FC Cincinnati Searches for Answers as Bad Luck, Defensive Woes Fuel Another Costly Defeat
Damon Gumbert
In a somber post-match media availability, Nick Hagglund did his best to sum up the 4-2 loss against the New York Red Bulls but may have better summed up the seson so far, “It feels like luck’s not on our side right now.”
Hagglund brought up an interesting point, quoting the xG (expected goals) in the match being 1.8 while the team gave up four goals. In the New England match, the xG was 2.3 in a match where the Revs put up six goals. In the 5-1 loss to Tigres, the expected goals had Tigres winning 2-0. If that would have been the case, FCC would have advanced in the CONCACAF Champions Cup.
How does a team fix something that is ostensibly out of their control? “I’m a guy who really believes in creating your own luck,” Hagglund continued. “So, can’t really say exactly what we need to do other than, you know, be more cohesive and, you know, front to back, be together.”
To Head Coach Pat Noonan’s credit, he has not been standing idly by and watching his team struggle. In the past two matches he has deployed new lineups, trying to find that perfect fit that can help the team succeed and push past this rough stretch of bad luck.
In this matchup, despite how the original graphic was posted, Noonan sent out a 4-3-3, opting to go more traditional with the lineup over his favored wingback model.
When talking about the formation afterward, Noonan said, “Of course, I mean, we concede four goals, and we concede four goals in a different formation… I think we have the players in the group to do a lot better defensively.”
He continued, “I thought how we were able to play through pressure at times was some of the best actions that we’ve seen thus far, in all of our games.”
It has seemed like teams have figured out that The FC does not play well against a high press, so in that regard this match was an improvement. That being said, there still seems to be a problem in the middle of the pitch with passing the ball. The Orange and Blue made 382 accurate passes of their 482 attempted, but the concerning bit is that 237 of those passes came on their own side of the pitch.
RBNY had nearly opposite statistics, with 274 passes being completed in the FCC half of the pitch. The passing heat maps posted to BlueSky from MLS Analytics shows that the ball was primarily sent between the back four, Bryan Ramirez, Matt Miazga, Hagglund, and Kyle Smith. The most accurate passer in that group was Bryan Ramirez, who secured a 94% accurate pass rating. On the other side of the pitch was the three worst passing performance of the night, with Smith (75%), Ender Echenique (78%) and Miazga (80%).
Miazga, who is starting his second match since returning from an injury that cut his season short in 2025, has not looked his best. The center back has not lost his fire, being a very vocal to referees, opposing players, and to his teammates, but he has seemed to lose a lot of his speed and possibly some of his instincts.
When asked if Miazga can get back to his play that earned him Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2023, Noonan said, “Getting back to where he was, that comes with time and fitness and sharpness, which he certainly needs, but if you look at the goals we’re conceding and the plays he’s making in the box, a lot of those are not on Matt.”
This may be where I disagree. In the last two matches the team has allowed six goals while Miazga was on the pitch. While not all of them are on Miazga, half of them were scored by players directly in his area. In the Montreal match, Miazga was matched up with Prince Owusu for much of the match, with Owusu securing two goals and one assist during that time. The third goal was a penalty kick caused by Miles Robinson committing a foul in the box that earned him a red card, but the second goal was a moment where Owusu just used his speed to get a step or two ahead of Miazga.
You could bottle that moment and input it into this match and it would be nearly identical to the goal that was scored by Julian Hall. A pass was sent in directly in front of goal and Miazga was a step behind the 18-year-old. There were a few other moments where Miazga seemed to be struggling to keep up with the offense, or was rushed due to the speed of the attackers closing in on him.
While the leadership that Miazga provides is much needed on this team, it’s hard to make an argument that he should be starting in the future when Miles Robinson returns from his suspension. Hagglund should have locked in a starting spot, not only with his play on defense but his ability to create chances on set pieces and his game changing long throw-ins, which directly set up a second goal this season.
“I’m just trying to cause chaos in there, and it seems to be working right now,” Hagglund said.
It’s the right brand of chaos for a team that seems to attract chaos. For the third match in a row a player has received a red card, this time Alvas Powell being sent off for “denial of an obvious goal scoring opportunity.” If FC Cincinnati can come up with a way to make that chaos work for them rather than against them, they may be able to turn this season around.
For now, they will need to put this match behind them and focus on the return match with Toronto FC. The club will potentially have Dado Valenzuela, Robinson, and Roman Celentano back for that match, depending on the injuries that both Robinson and Celentano suffered recently.
They will need a boost to the defense, with Josh Sargent having joined Toronto since the last match these teams played. Sargent scored the game winner in Toronto’s match against the Colorado Rapids on Saturday, his first goal since joining MLS.
That match kicks off in Toronto at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, April 11.
