Preseason is done. On to the regular season, to cup competitions and all the other things that will come in 2024. 

Kind of. 

FC Cincinnati played their final 2024 preseason friendly Thursday against New England Revolution, winning 5-2 in a 90-minute affair that had FCC roll out the same lineup they did against Philadelphia a week ago, pointing towards a continuity suggestive of the future. 

There will still be training in Florida, so the preseason is only kind of over, but the match week build-up for the Concacaf Champions Cup and MLS home opener is now here, and the next time we see The Orange and Blue take the field, there will be competitive stakes attached to it. Let's look at four key takeaways from the final preseason friendly for FCC:

Slow starts, strong finishes

The Orange and Blue have conceded first in three of four games this preseason, with the clean sheet in friendly No. 2 being the only match outside that pattern. 

Is that a trend to be considered? Maybe. Is the sample size too small? Probably. 

The start of matches has been admittedly slow by all accounts. Head coach Pat Noonan and captain Luciano Acosta have addressed it in their own ways, highlighting the changes from last year to this year as possible contributors to the opening phase of matches. With so many new players in the lineup and different roles for returning players, getting into the matches with confidence and assurance has been slow. 

Part of this has been progressively building up playing time. Against Austin FC in friendly No. 1, each group only played 45 minutes, then 60 minutes, then 75, and then a full 90 in this final friendly. But in each of those instances, the groups progressively improved as the game pushed on, so by the end of each group's time on the field, they had dominated play.

It's an encouraging sign. The more time FC Cincinnati has played together, the more they've looked like the dominant side. But slow starts like the one against Philadelphia particularly, and conceding first on Thursday is not a trend Noonan and his staff want to see thrive.

Flurry of scoring

For the second consecutive game, FC Cincinnati netted three unanswered goals. The usual suspects of Luciano Acosta, Aaron Boupendza and Corey Baird all added to their preseason totals but this time the newly signed FC Cincinnati man Pavel Bucha opened his account by putting his first goal in Orange and Blue.

FCC goals came fast and furious, with four coming in a 22-minute stretch of the second half after going into halftime with a 1-1 scoreline. Four of the five goals came from open play, with the fifth coming from a penalty kick that was earned by Boupendza, but converted by Acosta.

The quick scoring output, now on multiple occasions, shows just how dangerous FC CIncinnati can be at any given moment. The offense is constantly developing chances and all it takes is for it to click or catch an opponent out of step.

Trio up top clicking

FC Cincinnati has an attacking trio who have been eating up opposing back lines and finishing on a true array of opportunities. Acosta, Boupendza and Baird have been an exciting and dangerous trio up top, moving and flowing like the river on their kits to create open spaces and opportunities. 

It was on full display against the Revolution, who admittedly played a rotated squad that did not include key starters like Carles Gil. Still, the style of play the three shared proved cause for excitement. 

Boupendza and Acosta seem more on the same page than ever before. A product of time, but also working to understand each other's game, the duo can now predict each other's runs and move in space to find the passing lanes that support that. The play that resulted in the penalty kick is an excellent example. 

With a pass coming across the top of the box, Boupendza quickly flicked it back to Acosta to avoid the pressure on the Gabonese striker. Acosta, now with a potentially open look, draws the attention and feeds it back to Boupendza, who has curled forward toward the net. With defenders now a step behind because of the two-man play, Boupendza is tackled from behind, awarding him the penalty kick that Acosta converts. 

That kind of play doesn't happen like that last season. Players were developing their chemistry to better predict any of the passes involved. It likely results in a less dangerous shot from either, an exciting bit of improvement from the preseason work done this spring. 

The third unnamed character in the story is Baird, who provided the initial cross to Boupendza to start the interaction. As the newer name to the trio, the former Houston Dynamo man and notable free agent acquisition is already appealing to his teammates. 

While Baird is on the record as wanting to score goals himself, he plays with a selflessness that instantly notably impacts play. He makes every run, supports every challenge and is hustling constantly. He knows when to push himself, but isn't afraid to make that dump off to a teammate for an even better opportunity. 

The fifth goal of the day was a perfect example of this. With the Revs pressing a high back line to try and hem FCC in the defensive zone, Acosta intercepted a pass to break up the New England possession, and Baird instantly ran for the outlet. Acosta hit Baird in stride, and the forward was sprung for a breakaway. Just Baird and the keeper to beat with half a field to cover. 

Boupendza caught up to the play to provide support on the 2-on-0, and while Baird could have put a try on goal himself, he waited till the last second to dump a pass to Boupendza, securing the easy fifth goal of the game. 

From the outside, Baird is an easy teammate to play with. It was an excellent preseason for the three as they combined to score 10 of the 12 goals in the four friendlies. If they continue at that pace, the FCC offense will be truly something to reckon with.

Champions Cup ready

There are no more tune-ups. No more friendlies to play. The next time FCC takes the field, the matches will count. 

It seems strange to say the season is opening, as it does Thursday in Kingston, Jamaica, for the Concacaf Champions Cup opening match. Four preseason games to prepare for a full season, let alone the pinnacle of club competition on the continent, seems strange given how short the offseason was. 

But FCC players and coaches say they are ready. Luciano Acosta noted succinctly, "We are always ready." He even went so far as to say it in English in his press conference after the friendly to avoid confusing it. 

On the other hand, Noonan feels there's always still work to be done, but the time in Clearwater has been a success to the extent it can be. 

"There's plenty that still needs to be assessed and looked at," Noonan said, "There are still a couple of specifics, just in terms of the education of the players with the upcoming schedule and Champions Cup rules and what that competition looks like. 

"So we'll address a little bit of that in the days to come. But outside of that, it's how we can find ways to improve as a group with what we've seen from our four preseason games, but I think we're further along than than years past." 

Ultimately, the season is here. FCC will travel to Kingston directly from Clearwater on Tuesday before training at Independence Park, the venue for the Champions Cup match, on Wednesday. 

The long haul starts now. The quest for more glory begins in just six days.