Coming just 10 days after FC Cincinnati dominated in a 3-0 win versus Inter Miami at TQL Stadium, Saturday night’s match between the two at Chase Stadium lacked the air of dominance that characterized the first leg of the regular season series.
The drama of the match beginning earlier in the week when MLS suspended Lionel Messi and Jordi Alba for their lack of participation in the MLS All-Star events. The lack of Messi and Alba added some moxie to an all ready high-octane environment.
First Half
The first 45 was relatively slow, with neither team coming clear into control of the match. Overall, possession was split 53/47 in favor of Miami, with shots going their way as well by a margin of 8/4. Despite the even statistical divide, it was undoubtedly Inter Miami with the best chance of the half. Coming in just the 11th minute, a Luis Suarez cross into the box was thumped on target courtesy of Fabrice Picault’s head, and was only kept out thanks to a fully stretched Roman Celentano.
Outside of the opening ten minutes, in which FCC took on the onus of the attacking, the first half was truly a battle between Inter Miami and Roman Celentano. With a couple of stellar saves, Roman was able to negate Miami’s tactic of using the speed of Telasco Segovia and Tadeo Allende to bypass the midfield and go direct at the visitors.
Second Half
The second half was similar to the first, in that both sides largely cancelled out the other. While the first half saw a fairly equitable split in possession, Miami decisively controlled the ball in the second 45. The Herons carried possession by a 60/40 margin, while FCC had more shots on target by a margin of 3/1.
For Miami, the majority of their offensive chances came from the veteran Luis Suarez, with the 38 year-old Uruguayan legend accounting for four of the Heron’s five second half shots.
Despite both teams having their fair share of promising chances through out the first 90, the biggest moment of the game came in second half stoppage time.
Near the end of the announced minimum of three minutes of additional time, FCC won a free kick in their attacking half. Evander nodded the ball past Rocco Rios Novo for what appeared to be a winning score. However, jubilation was short lived as the whistle went from referee Tori Penso. The call for a foul on Miles Robinson negated the goal, and after review from VAR was upheld. Ultimately the decision was that Robinson had made contact with the face of Miami’s Noah Allen.
The two sides come out with a point a piece, and the race among the Top Five in the East remains anyone’s destiny.
Post Game
With the draw down in Miami and the Union’s win over Colorado, FCC finds themselves dethroned from atop the Eastern Conference. The margin is a single point between 1st and 2nd, and only eight points between 1st and 5th.
Despite marginal disappointment in the draw, some bright spots can be gleaned from the performance:
- Roman Celentano’s ninth clean sheet on the year.
- 3rd consecutive clean sheet for FC Cincinnati, something that they haven’t accomplished since 2023.
- The team’s four committed fouls on the night is their least in a match since 2019.
During postgame press availability, manager Pat Noonan had nothing but praise for the defensive efforts on the night, “You know, we relied on Roman again to make a big save, big couple saves, and, you know, it’s good to have a stretch now where you’re figuring out defensively how to be strong. This is what we’re going to need down the stretch.”
In regards to the controversial disallowing of Miles Robinsons’ goal, “But, you know, hold off on the whistle and let’s see, let’s review the play, and come to a conclusion…in the moment, that’s what the official saw and made the call.”
Quick Recap
FC CINCINNATI GAME REPORT
FC Cincinnati at Inter Miami CF
Date: July 26, 2025
Competition: MLS Regular Season
Venue: Chase Stadium | Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Attendance: 21,044
Kickoff: 7:25 p.m. ET
Weather: 85 degrees, clear
SCORING SUMMARY: 1-2-FT
MIA: 0-0-0
CIN: 0-0-0
MIA – None
CIN – None
LINEUPS:
CIN: Roman Celentano, Luca Orellano (Corey Baird 88’), Lukas Engel (Brad Smith 88’), Matt Miazga (C), Miles Robinson, DeAndre Yedlin (Alvas Powell 71’), Tah Brian Anunga, Pavel Bucha, Evander, Gerardo Valenzuela (Teenage Hadebe 59’), Kei Kamara (Sergio Santos 59’)
Substitutes not used: Evan Louro, Gilberto Flores, Nick Hagglund, Kenji Mboma Dem
Head Coach: Pat Noonan
MIA: Rocco Rios-Novo, Benjamin Cremaschi, Gonzalo Luján (Noah Allen 72’), Tomás Avilés, Marcelo Weigandt, Sergio Busquets (C), Telasco Segovia, Tadeo Allende, Federico Redondo (Yannick Bright 72’), Luis Suárez, Fafa Picault
Substitutes not used: William Yarbrough, Ryan Sailor, David Ruiz, Cesar Abadia-Reda, Santiago Morales
Head Coach: Javier Mascherano
STATS SUMMARY: MIA/CIN
Shots: 13 / 8
Shots on Goal: 3 / 4
Saves: 3 / 3
Corner Kicks: 5 / 2
Fouls: 14 / 4
Offside: 2 / 1
Possession: 53.7 / 46.3
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
MIA – Benjamin Cremaschi (Yellow Card) 7’
MIA – Tomás Avilés (Yellow Card) 36’
MIA – Federico Redondo (Yellow Card) 60’
MIA – Marcelo Weigandt (Yellow Card) 90’
OFFICIALS
Referee: Tori Penso
Ast. Referees: Logan Brown, Brooke Mayo
Fourth Official: Alyssa Pennington
VAR: Jon Freemon
AVAR: Tom Supple
Next Match
Leagues Cup: vs. Monterrey , July 31st @ 7:00 PM, TQL Stadium; MLS Season Pass
Recommended for you
