FC Cincinnati downs Toronto FC in seven-goal thriller to reach 10th win of 2024

TORONTO − FC Cincinnati head coach Pat Noonan could still appreciate the entertainment value of FC Cincinnati's win over Toronto FC even though that kind of entertainment is often a head coach's worst nightmare.

The 4-3 FC Cincinnati win at BMO Field on Saturday was the kind of entertainment that likely causes Noonan to stir in bed and raise his voice during meetings at the Mercy Health Training Center. At least his FCC was on the right side of the score line.

Sergio Santos scored for FC Cincinnati in the 93rd minute, breaking a rowdy 3-3 tie. The goal was the second in as many games for Santos. It wasn't the last dramatic act of the match, but FCC managed to make the goal stand as it closed out its seventh consecutive win.

In the final 45 minutes, plus nine minutes of added time, two playoff-caliber teams exchanged punches to the tune of six goals and six lead changes. A lively crowd of 27,941 supercharged the environment, and some first-half physicality from Toronto made for a powder keg of a Major League Soccer match.

"Certainly a wild one but pleased that the guys were able to come out on top," Noonan said afterward at BMO Field. "Not what we typically see in terms of just the chaos and how back-and-forth that was. I guess from an entertainment standpoint, the viewers got their money's worth."

The match was one of the best of the MLS season to date in terms of back-and-forth action, and it saw FC Cincinnati improve to 10-2-3 and 33 points in the standings. The seventh consecutive win broke a club record set about this time last year during a similarly dominant run.

A Toronto FC side that was widely praised ahead of the contest by FC Cincinnati dropped to 7-7-1, but looked fit to remain a fixture in the Eastern Conference playoff race even after finishing 2023 last in all of MLS.

"It's tough to win on the road, and I think, certainly, the Toronto group is playing with some confidence and some momentum. There was good energy in the building tonight," Noonan said, "so it made for an entertaining game."

How the goals were scored at BMO Field

Compared to the second half, the opening 45 minutes were modest for how they proceeded.

Toronto took a 1-0 lead into the intermission. Their physicality seemed to frustrate FC Cincinnati and disrupt its technical style. "The Reds" also took full advantage of a sloppily-conceded corner kick by FCC as Deiby Flores headed the hosts in front on 25 minutes.

Come the second half, FCC fired back at the hosts. Looking more confident in their own style, Luca Orellano scored his second goal of the season from the top of Toronto's penalty area. That knotted the match in the 53rd minute.

Luciano Acosta was initially awarded an assist on Orellano's opener. By game's end, Acosta had only been awarded an assist on Santos' game-winner. Nonetheless, the helper extended Acosta's club-record for consecutive matches with a goal contribution (nine). The play was also the start of Orellano's brightest night in Orange and Blue.

Two minutes later, Orellano simply out-ran and overtook a Toronto FC defender, allowing Orellano to break in on goal for a two-on-one opportunity alongside 19-year-old Venezuelan teammate Kevin Kelsy. Orellano's initial shot was saved by TFC goalkeeper Sean Johnson, but Kelsy gathered the rebound, composed himself, and made seemingly effortless work of his finish for a 2-1 lead.

The goal was Kelsy's third since joining FC Cincinnati this spring on-loan from Ukrainian side, Shakhtar Donetsk.

In a memorable performance for Toronto, highly-paid Italian star Lorenzo Insigne then started to take control of the proceedings, dribbling through FC Cincinnati's defense and firing a ball of the inside of FCC defender Ian Murphy's right leg. The shot was deflected in and officially recorded as an own-goal for Murphy in the 63rd minute, but the score was a credit to Insigne's imagination.

In the 79th minute, and with Santos then inserted into the game off the bench, FCC nearly won a penalty kick as Santos was tripped up in the TFC penalty area. But with referee Victor Rivas nearby and poised to whistle the Toronto foul, he allowed play to continue as Santos fell to the grass but the ball rolled to Orellano.

Orellano then dinked the ball in off Johnson's far post for 3-2. FC Cincinnati ran to the southwest corner of BMO Field to taunt the opposition fans. Boos rained down but FCC was in front.

