A wild night in ‘The Six’ saw FC Cincinnati and Toronto FC combine for a total of seven goals. The three points that both teams seemed to be willing to empty the tank for ultimately fell the way of the Orange and Blue.
The match opened with both teams trying to navigate half-chances. FCC started out on the front foot for the first ten minutes of the match with a theme that would be important late into the night: get the ball to Luca Orellano. But it would be TFC who would strike first on the score sheet. In the 25th minute, a corner was earned after a poor giveaway under pressure. Lorenzo Insigne delivered the corner attempt which found Deybi Flores who was able to contort his body enough to head the ball past Roman Celentano.
The remainder of the half played out with several chippy incidences. Matt Miazga and TFC striker Prince-Osei Owusu got into a shouting match after Owusu undercut Miazga in an aerial duel. Kevin Kelsy also got in a minor scuffle with Nicksoen Gomis as they pulled each other to the ground. In the 42nd minute, a VAR check did not see malicious intent for on an elbow. In first half stoppage time, Celentano and Sigurd Rosted collided heads going for the ball but both players were able to shake off the cobwebs and continue.
Closing out the first half, Insigne made a deep run to split the FCC backline before releasing a shot to the far post that was saved by Celentano. TFC took its 1-0 advantage into the locker room.
The chippy play resumed in the second half but the goal-scoring opportunities really opened up. In the 53rd minute, Orellano, who had switched to right wingback and tucked inside, made a run at the top of the attacking third after Kelsy won back possession. Luciano Acosta got the ball quickly to Dado Valenzula who took a rough tackle but the referee played advantage and the ball found the left foot of Orellano, who slotted it in the bottom of the right corner.
Moments later, a long pass from Miazga six yards from the touchline got to Valenzuela, who took another bone-crunching tackle, but the ball continued past the TFC defense to Orellano, who cracked a shot at the far post. Sean Johnson was able to make the save but the ball fell to Kelsy who unleashed a shot into the net. FCC was able to flip the Toronto advantage just ten minutes into the half with a 2-1 lead.
It wasn’t long before TFC had a response. In the 63rd minute, Derrick Etienne Jr. got on a long lob pass to get the ball to Owusu. A corner was given off the blocked Owusu shot. Insigne played it in quickly, and after a give-and-go, he released a shot that deflected off Ian Murphy past Celentano for an own goal.
After a brief settling of the match, Orellano, who was now back on the left side after DeAndre Yedlin checked in, played a lovely one-two with Acosta before sending the ball back to the top of the TFC box to Sergio Santos. Santos got tacked hard in the box but again the ball continues to Orellano. Orellano smacked the shot past Johnson into the net. A brace for the young Argentine and FCC had regained the lead once again.
Toronto wasn’t going away, however. In the 83rd minute, Murphy lost Etienne Jr. in the box. The former FCC man then hit a cross and played the ball forward to Owusu. Miles Robinson, perhaps unaware of the action, pulled Owusu down to deliver TFC a penalty kick. Insigne stepped to the spot and left no doubt with his right-footed attempt.
With the score now level again, it was a couple of nervy minutes to close out the match. Kelsy got on to a ball in the TFC box but was unable to bring enough power to beat Johnson. On the other end, Kobe Franklin got free but his shot went just over the crossbar. Insigne showed his class with a quick run towards the box after play resumed. After no FCC defender stepped forward towards him, Insigne uncorked a curling shot that hit off the top right corner of the frame.
Unfortunately for the home faithful, FCC was able to find the match-winning goal in the 93rd minute. Acosta got onto the ball, and after twisting and turning into the box, he found Yamil Asad near the six-yard box. Asad set the ball perfectly for Santos who ripped the net on the goal.
The Orange and Blue had to survive one last attempt as Insigne got behind the FCC backline in the 97th minute, but his rocket shot deflected off Celentano into the net but he was clearly offsides on his run.
A physical, gritty performance finished with a well-earned three points for FCC. The win is the seventh consecutive victory for FCC, making MLS history as one of only four teams to do so. The win also gave FCC a brief appearance in first place in the Supporters Shield race before a late-night win by Inter Miami left FCC again a point behind.
Goals
TOR – Deybi Flores (Insigne) 25’, Own Goal – Ian Murphy 63’, Lorenzo Insigne (penalty) 85’
CIN – Luca Orellano (Acosta) 53’, Kevin Kelsy 55’, Luca Orellano (Santos) 79’, Sergio Santos (Asad, Acosta) 90’+3
LINEUPS
CIN: Roman Celentano, Luca Orellano (Yamil Asad 88’), Ian Murphy, Matt Miazga, Miles Robinson, Bret Halsey (DeAndre Yedlin 65’), Pavel Bucha, Obinna Nwobodo, Luciano Acosta (C), Kevin Kelsy, Gerardo Valenzuela (Sergio Santos 72’)
Substitutes not used: Alec Kann, Nick Hagglund, Kipp Keller, Malik Pinto, London Aghedo, Stiven Jimenez
TOR: Sean Johnson, Nicksoen Gomis, Sigurd Rosted, Raoul Petretta, Matty Longstaff, Deybi Flores (Alonso Coello 70’), Jonathan Osorio (C) (Kobe Franklin 70’), Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty (Kevin Long 75’), Tyrese Spicer (Derrick Etienne Jr. 58’), Lorenzo Insigne, Prince Owusu
Substitutes not used: Luka Gavran, Aime Mabika, Cassius Mailula, Deandre Kerr, Kosi Thompson
Next Match:
MLS Regular Season: vs Nashville SC – May 29, 7:30 PM – Apple TV+
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