Player Ratings

Player Ratings: FC Cincinnati at NYCFC

Brad Weigel has his grades ready from FC Cincinnati’s 4-0 loss at New York City FC on Saturday.

Player Ratings: FC Cincinnati fell 4-0 Saturday to New York City FC in a dismal performance for the Orange & Blue. Alexandru Mitrita netted 30 seconds into the match to put the away side down early. Anton Tinnerholm added the second goal in the 25th minute, and Mitrita followed up with his second goal of the night in the 44th minute. Jesus Medina added the final tally with a late goal in the 88th minute before the final whistle.

Check out Cincinnati Soccer Talk’s post-match report here for more details.

Rules:

  • Each player starts off with a 6 as the standard rating. Six signifies an “average performance” for the match.
  • Players will receive additions or subtractions to their score based on individual moments and the overall team performance.
  • We’ll look at multiple criteria such as stats and the Audi Player Index (API), Who Scored, and Stats Zone to assess a player’s rating.
  • A player may receive an N/A  if they are subbed in/off before any quantifiable statistics are available.

Now on to the ratings:

GK- Spencer Richey: (4) 

Richey faced 22 shots, eight of which were on target. Outside of Minnesota last season, I have trouble remembering when FC Cincinnati was more inept in front of the keeper. I think the only ball that he could’ve done better on was the Tinnerholm goal. The two Matrita goals were hit well and the fourth goal was a deflection from a poorly constructed wall. I think Przemyslaw Tyton probably concedes four goals on Saturday night too.

LWB- Andrew Gutman: (4)

Honestly can’t break it down any better than Matt Doyle here so I’m just going to leave it here for your review.

LCB- Tom Pettersson: (3)

As you can see in the above video, the tactics of NYCFC really pulled FC Cincinnati apart. That meant there was way too much space to move, and when FC Cincinnati did step up, it was too slow. Case in point, Pettersson was slow to react to the Tinnerholm goal. Once Tinnerholm was past Gutman, Pettersson didn’t step and let him have a relatively straightforward shot on Richey. Pettersson has been good the last several weeks, so I’m not selling. I hope his injury that forced him off at half isn’t serious.

CB- Kendall Waston: (3)

Waston admitted in his post-match interview that the first Mitrita goal was his fault. The center back was caught in two frames of mind when coming out to challenge the attacker. He was so far out of position that Mitirta was able to take a touch right past the defender before firing a cracker inside the left post.

RCB- Maikel van der Werff: (3)

Maikel van der Werff got the nod with Nick Hagglund having to miss after coming down with COVID-19. I was a bit nervous to see him alongside Waston, as that right side of the back three could be susceptible to the speed of NYCFC. With Joseph-Claude Gyau getting up the right side frequently, it left van der Werff pretty exposed, and you can see on the video below. NYCFC did a great job to get numbers wide to create mismatches for the defense. On the third goal, van der Werff was caught ball-watching, leaving Matrita to get behind him for an easy shot on goal. He looked better after half when he switched to the left, but the damage was done.

RWB- Joseph-Claude Gyau: (4)

Gyau just couldn’t get into the match. Out of all the players, he lost possession the most times (four) in the match. Honestly, he was too slow tracking back as well. With van der Werff at RCB in the first half, Gyau and the midfield left him too far exposed.

CM- Haris Medunjanin: (4.5)

Out of the starting XI, the only player I thought played up to their level was Medunjanin. He created two of the club’s chances and held a 91% passing percentage. I just think he and Frankie Amaya were given too many defensive responsibilities, and coach Jaap Stam failed to make the changes needed until it was too late.

CM- Frankie Amaya: (3)

Amaya had a chance in the 23rd minute to bring the Orange & Blue level off an NYCFC turnover. He picked up the ball on the left side of the box, but instead of taking a second to survey how much room he had, the young midfielder panicked, and the ball went wide of goal with his shot. FC Cincinnati is such a confidence-driven team. When his chance went wide, you could see the energy level drop again, and then shortly later, the team conceded the second goal of the match. I love the drive and effort of Amaya to get to the giveaway first but he needs to be calmer on the ball in the final third. It might be me but I thought Amaya looked sluggish and tired for most of the match. He’s the last guy on the team I’m going to pick on for effort in tracking back, so it’s logical to think the miles are starting to add up for the young midfielder. On several goals, he was late to the play to support the defense. I’ll give him a pass for this match and hopefully a week without a midweek match can help recharge his batteries.

CAM- Allan Cruz: (3.5)

In 71 minutes Cruz had 22 touches and completed just nine passes. That is horrible from someone who is expected to be one of your impact players. I’ve been really discouraged by his play in the last two matches.

FW- Jurgen Locadia: (4)

Outside of his 39th minute free-kick that forced Sean Johnson to make a tough save, the forward was invisible for most of the match. Thirty-three touches for your high-priced designated player is unacceptable. I don’t know the answer how to get him into play more, but as it’s going, I don’t see how the offense improves.

FW-  Brandon Vazquez : (3.5)

When your two strikers have less than 60 touches combined on the night, you know things must have been few and far between going forward. Vazquez was 5 of 15 on duels, and when FC Cincinnati tried to clear he was often unable to hold up the ball. To be fair, he was more than often outmanned as NYCFC could handle FC Cincinnati without having to risk defenders from the back.

Sub- Mathieu Deplagne (45th Minute): (5)

Mathieu Deplagne came on at halftime as Tom Pettersson had to be removed with an injury. His performance really didn’t register much with me. His distribution from the RCB spot was pretty good at 92%.

Sub- Greg Garza (55th Minute): (5.5)

Gutman went down with an apparent hamstring injury. If I could pick out one positive thing last night, it was the willingness for Garza to drift up the field. When FC Cincinnati goes back to take a look at the video, it’ll see several missed opportunities where Garza was untracked heading into the final third. A quick pass to shift sides of the field could have opened up a couple of chances for the offense.

Sub- Caleb Stanko (57th Minute): (5)
Caleb Stanko was substituted in for Amaya. The game was decided by the time the midfielder came into the match. Nonetheless he was largely ineffective.
Sub- Yuya Kubo (71st Minute): (N/A)
Yuya Kubo came in late for Cruz.

Injury Notes:  Saad Abdul- Salaam (ankle), Siem de Jong (calf) and Jimmy McLaughlin (ankle).

Out: Kamohelo Mokotjo (work visa), Alvaro Barreal (work visa) and Przemysław Tytoń (travel quarantine).

COVID-19: FC Cincinnati announced Hagglund tested positive twice late this week for COVID-19. He is in quarantine with his family and was unavailable.

@bradleysweigel for @CincySoccerTalk

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