FC Cincinnati to face Montreal in the regular-season finale at TQL Stadium Oct. 18.
FC Cincinnati is playing for the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference behind Philadelphia.
FC Cincinnati is expected to learn its first-round pairing shortly after the game against Montreal.
Decision Day is here for FC Cincinnati.
The Major League Soccer club will host CF Montréal in the regular-season finale 6 p.m. Oct. 18. Cincinnati (19-9-5) is in second place in the Eastern Conference. All 15 teams in the conference will kick off at 6 p.m., so barring weather delays, Cincinnati will know its bracket and first-round pairing soon after game’s end.
Club officials expect the league to announce the full match schedule by the end of the night Oct. 18. The first round is a best-of-three series with games anytime from Oct. 24 to Nov. 9. Cincy will host Game 1 and Game 3, if necessary.
Cincy has already done well enough this season to earn a berth in next year’s Concacaf Champions Cup, and now will focus on the MLS playoffs.
“That was one of our goals,” said FCC defender Alvas Powell. “Another goal is to go to a conference final. We want to win MLS Cup this year, and it’s going to take everybody. So our main focus is on Saturday, take it one game at a time. But we talk about winning MLS Cup. Everybody is on the same page. and we got to keep working to get it, stick together and put in the work.”
What’s at stake for FC Cincinnati
Cincinnati is playing for the No. 2 seed in the MLS Eastern Conference playoffs behind Philadelphia. Cincy is tied with Inter Miami CF for second place with 62 points, and wins the No. 2 seed if they remain tied. So a win over Montreal secures second place no matter what Miami does. With a loss or draw, Cincy needs Miami to have the same result or worse. Miami plays at Nashville.
A win would also clinch home-field advantage over San Diego in a potential matchup in the MLS Cup Final. Currently, Cincy has secured home field over everyone in the Western Conference except San Diego (60 points) and Vancouver (63). Cincy needs help from Vancouver to finish ahead of them no matter what, and regardless of how the Orange and Blue do against Miami, they would clinch home field over San Diego if the Southern California side doesn’t win its game. SD plays at Portland and Vancouver hosts Dallas, both with 9 p.m. kickoffs Oct. 18.
Powell, one of the veterans on the team, has been in a lot of big games for the club, and he is helping the newer players adjust to playoff pressure.
“It starts in training,” he said. “We talk about it. Every game is the same. You just have to be yourself. We say that every day in training. Be yourself, go out there, enjoy it and put in the work. That’s what we’ve been telling the younger guys: Just stay focused, stay ready.”
A look at FC Cincinnati’s opponent, CF Montréal
Montreal has long been out of the playoff race. The Canadian side is 13th in the Eastern Conference with 28 points (6-17-10) but has been playing well down the stretch.
Their last two games are a 4-1 win at fourth-place Charlotte Sept. 27, and a 1-1 draw with sixth-place Nashville Oct. 4.
Dante Sealy, a 22-year-old from Trinidad and Tobago, is on a roll, with two goals against Charlotte and the one Montreal goal against Nashville. He has nine goals for the season. Prince Owusu, a 28-year-old German, leads the club with 13, and scored against Charlotte.
Overall, they have combined for 22 of the team’s 34 goals, which is third-fewest in MLS. The defense has allowed 57, which is fourth-most in the Eastern Conference and seventh in the league. But in their last game, they shut out Nashville until late in the second half, when Golden Boot contender Sam Surridge (23 goals) found an equalizer.
Overall, Montreal hasn’t posted a clean sheet since June 28, and only has four in MLS play. Oddly, two are against fifth-place NYCFC. Still, the Cincy offense should have plenty of opportunities to shine.
Cincy won 3-1 at Montreal June 25, building a 3-0 lead on two goals from Evander and one from Luca Orellano, while the Canadian side got a late goal back from Owusu.
Similar to the Red Bulls, who were also out of the playoffs Oct. 4, FC Cincinnati head coach Pat Noonan expects to see some players on the pitch that they’re not as familiar with, but expects the visitors to come in determined to play spoiler.
“You see the challenges when Red Bull was eliminated from the playoffs, how difficult the games still are,” Noonan said. “They went about it the right way and caused us a lot of problems. So we expect the same with Montreal. Structurally, some similarities how they defend against the ball, some differences, so we’ve focused on that a lot. Some new faces that we didn’t see the last go-round, so trying to get our guys up to speed with that.”
FC Cincinnati player injury updates
FC Cincinnati has a number of player availability issues heading into the game.
Kevin Denkey (15 goals) is suspended for the game due to yellow card accumulation after he picked up one against the Red Bulls.
Cincy could be thin at wingback. Luca Orellano is out for the game with injury. Ender Echenique and Lukas Engel are day-to-day with minor injuries. Dom Marczuk, the 21-year old winger who the team picked up in the last transfer window, has two starts since joining the team but has played limited minutes in the last three matches.
Powell, who plays on the right wing or right back depending on who else is on the pitch, is ready for the crucial match.
“Whichever position the coach asks to play, I try to go out there and do it to the best of my ability,” he said. “I’m going to put in the work for this club and my team.”
Midfielder Obinna Nwobodo is available after not playing since the first Montreal game June 25. Noonan said he could have played against the Red Bulls and has become stronger in the two weeks since, and the players are excited to have him back.
On defense, Matt Miazga will remain out due to a leg injury but could return during the playoffs. Miles Robinson started both games with the U.S. Men’s National Team during the international break, but is back with the team.
Roman Celentano is available at goalkeeper after his injury struggles. He has not played since Aug. 30 against Philadelphia. Evan Louro has started the four games since. Noonan said he is confident with either one in net against Montreal. All season, the club has been very confident in their goalkeeper roster, which includes veteran Alec Kann and Lakota West grad Paul Walters.
Walters has been starting for the second team lately as they advance into their league playoffs, starting at Philadelphia Oct. 19.
“Our goalkeeping situation is very strong and that’s what you saw with (Evan’s) performances when it was his time,’ Noonan said. “And it makes our decisions as to who we put out ther. more challenging, but for the right reasons.”