10 Thoughts As FC Cincinnati Enters the Leagues Cup Break

E ight days, three matches, zero points. The worst week of the Pat Noonan-Chris Albright era is over and likely had FC Cincinnati supporters in a cold sweat, feeling like it was 2021 all over again . Following home losses to Charlotte and Chicago to close its three-match homestand, FCC fell 3-1 on the road to the New York Red Bulls on Saturday night. The Energy Drinkers now own two of the seven league victories against the Orange and Blue in 2024.

The Garys have 11 full days off prior to opening Leagues Cup play on August 1 vs. Liga MX side Querétaro. FC Cincinnati’s (48 points) next MLS match is August 24 at Inter Miami (53 points), which stretched its Eastern Conference and Supporters’ Shield advantage over FCC through its win over Chicago on Saturday.

There’s much to dish on over the local lads’ no good, very bad week, so here are 10 thoughts and observations as FC Cincinnati attempts to rest and reset ahead of the now-annual competition between MLS and Liga MX teams.

Anyone else feel like the 6-1 bushwhacking of Inter Miami happened last year, not two and a half weeks ago? In July alone, FCC embarrassed the league’s top team and embarked on its longest losing streak since 2021, when it closed its third successive Wooden Spoon season with 12 straight defeats. A fanbase once desensitized to losing has had to cope with the wrong side of the scoreboard again, a hat tip to the impressive work submitted by the Noonan-Albright regime since 2022. Last season, FC Cincinnati didn’t lose back-to-back matches. In 2022, it lost two straight matches on three occasions, but never dropped three in a row.

The minor backline tweak of swapping Ian Murphy and Kipp Keller’s center back positions didn’t pay dividends vs. the Red Bulls. FCC yielded eight shots on target, despite New York having just 39 percent possession. Murphy started in the middle of the back three, with Keller to his left and DeAndre Yedlin, typically a right wingback, on his right. Miles Robinson will return in August after Olympics duty, but at least one outside center back addition was needed. Which brings us to Tuesday evening…

Chidozie Awaziem is Albright’s solution to filling the Miazga-sized hole in the backline . The 6-foot-4 Nigerian international spent last season playing in the Portuguese first division and also has experience in the top leagues in France and Spain. MLS insider Tom Bogert noted that Awaziem was a “long-term” target of the club, with the 27-year-old on the front office’s “radar” for years, with a multi-year deal reportedly in the works.

Getting the Awaziem signing over the line now ensures the central defender gets weeks of acclimation and training with his new teammates prior to the resumption of league play. I can’t say I’ve spent much (any) time watching the Primeira Liga, but Portugal’s top division is generally regarded in the next tier down from Europe’s big five leagues (England, Spain, Germany, Italy, France). Expect the right-footed Awaziem to eventually settle into the middle or the right of FCC’s backline next to Murphy and Robinson. With Robinson presumably off to Europe in 2025, Awaziem would play next to Miazga and Murphy next season.

The attack could use a jolt from another striker/forward option, too . Kevin Kelsy has hit a rookie wall, with just one goal across his last seven appearances (five starts). Over that period, the 19-year-old has just two shots on target; he recorded just 12 touches in 59 minutes on Saturday. Aaron Boupendza tallied 30 minutes off the bench Saturday, his longest appearance since a 72-minute start on April 13. Noonan has had little use for him since the striker returned from injury on June 19, allotting the Designated Player just three appearances totalling seven minutes. Boupendza has accumulated four unused substitute showings over that time, too. Sergio Santos, who hasn’t scored in two months, started on Saturday and completed just six of 11 passes.

Speaking of forwards, Leagues Cup presents a fine opportunity for Corey Baird to save his season. In his third match back after a two-month injury layoff, Baired tallied Saturday’s lone goal. The score was his second in 15 matches in 2024, a disappointing showing for the forward who inked a two-year deal this winter after tallying 14 goals in 48 appearances in all competitions in 2023 with Houston.

Lucho Acosta and Luca Orellano started Saturday on the bench , with the former still nursing a lower leg/foot injury and the latter needing a breather after 20 consecutive starts. In the end, the offense managed just 0.5 expected goals (xG), its lowest xG of 2024, barely above FCC’s showing in the first Red Bulls match (0.7). Methinks the Orange and Blue would do well to avoid New York come playoff time.

Acosta will captain the MLS All-Stars tonight against the Liga MX All-Stars in Columbus. It’s the second successive year he’ll wear the armband for MLS and the third straight season Acosta has been named an All-Star. Orellano is also available for selection. Robinson was named an All-Star, too, but is on Olympic duty.

FC Cincinnati 2 is enjoying its best MLS Next Pro season to date , racking up 35 points through 18 matches and sitting second in the East table. The team’s leading scorer is 17-year-old Stefan Chirila, who tallied a goal in the MLS Next All-Star Game on Tuesday. FCC signed him to a homegrown contract in May, with part of the agreement being that Chirila will be on the first team in 2025.

The first-team supplement to Chirila’s contract is representative of how highly the former Philadelphia Union academy player is regarded within the walls of the Mercy Health Training Center. He scored 41 goals for FCC academy teams across 2023-24 and won Golden Boot honors at the Generation adidas Cup, the MLS competition for under-17 academy sides.

Grant Freking writes FC Cincinnati coverage for Cincinnati Magazine . You can follow him on Twitter at @GrantFreking .

The post 10 Thoughts As FC Cincinnati Enters the Leagues Cup Break appeared first on Cincinnati Magazine .