history.
Kyle Smith Reunion – Cincinnati native Kyle Smith in his first season with FC Cincinnati will return to Orlando for the first time to face his former Orlando City side. Smith made 216 appearances in seven seasons from 2019-25 with Orlando and was part of the club’s 2022 U.S. Open Cup-winning season.
Scouting Orlando City SC (6-10-2, 20 Points, 10 in the Eastern Conference, L-W-W-L-W)
Orlando City SC come into this Saturday night showdown with FC Cincinnati in a somewhat similar situation to their opponents, having been eliminated in the final Phase One game of Leagues Cup earlier this week after an opportunity to advance. Orlando drew their final game in the tournament against Athletico San Luis and finished the tournament on five points.
The last time these two teams played, FC Cincinnati dominated en route to a 6-2 victory at TQL Stadium. But the team The Orange and Blue are meeting this time around could not be any different.
During the summer break, Orlando signed French forward, World Cup champion and international superstar Antoine Griezmann, who has brought a new dynamic to the team almost instantaneously.
“There are just players that have played at such a high level and won at a high level where, just the presence that they have helps a group,” FC Cincinnati Head Coach Pat Noonan said of the French star. “You think about the Orlando team that we played before the break, and now it’s completely different. I shouldn't say completely different, but I'm sure that the morale, and what Griezmann has brought to their group, it's noticeable. It's significant.
“I've talked to coaches that have already played him, and live what you see with the movements, being able to play him one and two touch, the game understanding, that just helps the flow of the game and control and tempo for a team,” Noonan continued. “Then being able to make the big play, the vocal leadership, that presence is so impactful to bring out the best of what is an already strong team, and so I think that's what you're seeing right now with his presence, his involvement, and they're a very strong team, and it'll be a very tough matchup for us.”
Griezmann, 35, has a goal and an assist in three MLS games and added a goal in Leagues Cup as well. But the squad Orlando has put together is hardly a one-man squad.
“(Daryl) Dike, (Marco) Pašalić, these are guys that, right now, have been in reserve roles, so it shows you the strength as well as Griezmann's addition to the group,” Noonan said. “(Justin) Ellis has been outstanding. (Ivan) Angulo has been there for a long time and is very strong as well, and this is without (Martin) Ojeda, who's been injured.”
“Defensively they've had (David) Brekalo and (Robin) Jansson for a while. Some experienced players, (Griffin) Dorsey's an addition, (Maxime) Crepeau in goal. So now you have a lot of experienced players, and they just look to be in good rhythm as far as the playing style. In possession, technical, they move the ball well. I think their attack is as good as any in the league, and then you start to look at the trends defensively of their shape, or maybe some of the differences from a couple months ago, just from recent games to help us prepare. They're a strong team.”
Orlando is managed by Interim Head Coach Martín Perelman, who was named the bench boss earlier this season after serving on the Orlando coaching staff for two years and as Head Coach of the MLS NEXT Pro side Orlando City B for two years before that. He has typically deployed the team in a 4-4-2 formation, but have also used a 4-2-3-1 formation as well.
