CINCINNATI – FC Cincinnati played to a 2-2 draw Saturday night in an end-to-end battle against Atlanta United FC in front of a sellout crowd of 25,037 at TQL Stadium.
The draw sees FC Cincinnati (8-8-9) go to 33 points. Atlanta United (7-9-8) end the night with 29 points.
Atlanta United opened the scoring in the 17th minute, but Brandon Vazquez leveled things for the Orange and Blue in the 29th minute, scoring against his former club for the first time.
A costly turnover from Atlanta United at the top of the box led to the goal with Obinna Nwobodo picking out Vazquez who took a touch and finished home a left-footed shot.
Vazquez becomes the first player in club history to score in four straight games with his 15th of the season.
Brenner doubled Cincinnati's lead 12 minutes later to close out a thrilling first half of action. Geoff Cameron picked up his first assist of the year by sending a cross across the face of goal to the Brazilian striker who headed home his ninth goal of the year.
The headed finish was Brenner’s first career MLS headed goal.
Former FCC man Andrew Gutman equalized in the 83rd minute to lead the visitors to a point inside TQL Stadium.
The game was the fifth FC Cincinnati sellout inside TQL Stadium, the third without a limited capacity due to Covid-19 restrictions. It was the largest crowd of 2022.
The Orange and Blue hit the road for a matchup with the New York Red Bulls next Saturday, August 20. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. from Red Bull Arena and the game can be watched on Star64, streamed in-market at fccincinnati.com, out of market on ESPN+ and listened to on the radio on ESPN 1530.
FC CINCINNATI GAME REPORT
FC Cincinnati vs. Atlanta United FC
Date: MLS Regular Season
Venue: TQL Stadium
Attendance: 25,037 (Sellout)
Kickoff: 7:38 p.m. ET
Weather: 77 degrees, clear
SCORING SUMMARY: 1-2-F
CIN: 2-0-2
ATL: 1-1-2
CIN - Brandon Vazquez (Obinna Nwobodo) 29’, Brenner (Geoff Cameron) 41’
ATL - Thiago Almada (Luiz Araújo) 17’, Andrew Gutman (Josef Martínez, Thiago Almada) 83’
GAME NOTES
• All-time against Atlanta United FC the Orange and Blue are 1-5-4, having never defeated the 5-Stripes in the Queen City.
• The ninth tie of the season for the Orange and Blue is a new-high since joining MLS in 2019.
• Brandon Vazquez became the first player in club history to score in four straight games … only five other goal streaks have reached three games in club history, including one from Vazquez (10/20-27/2021) and the active streak from Brenner.
• Designated Player Obinna Nwobodo recorded his first career goal contribution in MLS, with his assist of Vazquez’s goal.
• Vazquez ends the night ranked second in MLS in goals with his 15th of the season, one behind Austin FC’s Sebastián Driussi (16).
• Saturday marked FC Cincinnati’s fifth sellout of TQL Stadium, the first this season (all in 2021: 5/16 vs Inter Miami CF, 5/29 vs New England Revolution, 6/19 vs Colorado Rapids, 7/9 vs Columbus Crew) … the Inter Miami CF and New England Revolution contests were limited capacities due to Covid-19 restrictions.
• Brenner has scored in three straight games for the second time this season, and his nine goals this season set a career-high for most in a single season.
