FC Cincinnati downs CF Montréal, 3-0, to claim MLS history | Replay
The FC Cincinnati triumphs at TQL Stadium were starting to feel routine. The noteworthy history the club made in its latest home win was a reminder that what the club is doing right now is anything but routine.
FC Cincinnati ploughed through Club de Foot Montréal, 3-0, Wednesday at TQL Stadium with 23,461 looking on from the grandstands.
The win pushed FC Cincinnati to 8-1-3 in MLS regular season contests, as well as to the front of the race for the Supporters Shield, which is awarded to the league's best regular-season team.
Montréal defender Joel Waterman scored against his own team off an Alvaro Barreal free-kick in the second minute, and FCC built on that advantage with a 26th-minute tally from Luciano Acosta and a 65th-minute goal from Brandon Vazquez.
“Excellent performance. That was probably our strongest overall in every way," FC Cincinnati head coach Pat Noonan said afterward. "Good, strong start, which we had talked about - how we could get a little bit better with the first 10-15 minutes of a game, and certainly they responded in a good way there. And I just thought the discipline on the defensive side of the ball, which we talked about. Some certain things in this particular game that maybe could cause us problems. I thought our front three were excellent in how they directed the ball in certain ways, aerial duels, our backline did excellent when they played direct, and we picked up a lot of turnovers and won some balls in some really good areas.
"We weren't necessarily the cleanest in those transition moments, but the guys did a really good job of doing what they were tasked to do on the defensive side of the ball. Nice to see three goals. Overall, just really pleased with the group effort.”
Facing a surging Montréal side that had won six games in a row including two in the Canadian Championship tournament, FC Cincinnati goalkeeper Roman Celentano made four saves to preserve his sixth shutout of the season.
Above all the other developments produced by the match was the distinction FC Cincinnati earned by becoming the fourth-ever MLS club to start a season with a 7-0-0 record at home.
FCC joined the 2000 Kansas City Wizards, the 2002 San Jose Earthquakes and the 2020 Philadelphia Union in earning this distinction. And this isn't just a random statistic because history tells us teams that pull this off go on to accomplish big things.
The Wizards of 2000 pulled off the rare Supporters Shield-MLS Cup "double" while the 2020 Union (Noonan as an assistant coach on that team) were awarded the Supporters Shield as regular-season champions.
Frank Yallop's Earthquakes didn't win any trophies in 2002 (current FCC assistant Dominic Kinnear was an assistant on that team) but still had a very strong season, finishing second in the league-wide standings before advancing to the semifinal round of the playoffs and the quarterfinal round of the U.S. Open Cup.
To the front of the pack (full time)
FC Cincinnati made routine work of a Montréalside that had been surging via six straight victories, dominating the Quebec club, 3-0.
There will be a lot to chew on from this game so let's not forget Ian Murphy filling in at center back and Dominique Badji doing the same at forward. Both players did the job and then some, although their respective performances are likely to get overlooked in the rout and other talking points that are produced.
We'll learn more about the club's forward situation when Pat Noonan speaks to local media members Thursday morning but we know Arquimides Ordonez is out of the picture due to international duty (Guatemala). We also know Brenner is working back from an injury, didn't dress for Wednesday's game and is basically an unknown for a variety of reasons from match to match.
All that, plus Sergio Santos picking up an injury in training this week, and it could point to more Badji in the future. That would be a welcome sight based on his output Wednesday, and really any time he's on the field.
FCC is 8-1-3 and officially leading the Supporters Shield race. These are truly memorable days at TQL Stadium.
Vazquez heating up (65')
Luciano Acosta isn't the only FC Cincinnati player heating up. Brandon Vazquez coolly slotted home from 18 yards out for his third MLS goal of the season and his fourth in all competitions. The goal was vintage Vazquez, who has goals in two consecutive matches including the May 10 Open Cup match.
Halftime
History tells us this match is far from over. For now, Cincinnati looks like it's in firm control at 2-0, though. The goals came via Montréal's Joel Waterman and FC Cincinnati's Luciano Acosta. As mentioned below, Acosta now has three goals on the season and one in each of the last two MLS matches. Scary to think of him getting hot entering the summer months and making Cincinnati that much more potent.
Acosta again (26')
Luciano Acosta had a lovely solo run that ended with an easy goal for 2-0. The score was Lucho's second in as many MLS matches. It also gave him three for the season as he's starting to get hot.
Underway and FCC's in the lead (2')
FC Cincinnati leads about 90 seconds into the match at 1-0. An Alvaro Barreal free-kick near midfield was played into a dangerous area in the Montréal penalty area. That's about all you can say for FCC's work on the play because the next touch from a player on the field was Montréal defender Joel Waterman, who finished very nicely − but on his own goalkeeper. Matt Miazga and Brandon Vazquez were both near Waterman so it's fair to think a shot would have come from the free-kick. The ball bouncing in the back of the Montréal net made it a dream start.
History at stake for Cincinnati
In the midst of its best start in team history (9-1-3 overall; 7-1-3 in MLS), FC Cincinnati is 6-0-0 in league play to begin the 2023 season. A win against Montreal would make FCC the fourth-ever MLS club to start a season at 7-0-0 at home in the post-shootout era of MLS.
The starters
FC Cincinnati starting lineup: Roman Celentano (GK), Alvas Powell, Nick Hagglund, Matt Miazga, Ian Murphy, Alvaro Barreal, Obinna Nwobodo, Luciano Acosta (captain), Junior Moreno, Dominique Badji, Brandon Vazquez.
CF Montreal starting lineup: Jonathan Sirois (GK), Rudy Camacho (captain), Joel Waterman, Aaron Herrera, George Campbell, Gabriele Corbo, Bryce Duke, Mathieu Choniere, Chinonso Offar, Ariel Lassiter, Sean Rea.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: FC Cincinnati downs CF Montréal, 3-0, to claim MLS history | Replay
