The Orange & Blue enjoyed their trip to the Dominican Republic with a productive win in front of an expansive tree. On Wednesday, they look to lay roots and stick around longer in their first tournament of the season.
FC Cincinnati hope to book another advancement out of the first round of the CONCACAF Champions Cup, welcoming O&M FC to TQL Stadium. Their first leg in the Caribbean was a poignant 4-0 victory in front of a small crowd. A brace from Ayoub Jabbari and goals by Tom Barlow and Kévin Denkey provided a comfortable lead in this aggregate over two matches.
FC Cincinnati have succeeded both times when facing CCC competition in the first round at TQL Stadium. In 2024, the Orange & Blue scored four times in the home leg to eliminate Cavalier FC from Jamaica, 6-0 on aggregate. In 2025, Denkey scored early to help FC Cincinnati in a 1-1 draw against FC Motagua from Honduras, eliminating them 5-2 on aggregate.
The winner of this series moves on to face Tigres UANL in the Round of 16 in March. Tigres were unable to score in an early 0-0 draw at Canada’s Forge FC, but had no issues in a 4-1 home win to advance.
UNIVERSIDAD O&M FC
O&M FC ‘s struggles did not stop over the weekend, resuming “Winners’ Stage” league play with a 2-0 loss at Saicedo FC. The Dominican Republic team has slumped since almost winning the CONCACAF Caribbean Cup last year. O&M have not won since December 2025, losing five and drawing twice in their last seven matches. The team is almost mathematically eliminated from qualifying for the LDF playoffs, needing three wins in their final three matches to have a shot.
If O&M have any chance at overcoming a four-goal deficit, they’ll need to score in buckets. Anyelo Gomez and Julen Manterola have six goals apiece in LDF play, but they and the entire O&M team could not direct any of their nine shots on target against Cincinnati.
Goalkeeper Omry Bello made 7 saves in a valiant effort, including a penalty kick save against Jabbari in the second half. However, he also let Denkey’s goal float through his hands for the second goal. Bello will need a Herculean effort to keep the score low.
THE ORANGE AND BLUE
FC Cincinnati had a little more difficulty getting offense going against Atlanta United on Saturday but scratched out a 2-0 victory to start MLS play. Denkey and Nick Hagglund both scored late to make the difference, but it was Miles Robinson’s aggressive defending that got him Man of the Match recognition.
There is a good chance that all three get little to no time on the pitch Wednesday, as head coach Pat Noonan may have much of the bench from Saturday and FCC2 loanees occupying the lineup. The team will certainly be without Evander, who is having scans for a possible hamstring injury early this week.
The rotation will likely give more opportunities for Barlow and Jabbari to flex their muscles as the secondary scoring force next to Denkey. However, the loss of Evander will likely mean more work for Dado Valenzuela at the #10 position and a possible audition for others to fill the role. Brian Anunga and Obi Nwobodo may reprise their roles from the first leg in the midfield to play more of a defensive game to hold the lead.
Predicted lineup:
Match Info
Where: TQL Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio
When: Wednesday, February 25th at 7:00 p.m.
Watch: FS2, Foxsports.com, FuboTV, VIX.
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