FC Cincinnati Head Coach Pat Noonan and midfielder Luciano Acosta have been named to the MLS Team of the Matchday for Matchday 25, the league announced Monday. Yuya Kubo and Luca Orellano were named to the squad’s bench as four FC Cincinnati players take honors following their emphatic 6-1 victory over Inter Miami CF.
Noonan’s squad put together a start-to-finish performance which left no doubt on Saturday night, scoring just 10 minutes into the match and heading into halftime with a commanding 4-1 lead. The reigning Sigi Schmid MLS Coach of the Year opted for a slight change in formation, placing Orellano in a dual-attacking midfield role next to Acosta with Kubo leading the line, which led to a frenetic and attacking group from the opening whistle.
Acosta, Kubo, and Orellano flew around the pitch, pressing aggressively and taking the game to Miami. Orellano set up Kubo for the opener in the 10th minute, and Acosta would score a fantastic goal of his own in the 21st minute to take a 2-1 lead. Acosta added two more assists before the end of the half on goals by Pavel Bucha and Yamil Asad.
Orellano and Kubo combined again in the 57th minute, with Orellano dancing around defenders, getting to the endline, and centering a ball for Kubo who notched his brace.
Acosta now has 27 goal contributions this season (10 goals, 17 assists), which is just one behind Cristian ‘Chicho’ Arango for the league lead. The reigning MLS MVP leads the league in assists. Orellano nabbed his fifth and sixth assists of the season, bringing him to five goals and six assists in his debut MLS season. Yuya Kubo continues his most productive season in an FC Cincinnati uniform, as his second brace of the season brings him to nine goals on the year.
This week brings FC Cincinnati’s total number of recognitions this season to 29. 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, 25)
- 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, 23, 25-Bench)
- Yuya Kubo (20, 25-Bench)
- Pavel Bucha (24)
2024 FC Cincinnati MLS Team of the Matchday Coach Recognitions
- Pat Noonan (13, 16, 25)
The full team for Matchday 25 is listed below.
2024 MLS Team of the Matchday presented by Audi (Matchday 25)
F: Jonathan Rodríguez (POR), Gyasi Zardes (ATX), Gabriel Pec (LA)
M: Cole Bassett (COL), Diego Luna (RSL), Luciano Acosta (CIN), Albert Rusnák (SEA)
D: Alex Katranis (RSL), Robin Jansson (ORL), Mohamed Farsi (CLB)
GK: Carlos Coronel (RBNY)
Coach: Pat Noonan (CIN)
Bench: Stefan Frei (SEA), Memo Rodríguez (SKC), Iván Angulo (ORL), Santiago Moreno (POR), Luca Orellano (CIN), Willy Agada (SKC), Diego Rossi (CLB), Cucho Hernández (CLB), Yuya Kubo (CIN)
FC Cincinnati continue a three-game homestand on Saturday, as Charlotte FC come to TQL Stadium on July 13. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET and the match will air on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV. Fans can also listen to the match on ESPN 1530 in Cincinnati and on iHeart.
