After clinching an Eastern Conference playoff berth with a 0-0 draw with the in-state rival Columbus Crew, FC Cincinnati travel to Saint Paul, Minn., on Wednesday night to face a Minnesota United team trying to hold on to the final playoff spot in the Western Conference.
Cincinnati (16-8-4, 52 points), which is tied with Inter Miami for the most road wins in MLS with nine, is in second place in the East, two points ahead of the Crew, who have a match in hand.
“We’ve accomplished the first goal with becoming a playoff team,” Cincinnati coach Pat Noonan said. “Now it’s a matter of how we close out the season to win games and stay in the playoff position we’re in.”
Staying ahead of the reigning MLS Cup-winning Crew and having home-field advantage could be key come playoff time. Maybe that’s why reigning MLS MVP Luciano Acosta, who leads the league in assists (18) and key passes (85) to go along with 11 goals, wasn’t in a particularly celebratory mood after the “Hell is Real” derby draw on Saturday.
“I’m a bit mad,” Acosta said. “It wasn’t the result we wanted, but we qualified for the playoffs again. That was the goal we had this year, so I’m happy for that. The focus shifts quickly to Wednesday.”
Minnesota (11-11-6, 39 points) is ninth in the Western Conference, five points ahead of both FC Dallas and Austin FC for the final playoff berth. The Loons bring a two-match winning streak into the contest after rallying to win 3-1 at St. Louis City on Saturday.
Forward Bongokuhle Hlongwane, who leads the team with 10 goals, tied the contest in the 23rd minute after St. Louis jumped out to a quick 1-0 lead in the fourth minute. The Loons took the lead early in the second-half on an own goal, and Kelvin Yeboah sealed the win with a penalty kick in the 62nd minute.
“I think the fact that we were able to steady ourselves, that we were able to then impose ourselves on the game as it went on, was really important for us,” Minnesota United coach Eric Ramsay said. “We’ll take a lot of confidence from the way in which we were able to do that.”
Minnesota leads the all-time series 3-1-0, but Cincinnati won the last meeting on May 7, 2022, in Saint Paul, 1-0.
–Field Level Media