CINCINNATI – FC Cincinnati fell to Minnesota United FC, 1-0, at Nippert Stadium on Saturday evening.
FC Cincinnati (4-12-4, 16 pts.) created a number of opportunities in the first half, but were ultimately unable to find the back of the net. Efforts from Tom Pettersson and Siem de Jong highlighted the goal-scoring opportunities created by the Orange and Blue.
Minnesota United FC (7-5-6, 27 pts.) nearly opened the scoring in the first half when Kevin Molino’s close-range shot was smothered by Spencer Richey in the 36th minute. Following a decision from referee Malik Badawi to award a corner kick in second-half stoppage time, Minnesota’s Aaron Schoenfeld tallied the game-winning goal to secure all three points for the Loons.
FC Cincinnati will be back in action on Wednesday, Oct. 28 when the club bids farewell to Nippert Stadium in its home finale against Sporting Kansas City. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET, and the game will be televised on WSTR 64, carried on the radio on WDJO (99.5 FM, 107.9 FM and 1480 AM), streamed regionally on fccincinnati.com/stream, out of market on ESPN+, while an audio stream will be available at TuneIn (WDJO) and fccincinnati.com.
For up-to-the-minute information about FC Cincinnati, visit the team’s official website at fccincinnati.com, or follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook at @FCCincinnati. Additionally, fans are encouraged to download the team’s official mobile app on the Apple App Store or Google Play for instant access to mobile tickets, team content and match notifications.
Information about seating options at the club’s state-of-the-art West End Stadium – which will open in Spring 2021 – is now available at westendstadium.com. Season ticket deposits are now being accepted for traditional reserved seating and The Bailey. For more information about 2021 season memberships, visit westendstadium.com or the stadium’s social properties on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram at @WestEndStadium, or by calling the team’s sales and service staff at 513-977-5425.
Minnesota United FC 1, FC Cincinnati 0
Nippert Stadium | Cincinnati, Ohio
October 24, 2020
SCORING SUMMARY
MIN – Aaron Schoenfeld (unassisted) 90’+2’
FC Cincinnati: Spencer Richey, Zico Bailey, Nick Hagglund, Tom Pettersson, Andrew Gutman, Kamohelo Mokotjo, Haris Medunjanin ©, Frankie Amaya (Rashawn Dally 90’), Siem de Jong, Joseph-Claude Gyau, Alvaro Barreal (Jürgen Locadia 58’)
Bench: Bobby Edwards, Beckham Sunderland, Hassan Ndam, Tommy McCabe, Kendall Waston, Jimmy McLaughlin
Stats: Shots 12, Shots on goal 2, Saves 2, Corner kicks 5, Offsides 5, Fouls 12, Possession 54.4%, Passes 608 (87.6%)
Minnesota United FC: Dayne St. Clair, Michael Boxall, Romain Metanire, Bakaye Dibassy, Chase Gasper, Osvaldo Alonso ©, Kevin Molino (Brent Kallman 90’+4’), Jan Gregus, Ethan Finlay (Emanuel Reynoso 76’), Robin Lod, Kei Kamara (Aaron Schoenfeld 76’)
Bench: Adrian Zendejas, Jose Aja, Jacori Hayes, Thomas Chacon, James Musa, Marlon Hairston
Stats: Shots 18, Shots on goal 3, Saves 2, Corner kicks 6, Offsides 1, Fouls 13, Possession 45.6%, Passes 494 (82.4%)
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
MIN – Osvaldo Alonso (caution) 66’
CIN – Zico Bailey (caution) 81’
MIN – Chase Gasper (caution) 82’
Referee: Malik Badawi
Assistant Referees: Cameron Blanchard, Peter Balciunas
4th Official: Silviu Petrescu
VAR: Alan Kelly
Weather: 47 degrees and cloudy
Attendance: N/A
GAME NOTES
- With tonight’s loss, the Orange and Blue are now 4-12-4 through 20 MLS matches … FCC are now 1-3-4 in matches played at Nippert Stadium … FC Cincinnati’s all-time, all-competition record against Minnesota United moves to 0-3-1 … The Orange and Blue are now 0-2-0 against Western Conference opponents this season
- Zico Bailey made his first start for FC Cincinnati in tonight’s match … the defender made his FCC and MLS debut as a first-half substitute at the Philadelphia Union on Oct. 7 … Bailey played all 90 minutes and completed 35-of-37 passes for a passing accuracy of 94.6%
- For the first time in club history FC Cincinnati started three players who are 20 years old or younger … Frankie Amaya, Zico Bailey and Alvaro Barreal -- all 20 years old -- started for the Orange and Blue in tonight’s match
- Head coach Jaap Stam made three changes to the club’s most recent match against D.C. United on Oct. 18 … Zico Bailey, Siem de Jong and Spencer Richey replaced Saad Abdul-Salaam, Bobby Edwards and Brandon Vazquez
- Allan Cruz, Mathieu Deplagne, Greg Garza, Yuya Kubo, Caleb Stanko, Przemysław Tytoń and Maikel van der Werff were excluded from the matchday roster because of injuries
POSTGAME QUOTES
FC Cincinnati head coach Jaap Stam
On tonight’s match
“It is very frustrating to concede a goal like this, and I believe it wasn't even one like what has happened before, in the corner and then conceding. It's frustrating because you play well. The second half is a bit more open, but you can expect that as well. So, we're doing well, we get close to goal, get a couple of shots on target as well, opportunities and then you can’t use them, which is so unfortunate. Then you concede like this, and you’re still losing the game, which is very hard to take.”
