FC Cincinnati’s winning streak came to an end on Saturday when they fell to the New England Revolution at home, 3-2. New England opened the scoring in the 17’ when Brandon Bye lofted a cross into the box for Sebastian Lletget to scissor kick home. Brandon Vazquez put himself back on the score sheet less than 10’ later, heading in a John Nelson cross to draw FCC level. But the Revolution took a lead into halftime when Bye once again got free on the flank to cross, this time for Adam Buksa to backheel past Celentano. Once again the Orange and Blue drew level when Dom Badji crossed for Alvaro Barreal to hammer home. Then, once it looked like the teams would be sharing the points, Brandon Bye again provided for the visitors, finding Tommy McNamara at the edge of the box for a looping shot that somehow found its way into the back of the net.
Check out Cincinnati Soccer Talk’s post-match report here for more details.
RULES:
- Each player starts off with a 6 as a 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 statistics and player rating systems from Who Scored and FOTMOB
- We won’t use .5 increments, because that is weak-sauce.
- We will not be afraid to give players a perfect 10 if they deserve it, but will never give a rating of 0, because there is always some sort of positive.
- A player may receive an N/A if they are subbed in/off before any quantifiable statistics are available.
Expected Goals (xG): FC Cincinnati – .9, Chicago Fire – .8, per mlssoccer.com
Formation: 4-2-3-1
Now onto the ratings:
Manager – Pat Noonan – 5
This is a tough grade on a manager who hasn’t done much wrong of late. I thought he got it wrong here, electing to go back to the 4-2-3-1. New England spent the match sending their wings inside and getting their outside backs forward, meaning that the Orange and Blue had to account for more bodies in the middle of the park. They struggled to do that and paid for it. I thought switching to a 3-5-2 at half would allow FCC to close up those gaps, but Noonan didn’t make a change.
Noonan’s substitutions were also odd. Pulling Alvas Powell for Ray Gaddis in the 60′ was a head-scratcher, though there could have been an injury concern that I am not aware of. The same can be said for putting Quimi Ordonez in for Brando Vazquez in the 84th. Both substitutions were uncharacteristically conservative, and neither paid dividends.
GK – Roman Celentano – 5
Celentano was the lowest rated player by far on Fotmob, clocking in at a lowly 4.4. Though the first two goals were spectacular finishes, the game-winner seemed saveable. He did make one incredible reaction save in the 74′ to keep the score level, but in any game that a goalkeeper gives up 3 goals on .6 post-shot xG, his rating is going to suffer.
RB – Alvas Powell – 6
By the eye test, I thought Powell played quite well. However, the stats don’t really bear that out. He contributed only one interception and one tackle, a measly 8 pressures, and was dribbled twice. He also only won 2 of 6 ground duels. Offensively, his pass percentage was good, but he had 0 shot-creating actions and 0 accurate crosses. I kept this grade average because of what I saw, but Powell will need to contribute more on the offensive side of the ball if he is going to help this team win games.
CB – Nick Hagglund – 7
Nick Hagglund was once again a solid presence in FC Cincinnati’s back line. He won 2 tackles, had 2 interceptions, and a block. His pressure-success rate of 71.4% shows he really chose the right times to attack the ball. Finally, he won 2 of 3 ground duels and every one of his 4 aerial duels. Nick was in the vicinity for both of New England’s first half goals, but there wasn’t a ton he could have done about either of them.
CB – Ian Murphy – 5
Ian Murphy was able to contribute 2 interceptions and a blocked shot, but failed to record a tackle and went 0 for 2 in ground duels. He also got caught too wide on Lletget’s opener, leaving Hagglund to try to mark both Buksa and the goal-scorer. However, offensively he was more than solid. His 92.4% passing was excellent, and he was able to contribute 3 shot-creating actions. This makes a few performances in a row for the rookie that leave a bit to be desired. It will be interesting to see whether Noonan continues to play the kid game in and game out.
LB – John Nelson – 5
John Nelson was useful in possession for the Orange and Blue. He had a superb 80.4% passing rate, though only 3 of those were progressive passes, and he grabbed the assist for Brandon Vazquez’s first half header. However, an outside back in this system has to contribute more than 6 pressures. It is also tough to ignore that New England targeted him all match, attacking down his side nearly half of the time, and all 3 Revolution goals came from his side. He simply couldn’t get close enough to Brandon Bye to keep him from crossing.
