East leaders FC Cincinnati, New England play to 2-2 draw at TQL Stadium | Replay

A draw might have been the most fitting outcome for the high-stakes matchup of Major League Soccer’s Nos. 1 and 2 teams at TQL Stadium.

A back-and-forth match Saturday between FC Cincinnati and New England Revolution in which both clubs led ultimately produced a 2-2 tie in front of the ninth sellout crowd of 2023 at TQL Stadium.

Dominique Badji tallied in the 11^th minute to open the scoring and again in the 55^th minute to knot the game at 2-2. In between, Badji was credited with an own-goal in the 15th minute, and Gustavo Bou took advantage of a failed clearance attempt by Ray Gaddis to score New England’s second in the 24th minute for a 2-1 lead.

The draw saw FC Cincinnati move to 13-2-5 and 44 points. FCC remained first in the east, as well as in the Supporters Shield race.

FCC and New England tied both their matches this season including a 1-1 draw on April 29 at Gillette Stadium.

Cincinnati out-shot New England, 22-9, had more chances and generally looked the better team. That only a draw resulted from the performance was a source of frustration afterward.

“We have to be stronger when things aren't going our way. It hasn't happened often, but our response to when we conceded, and even the second goal, we need to look like we've been in this position before, which we have, maybe not a whole lot this year," FC Cincinnati head coach Pat Noonan said. "You have to have a strong mentality to not let it affect you in a way where you don't get a result. Like I said at halftime, it was a little bit more aggressive in terms of if you just analyze the first 30 minutes of the game up until the water break, it was some of our best play in the year. The goals are obvious in how we can prevent them, but there are chances there.

"So, keep your heads and understand that there's a lot of games to play and we'll work our way back into it. We need to have a stronger response when things aren't going our way with decision-making and continuing to play the game in a simple way, body language. All those things can improve, and you've seen a little bit that in the last two games where it's unfamiliar territory, but it's an area we're going to improve in.”

Final: FC Cincinnati, New England share the points

It was a hot, humid night in Cincinnati and that was reflected in the heavy legs both teams showed in the 2-2 draw.

FC Cincinnati's still undefeated (10-0-1) at TQL Stadium in 2023, but this is the first time they've dropped points at home this season. In fact, FCC's dropped points in three of its last four matches (1-1-2). For the time being, a draw in these circumstances against a team as strong as New England is probably good enough.

Badji to the rescue (55')

Dominique Badji has his second goal of the game. It was a calm, cool finish from about 12 yards out. Badji now has four goals on the season.

Halftime

FC Cincinnati's in the unfamiliar position of trailing at TQL Stadium at the intermission. The match remained wide open through the end of the first half and FCC had its chances to equalize. The game is still there to be won by the hosts.

The Bou Show (24')

Gustavo Bou had entirely too much time and space in the FC Cincinnati penalty area after Ray Gaddis was unable to clear a centering feed. Bou's movement was also skillful, and allowed him to slot home past Roman Celentano with his third touch in the sequence. New England have stormed back to a 2-1 lead.

The 2-1 deficit also marks the first time FC Cincinnati has trailed during a match this season at TQL Stadium, where it entered the night on a 10-0-0 record in 2023.

New England pulls even (15')

Gustavo Bou ripped a powerful shot that FCC goalkeeper Roman Celentano managed to punch away, but his punch sent the ball straight into Dominique Badji and caromed backward into the net for 1-1. Bou took the shot but this will go down as an own-go, and a truly unlucky one for FCC.

Badji breaks it open (12')

On the stroke of 11 minutes, FC Cincinnati's Dominique Badji redirected Yuya Kubo's centering feed. The ball skidded into the side netting for a 1-0 lead. The goal was Badji's third of the MLS campaign.

Arias goes close for FCC (7')

Not only is FC Cincinnati already looking more lively than it did at any point last weekend against D.C. United but Santiago Arias whistled a shot about a foot wide. We're scoreless for now but the match is wide open and fast-paced.

Underway (1')

A win and FC Cincinnati will go 10 points clear of New England in the east. A loss a the Revolution pull to within four points.

FC Cincinnati, New England starting lineups

• FC Cincinnati starting XI: Roman Celentano (GK), Nick Hagglund, Santiago Arias, Yerson Mosquera, Ray Gaddis, Alvaro Barreal, Obinna Nwobodo, Yuya Kubo, Marco Angulo, Luciano Acosta (captain), Dominique Badji.

• Cincinnati bench: Alec Kann (GK), Alvas Powell, Joey Akpunonu, Sergio Santos, Malik Pinto, Quimi Ordonez, Isaiah Foster, London Aghedo, Bret Halsey.

• New England starting XI: Djorde Petrovic (GK), Dave Romney, Brandon Bye, Ryan Spaulding, Andrew Farrell, Matt Polster, Carles Gil (captain), Emmanuel Boateng, Latif Blessing, Gustavo Bou, Bobby Wood

• New England bench: Omar Gonzalez, Giacomo Vriani, Justin Rennicks, Joshua Balma, Jack Panayatou, Earl Edwards Jr., Ben Sweat, Esmir Bajraktarevic, Damian Rivera.

FC Cincinnati MLS All-Stars Three FC Cincinnati players selected to MLS All-Star Game roster, will face Arsenal FC

Pre-match happenings

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: FC Cincinnati, New England play to 2-2 draw at TQL Stadium | Replay