With 10 games left in the Major League Soccer regular season, FC Cincinnati is in an unfamiliar spot to most of its players.
The last three seasons, Cincinnati has been contending for the MLS Supporters’ Shield and high seeds in the homestretch, but now it is fighting for its playoff life as it prepares to play at Houston Dynamo FC on Sept. 19.
FC Cincinnati is tied for eighth in the Eastern Conference with 32 points (8-8-8). Nine teams make the playoffs, with the eight and nine seeds meeting for a single-game play-in match. Three teams in 10th through 12th place are within three points of Cincinnati.
“You win a game or two and you're jumping two, three, four spots. You lose a game or two and teams are jumping you, and all of a sudden you're dropping
two, three, four spots,” said FC Cincinnati head coach Pat Noonan. “The importance of winning games at this stage is vital. And so hopefully the approach and the mindset of the group is the confidence to go and perform with the expectation of winning and not putting so much of an emphasis on winning that we lose sight of how we want the game to look and how we prepare.”
“When you're competing for first, there's pressure every week to make sure you're staying ahead of the pack,” said goalkeeper Roman Celentano. “But now that we're in a position where we're just fighting to get in the playoffs and to get as far as we can, there's pressure on both sides of us there. So, I don't think it's anything new. Certain guys will take it certain ways, but as a group, we just have to take it as one game at a time.”
Celentano was one of a handful of Cincinnati players on the 2022 squad that made the club’s first playoff appearance. That group had to battle to qualify for a spot in the final weeks of the season.
Celentano said other newer players on the team have handled similar stakes during their careers.
“Everyone understands what it's going to take to get into the playoffs and I think we have an experienced enough group to hunker down and find a way to get through it,” he said. “So, I think we're going to rely on each other a lot over these next couple weeks. We’ll just need to come together as a team and figure some things out. I'm excited about what we have ahead.”
FC Cincinnati needs vocal leadership
FC Cincinnati made official the departure of Matt Miazga last week via waiver Sept. 14. The club used a buyout of a guaranteed contract, and the defender will no longer occupy a spot on the team’s roster nor will Miazga count against the 2026 salary budget retroactive to Sept. 2.
“Everyone at the club is tremendously grateful for all that Matt did for FC Cincinnati,” General Manager Chris Albright said in a press release. “Matt brought to Cincinnati a winning mentality that helped turn around the trajectory of this team. He was a foundational piece in the growth of our club, and we wish him and his family the best.”
His exit leaves a vocal leadership void on the club. Miazga was always a fiery, outgoing presence on the pitch. In contrast, many of the team’s veterans and offensive stars are more soft-spoken personalities.
On Sept. 16, Evander admitted that he needs to step up his vocal leadership.
“(Matt) was a good guy that was keeping the vibe, especially on the pitch,” Evander said. “He was always vocal, always pushing us. (Some of us) are very quiet, and I think some of us need to be in charge of it right now as we lost Matt. I think I'm going to take this role right now and talk to other guys to help me out with that as well, and raise the energy of this group. I think we have a lot of quality but we need to be more intense and be a little more loud.”
Cincinnati has won a lot of points this season coming from behind and has scored several goals in second-half stoppage time to earn a win or a draw. Evander said Miazga was a big reason for that.
“It was because of him, because he pushed us in a way that would raise our energy in the pitch and help us to get back in the result,” Evander said. “So, I think we need to do a little more of that, because we lost a guy that was a key for us.”
A look at FC Cincinnati’s opponent, Houston Dynamo FC
Cincinnati faces another team that has drastically improved since the season resumed in July after the World Cup. Houston is 13-8-4 for 43 points, second place in the Western Conference. The Dynamo are 7-1-3 since the World Cup break, with seven shutouts, including road clean sheets against New England, Vancouver and Charlotte. Houston had five shutouts in a row in one stretch and 11 overall. The Dynamo are fourth in MLS with 28 goals conceded. Their head coach is Ben Olsen.
“I think he understands how to adjust; to position his teams to win and so they're defending well against the ball,” Noonan said. “They're tough to break down, and I think (that’s) why defensively they concede fewer than most.”
Olsen is in his fifth season as head coach after 10 seasons leading D.C. United. He also played for DCU from 1998 to 2009, and Noonan has gotten to know him well.
“I think any team that he's coached knows how to adapt, to circumstances, to this league and the challenges that you face,” Noonan said. “I know Benny and I rely on Benny often when we're not competing against each other for just his wisdom through certain stretches, because he's got great experience and knowledge of this league and the game. And he's a fighter, and that's how he played.”
Houston has scored only 32 goals, seventh-lowest in MLS. They have one of the league’s top MVP candidates in Guilherme, a 31-year old Brazilian with 13 goals and eight assists.
“We saw him in preseason and that was the first glimpse, but he's consistently gotten better,” Noonan said. “He's one of the most creative attacking pieces in the league. And I know his goal production is very good for their group, and he's a key piece of their team. So, how our back line will look is something that we've shuffled around a little bit looking at different ideas. But Miles (Robinson) did an excellent job against Charlotte in a very difficult matchup.”
Houston midfielder Mateusz Bogusz, a designated player, has five goals. The club acquired Lyle Foster on loan from Burnley FC, who Cincinnati played a friendly with in July. Foster has yet to be in the lineup since the signing was announced Sept. 3 but could make his debut this weekend. Hector Herrera is a club leader. Duncan McGuire, 25, has been the go-to man at the top of the formation after being traded to Houston from Orlando.
Houston is 8-2-2 at home, and Cincinnati 1-6-5 on the road, with the one win coming May 2 at Chicago.
FC Cincinnati lineup notes
Noonan did not report any new injuries from the Charlotte match nor minor knocks in training. The club is still waiting for new signings David Douděra and Julián Malatini to get their work visas approved and be able to play. Noonan said there’s a chance Douděra is cleared next week and will be available for Montreal on Sept. 26. Malatini is less likely. Douděra has been in town working out at the team’s training facility.
Miles Robinson has been called up to the U.S. National Team for four friendly matches between Sept. 26 and Oct. 6. That would likely mean he will miss Cincinnati’s match Sept. 26 at Montreal, but the club hasn’t announced that. Cincy won’t play until Oct. 10 as the league takes two weeks off for the latest international window.
FC Cincinnati signed FC Cincinnati Academy goalkeeper Connor Dale as a homegrown player. Dale joins the Orange and Blue on contract through the 2028-29 Major League Soccer season with options for 2029-30 and 2030-31.
Dale, 16, becomes the second-youngest player, and 11th FC Cincinnati Academy player, to sign a first-team contract. Dale is the second current or former academy goalkeeper to ink a first-team deal with the Orange and Blue.
Dale was part of FC Cincinnati’s 2026 preseason roster. He made seven starts for FCC 2 this season, the second-most of any goalkeeper this year, and has one clean sheet to go with 37 saves.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Previewing FC Cincinnati's matchup with Houston Dynamo FC