DCM – Obinna Nwobodo – 7
Obi led the team with 24 pressures and 9 successful pressures. He also had an incredible 9 tackles and 2 interceptions while winning 8 of 11 ground duels. He was also extremely effective offensively, where his passing percentage was great (89.7%) and he had a respectable 7 progressive passes. However, he did have a decent look at the goal in the first half that he missed badly. He also was only able to contribute 1 shot-creating action and was dribbled by twice.
DCM – Junior Moreno – 6
Moreno’s 3 interceptions and 2 tackles are a good stat line for someone in a double pivot. However, in a match where FCC struggled to get pressure to the ball, his 11.8% pressure rate was very poor and he won only 2 of his 10 ground duels. He also was dribbled 4 times and was badly out of position for McNamara’s game-winner. His offensive contribution saves his rating here, as he led the team with 98.3% passing, including going 29 for 29 on passes between 15 and 30 yards, and 5 for 5 on passes longer than that.
CAM – Luciano Acosta – 5
Lucho had a very poor match for his high standards. He was only 2 for 6 on his dribbles, and many of his passes in the final third were not quite right. His set piece delivery was very poor all night, and his 2 key passes is below his typical contribution (he averages 3.44 per 90). He led the team with 4 shot-creating actions, which still fell short of his season average (6.07/90). Despite this, he still was involved in both FCC goals.
RW – Dom Badji – 7
Dom Badji was once again oddly uninvolved offensively, getting only 22 touches which were the lowest among starters by far. With those few touches, he was effective in creating 2 shots, being instrumental in Vazquez’s first half goal, and grabbing the assist on Barreal’s goal. Defensively he fell in line with the rest of the team, failing to get pressure on the ball. His 7 pressures were half of what he averages per 90. It’s not surprising, then, that he failed to earn a tackle or an interception, and was 0 for 2 in ground duels. Being highly involved in both goals earns, however, is an above average performance.
LW – Álvaro Barreal – 7 (Man of the Match)
Barreal was given the role of a free winger by Pat Noonan, and he rewarded his skipper. He was incredibly involved, touching the ball 65 times. He was able to get off 2 shots, one of which was his game tieing goal in the 2nd half. However, he wasn’t able to create any shots for his teammates, he progressed the ball only 5 times (3 passes and 2 carries), and he wasn’t accurate with any of his 5 crosses. In a match where the Orange and Blue needed to have a fire lit under them, Barreal was able to muster a bit of heat but couldn’t quite spark the team to life.
ST – Brandon Vazquez – 6
Vazquez continues to impress with his intelligent movement in and around the box. Once again he found a way to create confusion in the opponent’s defense to get free and score a vital goal. His great near post run was also instrumental in opening the passing lane for Barreal’s 2nd half stunner. However, completing only 68.4% of your passes, being dispossessed once, and leading the team with 4 mistouches is not the way to get a high player rating. Vazquez continues to improve and continues to impress, but still has a ways to go before he can be considered an elite MLS striker.
SUBS
Ray Gaddis (61st minute) – 5
Gaddis came on for Alvas Powell while the game was level at 2-2. In over 30 minutes of play including stoppage time, Gaddis managed only 1 tackle and 4 pressures, with 0 interceptions, blocks, or clearances. His 76.9% passing wasn’t bad, but he had only 1 progressive pass and didn’t log a single cross. Coming on in a tie game at home, he would have hoped to be able to contribute a bit more to the team’s performance.
Yuya Kubo (75th minute) – 6
Kubo came on for a tiring Dom Badji to play the familiar unfamiliar position of wing. In his short time, he completed all of his passes, but none of them added to the attack. He had 0 progressive passes, 0 crosses, 0 passes into the final third, and 0 shot-creating actions. It was good to see the Japanese international back from injury, though his impact on this match was minimal.
Arquimides Ordonez (84th minute) – N/A
Availability Notes: Alec Kann (groin), Brenner (alarm clock allergy), Isaac Atanga (leg), Allan Cruz (leg), Calvin Harris (leg), and Ronald Matarrita (ankle surgery).
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