NYCFC falls late to FC Cincinnati despite a stronger performance
New York City FC had a tough game on Wednesday night. The Bronx side faced FC Cincinnati on the road after an awful loss against the Philadelphia Union. They knew that a rebound match would be difficult to achieve and, in the end, fell 2-1. A late goal tarnished what was otherwise a decent performance.
While the Pigeons won the way fixture last year, they still spent most of the fixture defending. Plus, since Major League Soccer picked up after the World Cup break, Cincinnati has won both of their two MLS games. And who can forget the 4-4 draw at Yankee Stadium earlier in the season?
Hence, recent history and NYCFC’s struggles in closing out games put an immediate shadow on the match. However, the Boys in Blue actually had a good performance. It was not perfect or anywhere near their best.
In a way, though, they had a rebound in that they played well for most of the game. It was not a story of two halves like Sunday. They struggled a little in the beginning, and NYCFC gave up the first goal.
NYCFC fails to close out another game
The home side went in front in the 11th minute. An interception by Kevin O’Toole led the ball to end up at the feet of Kenji Mboma Dem. James Sands failed to capitalize on a tackle, allowing the forward to powerfully strike the ball for the first goal of the night. It must be noted, though, that Bénie Traoré gave the ball away after he tried to be tricky near the midfield. That led to the offensive sequence that resulted in the goal.
Thankfully, the Pigeons tied the match in the 21st minute. Nicolás Fernández Mercau found Agustín Ojeda on the run, and Ojeda subsequently made a superb pass, sending the ball back toward the center of the box to Luighi. The young striker, with one touch, directed the ball into the goal.
Later in the first half, the home side was close to going down to ten men. Matt Miazga fouled Luighi after the whistle was blown to stop play. The defender brought him down and kicked him in the leg in an attempt to go after the ball. He caused the ball to move, but clearly lacked malice in the kick. As a result, after VAR review, the foul was not deemed a red card but a yellow card, as there was no initial call.
The fact that there was no call at first was a little shocking, and that was just one of the many missed calls by the referee. Normally, it is better to let the players play. But when clear fouls are not called, that is an issue. And there is an argument that it should have been a red card, but since there is an argument against it, that might be why it was not a red.
Meanwhile, at the beginning of the second half, Luighi was hungry for another goal and had two brilliant shots within the first five minutes. The Brazilian continues to impress in his first few matches, and it was a shame that he came off in the 64th minute. He might be fully fit for the full 90 minutes, but it was an intriguing choice to bring on Seymour Reid as his replacement.
Interestingly, when Reid and Malachi Jones came on, NYCFC dropped back in their overall play. Jones has not been as good in the last few matches, but one would not have thought the change in the attack would have fully led the pace of play to go Cincinnati’s way.
For the second match in a row, one could argue that Pascal Jansen’s substitution choices were not the best. But at the same time, NYCFC needed to close out the game and at least leave with a point.
It must be said, though, that the Pigeons played well, especially at the end. But all it took was one moment in stoppage time to undo all of that. The home side caused the visitors’ defense to become a mess, leaving space for Evander. It was said in the preview that they could not allow any space, so what did the midfielder do? He had space and won Cincinnati the game.
Closing out games continues to be a problem for NYCFC, even when they play well. The Pigeons dominated at the end, too. But once again, they dropped points. They could have earned a road draw, but now have suffered their second MLS loss in a row.
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