Two players scored their first goals in an FC Cincinnati uniform, leading the team to a vital 2-1 win over D.C. United in Major League Soccer action Oct. 21 at TQL Stadium.
Cincinnati earned a crucial three points in the first game of a split doubleheader with D.C. United. Wednesday’s game was a makeup of the originally scheduled game Sept. 5, which was postponed by heavy rain. The teams play again 7:30 p.m. Oct. 24 at Audi Field.
“It was massive. Every point at this stage of the season is vital,” said center back Kyle Smith. “Trying to get to the playoffs, especially for the home fans as well to get a win at home.
David Douděra scored
his first MLS goal after joining Cincinnati over the summer to give his team a 1-0 lead. Teenage Hadebe scored his first Cincinnati goal in three seasons with the club to give the team the winning margin early in the second half.
Cicninnati played tough physical defense. Without Julian Malatini and Miles Robinson, who are out with injury for at least the next two weeks, the starting back line of Hadebe, Nick Hagglund and Kyle Smith played tough, physical defense and made some key plays.
“We got together as a group this week and just had a team meeting,” said Hagglund. “This is, you know, must-win territory and it's about putting all the personal feelings that we've had from the year behind us and to step on the field and give whatever you have to give. If you give 30 minutes, 45 minutes, 10 minutes, five minutes, you have to give everything you have for the group that's in the locker room. And I think everyone did that tonight.”
Major League Soccer Eastern Conference standings update
After this makeup game, both teams are equal with the rest of the Eastern Conference with 30 matches played and four remaining.
Cincinnati moves up to eighth place in the conference with 39 points (10-11-9). Red Bull New York and Toronto are tied for ninth with 33, and the Red Bulls have the tiebreaker. Nine teams make the playoffs, with the eight and nine seeds matched up in a single-game wild-card contest.
Orlando is in seventh place with 41 points, two ahead of Cincinnati. Columbus has 35 and is in 11th. New York City is 12th with 34. D.C. United has 33 and Atlanta 30. Montreal is not mathematically eliminated but only has 25 points.
Nick Hagglund sets record
Nick Hagglund played all 90 minutes and enjoyed his 180th all-time appearance for Cincinnati, breaking a tie with Yuya Kubo for the most in team history. Hagglund is the only player who has been with FCC for all eight years of their MLS existence.
“For me, winning the match, getting three points is the most important,” Hagglund said. “I think being able to put on the crest 180 times, to be the player that has done it the most, is a childhood dream. To be able to represent your club, the city that raised you and instilled the values in you and be able to inspire the kids that are in the crowd. I'm just incredibly proud of the accomplishment.”
He had a huge goal-line clearance off the line in the 25th minute soon after Cincy had the 1-0 lead.
“Certainly an important piece of the club and its history. So I'm pleased for him for being able to enjoy that moment with the victory,” Noonan said. “The relationship with Nick, from the coaching side of things, you can't ask for a better teammate and an extension of the coach's voice in the locker room. I trust Nick with my life and he's been a pleasure to be around. And then the human being, you guys all see, you see what he means to the fans and to the city and how unselfish he is with his time and energy that he puts in to help him to our group and promote the team.”
Said Hadebe: “Besides being a great brother, the leadership. Nick is a great leader. He's the one who always encourages us. Even if he's not playing, he's always pushing us.”
Teenage Hadebe scores his first goal to win the game
Teenage Hadebe gave his team the lead in the 54th minute. Evander had a free kick from about 40 yards. The ball got over all D.C. players to the far post. Hadebe slid and got his foot on it, directing it to the opposite post past the keeper. It was his first goal in three seasons with Cincinnati. He had three in MLS play with Houston from 2022-23.
“I think it was an important goal,” Hadebe said. “It's my first goal for FCC. I'm grateful for that and I'm happy that we managed to get three points and I scored an important goal. This year, of course, we've been struggling, but now we take one game at a time. Our target is to make it to the playoffs and hopefully we'll make it.”
Hadebe only made his eighth start of the season but made it count. He had an arm injury during the game that will be evaluated Thursday.
Hagglund was thrilled for his teammate.
“Yeah, honestly, we got together after the final whistle and looked at each other,” Hagglund said. “At some point we were banished to the bench. When the team needed us most, we kept going. We kept grinding. We didn't give up. We didn't get sad for ourselves. We just showed up every day, kept going and knew eventually our opportunity would arise and we would do well.”
“It hasn't always been his number that was called, but I think of his better performanes as far as overall influence in the game,” Noonan said. “So it just shows that mental toughness. He's always been there for us, even in the tough moments
David Douděra opens his Cincinnati account
David Douděra scored his first MLS goal in the 13th minute. He tapped in a rebound from close range inside the near post after a Tom Barlow shot was blocked near the penalty spot.
Douděra, who joined Cincinnati in August, unofficially scored his 25th professional goal. He had scored 22 goals in his professional career for club teams and twice for the Czechia national team.
He showed a lot of emotion after the goal.
“ I just enjoy every moment in my life,” he said. “I don't care if it's bad or good. I just enjoy every moment in my life and that's the reason why I play soccer. I’m just trying to share my emotion with all the people in the stadium.”
Said Noonan: “He’s just a stable presence on the field. In a short amount of time being here, I think he has pretty good game understanding. It's not an easy finish. So to have the impact on the score sheet along with just his overall demeanor, desire, team- approach.”
Let’s play two as Cincinnati travels to D.C. United on Saturday
The visitors were without longtime goalkeeper Sean Johnson and second-leading scorer Louis Munteanu due to leg injuries. With the quick turnaround to Saturday, their availability will be in doubt for that game, too.
Cincinnati had 15 shots in the game, six on target and an expected-goal mark of 1.9. DC had 12, four and 1.1
D.C. United tied it in the 38th minute. Kimito Nono beat Roman Celentano one-on-one after a great well-timed run. He collected a through pass into the box by Joao Peglow and scored his third of the season. The goal was checked by video review for offside, and the goal stood.
In the first half, Cincy had eight shots, four on target, and 0.5 XG. D.C. had seven shots, three on target, and 0.7 XG.
Cincinnati shut down leading scorer Tai Baribo. Noonan didn’t give away any secrets for the rematch but praised his team’s box defending.
“He's a very, very strong player and it's how active he is,” Noonan said. “It's his anticipation of plays to fight space or to pounce on mistakes from the opponent. I just think he has a good feel for making plays. I thought the guys did a good job of box defending us. I thought for the most part the guys did a good job of getting first contact.”
Noonan said that playing the same team again won’t change how he and his staff prepare for the game.
“We're going to analyze it the same way, use some of what we saw tonight to help get the decisions right on Saturday,” he said. “So we'll take a look at the game and see how we get through it physically and try to turn it around with a strong performance on the road.”
FC Cincinnati statistical notes
Cincinnati picked up only its second all-time home win over D.C. United. New England is now the only MLS Eastern Conference team which Cincy has never beaten more than once. Cincy is now 5-6-5 all-time against D.C.
FCC are now 25-12-13 one two days rest under Noonan.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Two players score their first goal for FC Cincinnati in huge win
