Before this three-game stretch, the vibes were high. A match-up of the top two teams in MLS was a resounding 6-1 victory for FC Cincinnati.
Since then, FCC lost to a challenging Charlotte squad, a disappointing Chicago team and entered New York hoping to turn the tide against a rotated Red Bull squad.
But the tides weren’t turned, and FCC was handed its third consecutive loss, this time by a 3-1 scoreline.
Entering the game, both teams were facing a series of squad issues as FCC was without Miles Robinson and Matt Miazga, looking to fill a hole after an Alvas Powell red card against Chicago and questions about Lucho Acosta’s health. For the Red Bullsm they were missing left back John Tolkein to the Olympics, Sean Nealis to a red card and star attacking man Emil Forsberg to injury.
But it was not FCC’s rotated squad who came prepared to play, as almost immediately the Red Bulls jumped on the board in the seventh minute. Following an attacking moment where Cincinnati was controlling possession, New York cleared the ball up to striker Elias Manoel who nudged Ian Murphy off the ball and ran upfield. He drove into the attacking third, drawing DeAndre Yedlin and Kipp Keller to him before calmly squaring the ball to a wide-open Lewis Morgan who slid the ball past a helpless Celentano.
From there, it calmed down for much of the first half as FCC was missing the creative bite of Lucho Acosta, who started on the bench, and ran into a defense content to allow the Orange and Blue to possess the ball.
Dom Kinnear tried to add some danger as he subbed in Luciano Acosta and Luca Orellano at halftime. But it was the Red Bulls again who found the back of the net.
A long throw-in was headed out of the box by the FCC defense to a waiting Kyle Duncan. He took one touch to settle the ball then hit it from 24 yards out finding the top corner for a 2-0 lead.
Determined to find their way into the game FCC continued to push, but it was New York who found the third and put the game away. A cross to the back post was nodded down to a waiting Lewis Morgan who slipped his defender and chipped the ball over Celentano.
There was a consolation goal for Corey Baird who lifted a ball over the Red Bulls keeper, but that was the only good chance of the second half, as FCC lost its shape with substitutions and found it hard to build forward with few players in the midfield.
This result put a damper on an excellent stretch of the season, but laid bare the struggles of an MLS roster dealing with key injuries and rotated defenders. With the transfer window open, and the league taking a break from MLS play, hopefully, when they return to league play against Miami on August 24, we will see a squad ready to renew their fight for the Supporters Shield.
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