"The way he (Luca) takes the goals, I've got to look back at them but I don't think the second one was an easy finish," Noonan said. "He was certainly, probably, the most impactful player on the field in terms of our chance creation and our goals."

Once again, the FCC lead was short-lived. Center back Miles Robinson was whistled for fouling a Toronto attacker in his own penalty area, resulting in a penalty kick scored by Insigne for 3-3 in the 85th minute.

Nine minutes of second half added time

When the fourth official held up his digital sign on the sideline indicating nine minutes would be added to the opening 90, FC Cincinnati knew the game was far from over.

"I was actually telling (Gerardo Valenzuela) that... I told him 'I think there's another goal in this game,'" starting right back Bret Halsey said. "Sure enough, we got one."

On the left flank, Acosta went on one of his trademark slaloming runs with the ball seemingly tethered to his feet. But rather than look for his own shot, he dished the ball to Cincinnati midfielder Yamil Asad. The ball got caught in Asad's feet and he overran it, but that left it setup perfectly for Santos to poke home in the 93rd minute.

Of course there was more drama to come, though. A direct ball played in by Toronto to Insigne saw the diminutive Italian knock the ball past FCC goalkeeper Roman Celentano to knot the match at four, but Insigne was whistled for offside on the play. A video-assistant referee (VAR) check confirmed that decision.

FCC then managed to survive the remaining seconds to claim the win, which improved its road record to 6-1-1 − the best mark of its kind in MLS.

A record run

FC Cincinnati won the 2023 Supporters' Shield with games and weeks to spare in the regular-season. It took control of the lead in the Shield race in mid-May of last year and didn't cede the top spot the rest of the entire campaign, ultimately finishing with 69 points in the stands.

The 2023 season was one of the most dominant Shield wins, and one of the highest points yields, in MLS history. Somehow, FC Cincinnati is on pace to surpass its 2023 success.

It's a different environment than in 2023, to be sure. MLS in 2024 sees FC Cincinnati trailing Inter Miami CF by a point in the standings, albeit with FCC holding a game in-hand. There are also legitimate challengers in the Western Conference in Real Salt Lake and Minnesota United FC. The Western Conference was topped by expansion side St. Louis City SC in 2023, and St. Louis was well out of the Shield picture late in the season.

FC Cincinnati might still go on to reach previously-unseen heights this year. The club is on pace for about 75 points in the standings, which would set a new MLS record. FCC's seventh consecutive victory on Saturday surpassed a the six-game mark established by the 2023 Shield-winning team.

"I think, you know, I'm not a stats guy. But it's hard to do, I do know that," Noonan said of the seven-game winning streak. "I think the guys know that. It's hard to win in this league and it's hard to win, you know, consecutively like we've done. But I think what they're able to do is adapt in games and win in different ways. You know, when we need to have the quality with the ball and score goals like tonight, we were able to do that you know, when our set piece defending was poor, and we were conceding goals. We've won where we needed to outscore a team. We've seen the one goal wins, finally able to win a two goal game, or a game by two goals last week (against St. Louis).

"So, we can win in different ways, which is important. But right now all it does is position us well in the table, and hopefully we can continue it. But it's seven wins but you know, outside of that, it's not much for us to talk about."

One more match to go before a break

FC Cincinnati won't play a competitive from May 30 through June 14 for the upcoming FIFA international window. Players from around MLS and leagues across the world such as FCC and U.S. men's national team defender Miles Robinson will meet-up with their respective national teams for international play.

Before FC Cincinnati goes into the international break, which should hold one or two extended breaks for the club amidst an otherwise-normal practice schedule, it must deal with Nashville SC at TQL Stadium on Wednesday.

Nashville fired longtime head coach Gary Smith in recent weeks and sits on just three wins and 16 points in the standings (3-4-7). The club is winless on the road in five tries (0-3-2) and is tied for Orlando City SC for 10th place in the Eastern Conference.

At two points outside the ninth and final playoff spot in the east, Nashville has so far failed to meet the low bar for playoff entrants to clear.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: FC Cincinnati downs Toronto FC in seven-goal thriller