Looking to follow up their strong 3-1 victory over Pachuca on Tuesday evening, FC Cincinnati entered Friday night’s contest with Pumas with a tall task ahead of them. Despite falling in their previous match with Charlotte, Pumas is a perennial power in Liga MX. Boasting a well-rounded and experienced squad, the expectation was that there would be no quarter given from either side.
Expected rotation occurred within the FC Cincinnati Starting XI, as Kevin Denkey, Kenji Mboma-Dem, Kyle Smith, Obinna Nwobodo, Miles Robinson, and Ender Echenique all slotted back into the lineup. Both Evander and Pavel Bucha started, each coming into the match with four consecutive 90-minute shifts under their belts.
FIRST HALF:
Following a short 17-minute weather delay, the first half kicked off with FCC in their Seven Hills kits, and the visitors donning all-blacks with gold numbering.
The opening ten minutes saw the two sides exchange warning shots. In the seventh minute, a through ball from Andrei Chirila to Evander resulted in a tidy finish from Kevin Denkey, yet was nullified by an offsides call. Despite a short VAR check, the match would continue its infancy stage scoreless.
The visitors didn’t wait long in responding as they directly took the attack the other way. A botched clearance led to a free header for Luciano Herrera which pirouetted its way across the top of the woodwork and behind for a goal kick.
This “in-your-face” pace was not only evident in the chances that Pumas created early on, but also in their relentless pressing of the ball in the opening quarter hour.
The game would settle itself as the clock ticked on towards halftime. Both sides exchanged chances and FC Cincinnati did a good job in cleaning up some sticky situations.
However, in a half that seemed destined to trickle down scoreless, a stoppage time effort from Bucha would send The Orange and Blue into the break with a lead. The scoring sequence began with a blocked shot from Evander. After a cycle it was the Brazilian star with the final touch that set up the Czechian midfielder for his second goal of the Leagues Cup campaign and his fifth Leagues Cup goal overall. Bucha is now tied Brandon Vazquez for most Leagues Cup goals in club history.
SECOND HALF:
The second half began without any substitutions from either side.
It became evident quickly that Pumas would be asking the majority of the questions in the second 45, yet they could not quite seem to find that finishing moment. This defensive effort, and Pumas’ lack of critical finishing, was highlighted by Pat Noonan post-match. “I’m pleased that we kept a clean sheet, but we do know there was a lot that could be improved to prevent some of those dangerous sets they had.”
This was most evident in the 70th minute, when a turnover in the midfield sprung a Pumas fast-break. Again it was Herrera threatening, this time following a service from former Houston Dynamo man Coco Carrasquilla. Fortunately Evan Louro got his body in front of the effort for what was Pumas’ best chance on the evening.
As the clock ground towards 90 minutes, the Pumas desperation manifested itself, yet despite their best efforts the FCC defense would not break this evening.
As the minimum of five minutes of added time neared its end, the Orange and Blue would get one final chance of their own. A turnover at midfield allowed the speedy duo of Echenique and Mboma-Dem to go to work on the other end, capped off with Kenji blasting a rocket nearly through the back of the net.
When asked postgame whether Mboma Dem was trying to break the net, he responded cheekily. “Of course, I sent one to the moon. I didn’t need to send two.”
POSTGAME:
The clean sheet on the evening marked the first such effort for FC Cincinnati since April 25th, when they blanked Red Bull New York 2-0 at home. With another two goals scored, FCC has now scored multiple times in 12 of their last 13 matches in all competitions.
At night’s end, FC Cincinnati sit second in the MLS table for Leagues Cup, edging Columbus Crew in goal differential. However, only five of the 18 sides have played their second match so far, so change is sure to come.
It will once again be a short rest stint as the final match of Phase One comes on Tuesday when Atlas will visit the Queen City. This tight turn around, while collectively shared across the tournament, will be a challenge. When asked about the team’s approach, Noonan highlighted recovery as being at the forefront of their preparation.
Noonan himself picked up a personal accolade of his own on the evening, notching his 100th victory at the helm for FC Cincinnati. Despite the achievement, he reiterated his main focus. “While I don’t take it lightly, it’s not the end goal. We know what the end goal is, and that’s sharing in the team moments with trophies, and that’ll always be the No. 1 priority.”
FC CINCINNATI GAME REPORT
FC Cincinnati vs Pumas
Date: August 7, 2026
Competition: Leagues Cup 2026 Phase One
Venue: TQL Stadium | Cincinnati, Ohio
Attendance: 20,767
Kickoff: 8:27 p.m. ET (17 minute delay prior to kickoff)
Weather: 79 degrees, clear
SCORING SUMMARY: 1-2-FT
CIN: 1-1-2
PUM: 0-0-0
CIN – Pavel Bucha (Evander) 45’+1, Kenji Mboma Dem (Echenique) 90’+3
PUM – None
LINEUPS
CIN: Evan Louro, Ender Echenique, Andrei Chirila (Samuel Gidi 63’), Miles Robinson, Kyle Smith, Pavel Bucha (Bryan Ramirez 63’), Obinna Nwobodo, Gerardo Valenzuela (Tah Brian Anunga 81’), Evander (C) (Ayoub Jabbari 88’), Kenji Mboma Dem, Kévin Denkey (Tom Barlow 63’)
Substitutes not used: Roman Celentano, Fabian Mrozek, Alvas Powell, Nick Hagglund, Kristian Fletcher, Teenage Hadebe, Matt Miazga
Head Coach: Pat Noonan
PUM: Keylor Navas (C), Nathanael Ananias da Silva, Rodrigo López (Alan Medina 77’), Adalberto Carrasquilla, Luciano Herrera, Victor Arteaga, Juninho, Tony Leone, Ángel Azuaje (Cristian Calderón 85’), Pedro Vite (Sebastián Córdova 65’, Guillermo Martínez 85’), Alvaro Angulo (Uriel Antuna 65’)
Substitutes not used: Pablo Lara, Kevin Cuneo, Pablo Bennevendo, Rubén Duarte, Santiago Trigos, Robert Morales, Kléber Carranza
Head Coach: Esteban Solari
STATS SUMMARY: CIN/PUM
Shots: 14 / 16
Shots on Goal: 4 / 4
Saves: 4 / 1
Corner Kicks: 4 / 6
Fouls: 5 / 11
Offside: 1 / 2
Possession: 49.7 / 50.3
MISCONDUCT SUMMARY
CIN – Obinna Nwobodo (Yellow Card) 42’
NEXT UP:
Leagues Cup: vs. Atlas, 8pm, Tuesday August 11th, AppleTV+, FOX Sports One
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