FC Cincinnati’s Luciano ‘Lucho’ Acosta and Luca Orellano have been named to the MLS Team of the Matchday for Matchday 21, the league announced Thursday.
Acosta earned his 11th Team of the Matchday honor this season, matching his club record 11 appearances on the TOTMD from his MLS Most Valuable Player campaign last season. He also leads all players in MLS with the most selections on the Team of the Matchday this season.
Acosta’s historic night Wednesday in FC Cincinnati’s 4-3 win over Philadelphia Union was highlighted by his game-winning goal 10 minutes into second-half stoppage time. Taking the ball at the top of the box, the Argentine took over, weaving in and out of traffic to fire off a shot to send Cincinnati ahead deep into the night.
By scoring twice and adding an assist, Acosta became the seventh player to record 100 goal contributions (43 goals, 57 assists) in regular season play over a four-season span in league history. He also passed Cobi Jones and Diego Valeri with his 92nd career MLS assist, and he now stands alone at ninth all time.
Acosta has 11 game-winning goal contributions this season. 27 of 29 clubs in MLS do not have as many wins as a team in 2024.
Orellano earned his second-career spot on the MLS Team of the Matchday. In the 60th minute, the young Argentine scored a world class goal. Seeing the Philadelphia keeper off his line, Orellano fired a rocket with his left foot from near the midfield line, netting an MLS Goal of the Matchday finalist.
Acosta’s and Orellano’s weekly Team of the Matchday honors are the 22nd and 23rd recognitions for an FC Cincinnati player or coach on the weekly team this season. A full list of 2024 FC Cincinnati matchday honors:
2024 FC Cincinnati MLS Team of the Matchday Player Recognitions
- Luciano Acosta (3, 5, 6-Bench, 10, 11, 12-Bench, 13, 14-Bench, 15, 20, 21)
- Miles Robinson (3, 5-Bench, 14)
- Matt Miazga (6)
- DeAndre Yedlin (7-Bench)
- Corey Baird (11-Bench)
- Kevin Kelsy (14-Bench)
- Luca Orellano (16, 21)
- Yuya Kubo (20)
2024 FC Cincinnati MLS Team of the Matchday Coach Recognitions
- Pat Noonan (13, 16)
The full team for Matchday 21 is listed below.
2024 MLS Team of the Matchday presented by Audi (Matchday 21)
F: Sam Surridge (NSH), Petar Musa (DAL)
M: Latif Blessing (HOU), Luciano Acosta (CIN), Djordje Mihailovic (COL), Evander (POR), Andrés Gómez (RSL)
D: Luca Orellano (CIN), Jackson Ragen (SEA), Ian Fray (MIA)
GK: Brad Guzan (ATL)
Coach: Peter Luccin (DAL)
Bench: John McCarthy (LA), Sergi Palencia (LAFC), Julian Gressel (MIA), Thiago Almada (ATL), Diego Luna (RSL), Facundo Torres (ORL), Tai Baribo (PHI), Willy Agada (SKC), Dejan Joveljic (LA)
The Orange and Blue return to TQL Stadium Saturday, June 22 against the New England Revolution. Tickets are available at FCCincinnati.com/Tickets or by calling (513) 977-5425 (KICK). The home match will air on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV. Fans can also listen to the match on ESPN 1530 in Cincinnati and iHeart.
