Cover Photo: Anders Saling (IG: @SalingMedia)
October 21, 2023 (Cincinnati, OH) – FC Cincinnati draw with Atlanta United to close out the season on Fan Appreciation Night.
- Date: October 21, 2023
- Competition: MLS Regular Season Matchday 38
- Venue: TQL Stadium
- Kickoff: 6:09 p.m. ET
- Attendance: 25,513
- Box Score: FC Cincinnati 2, Atlanta United 2.
- Referee: Joe Dickerson
Starting XI
FC Cincinnati (3-4-1-2): 18 Celentano; 21 Murphy, 21 Miazga, 15 Mosquera; 31 Barreal, 93 Moreno, 5 Nwobodo, 2 Powell; 10 Acosta; 19 Vazquez, 14 Badji (Head Coach – Pat Noonan)
Atlanta United FC (4-3-3): 1 Guzan; 26 Wiley, 4 Abram, 12 Robinson, 2 Hernandez; 10 Almada, 20 Rossetto, 8 Muyumba; 16 Silva, 7 Giakoumakis, 9 Saba (Head Coach – Gonzalo Pineda)
Scoring Summary
12′ Atlanta United FC – Giorgos Giakoumakis (Assists: Saba Lobjanidze, Thiago Almada)
17′ FC Cincinnati – Dominique Badji (Assists: Alvas Powell, Luciano Acosta)
32 Atlanta United FC – Giorgos Giakoumakis (Assist: Thiago Almada)
45′+2′ FC Cincinnati – Luciano Acosta (Assists: Álvaro Barreal, Ian Murphy)
STATS: (CIN/ATL)
- Shots: 17/13
- Shots on Goal: 3/5
- Blocked Shots: 6/5
- Saves: 4/1
- Corners: 7/5
- Fouls: 11/12
- Offside: 0/3
- Passing Accuracy (%): 87.8/82.3
- Possession (%): 56.5/43.5
SUBSTITUTIONS
- 46′ – IN: Yuya Kubo OUT: Junior Moreno (CIN)
- 63′ – IN: Edwin Mosquera OUT: Saba Lobjanidze (ATL)
- 71′ – IN: Sergio Santos, Bret Halsey OUT: Dominique Badji, Alvas Powell (CIN)
- 75′ – IN: Jay Fortune, Jamal Thiare OUT: Xande Silva, Giorgos Giakoumakis (ATL)
- 90′ – IN: Malik Pinto OUT: Ian Murphy (CIN)
- 90′ – IN: Brooks Lennon, Juan Jose Purata OUT: Caleb Wiley, Tristan Muyumba (ATL)
- 90’+7′ – IN: Nick Hagglund OUT: Matt Miazga (CIN)
MISCONDUCT
- 36′ Yellow Card – Thiago Almada (ATL)
- 51′ Red Card (Second Yellow) – Thiago Almada (ATL)
- 75′ Yellow Card – Matt Miazga (CIN)
- 85′ Yellow Card – Jamal Thiare (ATL)
Alvas Powell
Alvas Powell started at right wing back for FC Cincinnati after Santiago Arias suffered a minor injury during international duty this week. Alvas Powell hasn’t played much, with the Jamaican defender having appeared 3 times and played just 97 minutes prior to Saturday’s Decision Day fixture in the past 2 month stretch. A bulk of that playtime came pre-Shield celebrations at home against the New York Red Bulls, a match where Powell drew 2 yellow cards in a loss to the New Jersey side that’s now clinched an MLS record 14-consecutive playoff appearances.
Saturday’s performance showed a more efficient Powell, showcasing his ability to take advantage of that wingback role in Noonan’s system. 3 chances created, including a pinpoint pass for the first FC Cincinnati goal to another spot-starter in Dominique Badji.
“I thought Alvas [Powell] had a strong night. The selection for who was going to start [at right wing-back] wasn’t easy. Bret [Halsey] and Ray [Gaddis], all of them have been training well and pushing for minutes for a long time. Obviously different types of players. So, Alvas, we felt like, was a good option for this particular game. I thought he got into some really good spots. In the final third, play can be better. That’s one of the things we’ve challenged with Alvas all year long is… we get our wingbacks in good positions to attack the box, whether it’s crosses, whether it’s on the dribble. It’s just the decision making in the moment to help us score a goal where I think he can still improve. But overall, I think he had a good night.”
Pat Noonan
Dominique Badji
Dom Badji scored his first goal since July 1st, a brace against the New England Revolution at TQL Stadium. Badji suffered a leg injury in that match and didn’t return until mid-September. His second start since that brace, he capitalized on a perfect cross from Alvas Powell to even the match at 1.
Worth noting – Badji’s goal was the 200th MLS Regular Season Goal for the Orange and Blue.
Badji, who had a cough and was under the weather, spoke briefly about his club milestone goal and the upcoming playoffs.
“It’s weird. I feel like we could have had a better result. Having scored is good, but I just wish we had won.”
“We need to be better. Playoffs are different… We need to change our mentality a little bit, understand what’s at stake. Yeah, it’s special what we’ve achieved, there aren’t many opportunities to be in the position we are and we have to make the most of it. Because, you never know what next year’s gonna hold. I think we need to change our mentality to make the most of now. It’s not like a do or die situation, it kind of is.
Dominique Badji
There’s so much turnover and things went our way this year. We created a lot of our luck, but you never know what next year’s gonna bring and I just hope that we’re all mentally ready when the playoffs come. It’s completely a different style of play.”
Looking Ahead
FC Cincinnati, having clinched the Supporters’ Shield, have secured the number 1 seed in the East… weeks ago. With Decision Day coming to a close, the Eastern Conference table is finalized, and matchups for the MLS Cup Playoffs are set. FC Cincinnati are set to play the winner of the Wild Card Play-In Match, as New York Red Bulls host Charlotte FC.
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