LINEUPS
CIN: Roman Celentano, Álvaro Barreal (John Nelson, 75’), Matt Miazga (Tyler Blackett, 66’), Geoff Cameron, (Dominique Badji, 89’), Nick Hagglund, Alvas Powell, Obinna Nwobodo, Junior Moreno, Luciano Acosta (c), Brenner, Brandon Vazquez
Substitutes not used: Alec Kann, Yuya Kubo, Allan Cruz, Raymon Gaddis, Arquimides Ordonez, Ian Murphy
Head Coach: Pat Noonan
ATL: Rocco Rios-Novo, Ronald Hernandez (Brooks Lennon, 59’), Alan Franco, Andrew Gutman (Aiden McFadden, 87’), Juan Sanchez Purata, Caleb Wiley (Dom Dwyer, 69’), Santiago Sosa, Thiago Almada, Marcelino Moreno (c) (Edwin Mosquera 69’), Luiz De Araujo, Ronaldo Cisneros (Josef Martinez, 59’)
Substitutes not used: Alex De John, Amar Sejdic, Franco Ibarra, Raul Gudino
Head Coach: Gonzalo Pineda
STATS SUMMARY: CIN/ATL
Shots: 16 / 19
Shots on Goal: 8 / 6
Saves: 4 / 6
Corner Kicks: 6 / 9
Fouls: 16 / 12
Offside: 1 / 2
Possession: 39.2 / 60.8
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
CIN – Álvaro Barreal (Yellow Card) 14’
ATL – Caleb Wiley (Yellow Card) 27’
CIN – Matt Miazga (Yellow Card) 58’,
CIN – Tyler Blackett (Yellow Card) 78’
OFFICIALS
Referee: Fotiz Bazakos
Ast. Referees: Andrew Bigelow, Walt Heatherly
Fourth Official: Luis Arroyo
VAR: Ramy Touchan
AVAR: Kevin Lock
POSTGAME QUOTES
FC Cincinnati Head Coach Pat Noonan
On the result
“An unfortunate trend in the end and conceding the goal to drop a couple points. It was probably fair when you look at the way that game played out. Credit to Atlanta. They put us under a lot of pressure, certainly in the first half when we were careless with the ball. Some dangerous players that have the ability to attack 1v1 to get in the box. I thought we asked a lot of our defenders and Roman (Celentano) with too many of those moments where our lack of composure and just being careless on the ball didn't allow us to really move forward as a group in a more connected way. The game was open at times, which is good on one end because it allowed us some space to attack them. But on the other side, there's too much quality on their side with their team to be defending like that. Probably a fair result based on how we performed.”
On Vazquez scoring in four straight games
“It’s what we've seen from Brandon for quite some time. I don't think it's anything new. It's him finding ways to run in the box to get on the end of balls and behind crosses. He's timed it well and he's done a good job of finishing off plays.”
On the response following the first Atlanta goal
“We capitalized on a turnover on our first goal, so I think the execution in that quick transition moment was really good. Capitalize on a set piece where Geoff (Cameron) in the second phase of that gets on the end of the ball that gets into the back post and just does a good job to get it. I don't know if it’s on frame in front of goal for Brenner to finish it off. But it was certainly a good response to be able to go into the break up a goal based on our performance. That was the positive because I don't think we were strong in the first half.”
FC Cincinnati Defender Matt Miazga
On his first appearance with FCC
“Yeah, unfortunately, we didn't get that three points. But there's obviously a lot of positives to take from the game. And also, you know, points where we can improve on and learn from. So obviously, going into this upcoming week, we'll be analyzing the things we can improve on, and taking the positives and building on them, but my debut was fantastic in terms of, you know, playing in front of fans and stadium. The support I got it was wonderful. And I'm very pleased to be here.
On returning to MLS and the improvement in play in the league
“It's tough to judge it after one game. I feel like that would be a good question after the season when I can judge the 10 games, but obviously I've played MLS in the past, and it was always a good level. So I knew that it was always going to improve and, and the league has invested a lot in a lot of players now and spending more money. More quality is coming in. And you can see with Atlanta and I know they spent quite a few dollars on some players. They're pretty good players and, and yes the leagues growing consistently every year. I'm happy to be back and be a part of that growth.”
Fans can place deposits now for 2023 Season Tickets, and current season ticket holders can renew for 2023 now. Anyone with interest in 2023 Season Tickets can place their deposit HERE, or by calling 513-977-KICK, that’s 513-977-5425.
FC Cincinnati's 2022 schedule can be viewed, HERE. Fans can build their custom 3 Match Flex Plan today. Pick any three matches and save on single match ticket pricing with no fees at checkout. Fans can pick the same seats for three games or select different options around TQL Stadium.
Single match tickets to any of FC Cincinnati’s remaining home games are also available now, head to fccincinnati.com/tickets or call 513-977-KICK, to learn more.
FC Cincinnati are playing their fourth season of MLS competition in 2022, and their second playing at TQL Stadium. 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.