On Zico Bailey’s first career start
“He did very well. For a youngster, coming in on his third appearance and starting, a very good game. In the first half, very good. Very good on the ball, as well, going forward. In the second half, a little bit less, but sometimes you can expect that as well. Sometimes, especially in the second half, you need to pick your moments, but he’s doing well. That’s what we’ve seen in training sessions. That is why he gets the opportunity. So, it’s promising.”
On Jürgen Locadia playing on the left wing
“Well, Jürgen (Locadia) did what we expected from him. He played in the past on the left as well. Get the ball … he’s a threat going forward, created opportunities, had a couple of shots. That’s what you can ask from a player like that, and that’s what he has done. He’s done that well.”
FC Cincinnati defender Zico Bailey
On tonight’s match
“I think individually, I think I did well. I did what my job is to do – to be solid defensively and try to help in the attack on the wings. Obviously, the result is not what we wanted but we just got to keep going towards the next game.”
On his thoughts regarding the referee’s call impacting the match
“It’s extremely frustrating, especially where we are in the season, where points are so valuable. It comes down to something that’s such a crucial decision, and like you said, it’s out of our control. So, it’s just extremely frustrating, but we just have to look towards the next game.”
On Minnesota United’s adjustments at halftime
“I would say they came out with a little bit more intensity, and they were pressing us a little bit. The beginning of the (second) half, we just didn’t have the same urgency as the first half, in the beginning. I don’t think it was so much them playing better. We just came out the half slow.”
FC Cincinnati midfielder Haris Medunjanin
On tonight’s match
“I think we started good. The first half was for us. I think we should’ve led, 2-0, in the first half with a couple of 100% chances. If we don’t finish our chances, it’s going to be very difficult to win games. In the second half, it could go either way. They put the pressure on us in the second half, in the first 20 minutes. Then we came back with a couple chances again, but I don’t know. I didn’t see it. I don’t know if it was a corner or not. Everybody was saying that it was not a corner, but that’s how it was. Everything was against us. We have three more games, and hopefully, we get a result. We cannot give up.”
On the club’s spirits after a loss like tonight’s
“It’s frustrating, because you go inside this game to win, because every game you go to win. I think we started very well, with a couple 100% chances that should normally go in. But you don’t score and you let them stay alive. In the second half, it was up and down, anybody could have scored. They had chances. We had chances. In the end, they scored. I think you can call our season how it is this year – it’s not on our side, and every call is against us. You see it also. They had it touch the post and it came directly to his feet, and he (Aaron Schoenfeld) scored. It’s frustrating, but I think we can also blame ourselves. We didn’t score our chances in the first half. Like I said, if you don’t score, you’ll probably lose.”
On whether the next three matches can help the team
“Of course. I mean, even in the games now and before. I think we could get a result. Everything is so close, for the places (in the) standings, ninth and 10th. If you want to go, you will be there. We could be talking with different kinds of players now, happy players. But now it’s frustrating now because if a team comes here and outplays us in every aspect on the field, we have nothing we can say. But I think we had the ball today. We controlled the game, and we had opportunities. I think every team that came here, we made it difficult. We didn’t get the result. In MLS, the margins are so small. If you win games, you’re going up. At this point, we can’t win games. It’s very frustrating the last three games. We play the last game (at) Nippert (on) Wednesday. Still against a tough side, Sporting (Kansas City). They’re also a tough team in the West. We need to give everything we got. We cannot give up. Three games to go and we have to give it our best. Play for our pride.”
