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FC Cincinnati ends Toronto FC’s three-game winning streak at BMO Field

FC Cincinnati midfielder Luciano Acosta in Atlanta, Georgia

TORONTO, ON – FC Cincinnati ends Toronto FC’s three-game winning streak at BMO Field. Cincinnati started the game strong, and it was a major reason why they won 2-1 over TFC.

FC Cincinnati ends Toronto FC’s winning streak at BMO Field

Three keys to the game

First half

Michael Bradley made a good defensive play in the fourth minute. Dominique Badji shot just missed the target in the 10-minute. Luca Petrasso delivered a great cross, which forced FC Cincinnati’s number John Nelson to put it out for a corner. Brenner had a great chance thanks to a terrific pass from Acosta. However, Brenner was unable to put the ball into the back of the net. Nick Hagglund played good defence to make sure Jesús Jiménez did not have a clear shot at goal in the 19-minute. Then, Petrasso in the 22-minute got an excellent block on Badji’s shot. Then, Hagglund’s shot in the 22-minute missed the target.

Brenner could not control the ball. Petrasso delivered an excellent pass in the 42-minute. Unfortunately, there was no Toronto FC player there to try and put the ball into the back of the net. Jayden Nelson did a great job to set-up the play. Carlos Salcedo accidentally put the ball out for a corner after getting there in front of the Cincinnati player.

This Cincinnati goal was well-worked. First, Acosta started the cross with a pass to Júnior Moreno. Moreno then crossed the ball to Hagglund. Hagglund then headed the ball to Ian Murphy, who scored his first-ever MLS goal.

Second half

Roman Celentano, the Cincinnati goalkeeper, made a good save in the 48-minute. Shane O’Neill was unable to get a header from an Alejandro Pozuelo cross in the 51-minute.

TFC looked like they were in control in the first half. Unfortunately, Cincinnati would score against the run of play. No Toronto player got to Alvas Powell’s throw-in pass. As a result, Luciano Acosta got to the ball and doubled Cincinnati’s lead. However, Toronto did keep on pressing, despite giving up a goal. For example, Alejandro Pozuelo delivered a great cross to Michael Bradley, whose shot was just off-target.

Toronto would then finally score. Michael Bradley was the one who started the play with a terrific cross to Shane O’Neill. O’Neill then delivered a great header pass to Jiménez, who scored and halved Cincinnati’s lead. From then on, TFC kept on pushing to try and get an equalizing goal.

Bradley’s shot in the 77-minute was blocked. Jiménez had a great chance but ran a bit early. Ayo Akinola got to the ball thanks to a terrific cross by Michael Bradley. However, Cincinnati’s defence denied TFC a chance to score. FC Cincinnati almost scored in the 90+1-minute as they had a few chances to score. Bradley, though, made a terrific block and TFC goalkeeper Alex Bono got to the ball in time. Akinola had a chance to score but was unable to get to the ball in the 90+4-minute of play.

Game Summary – Ian Murphy scores first-ever MLS goal

It was a memorable day for Ian Murphy, who scored his first-ever MLS goal. The day was also special for Nick Hagglund, the former TFC player. He made his return to BMO Field, this time as an FC Cincinnati player. The goal was created as TFC’s defence was caught sleeping on the defensive end. This is a goal that should be celebrated as scoring a first-ever MLS goal is very significant. However, it also showed the class of Cincinnati, which was the better team in the first half.

The second-half goal, though, was probably more significant to the game. It looked like TFC was creating positive plays offensively in the second half and controlled the pace of play. However, no TFC player could get to the throw-in pass, which resulted in Cincinnati’s captain, Luciano Acosta, scoring what ended up being the game-winning goal. Also, hope for a speedy recovery for Chris Mavinga, who got injured in the first half of the game.

Games coming up and Jonathan Osorio celebrates 300 appearances for Toronto FC

This is the first of two MLS season games between TFC and Cincinnati. They will play each other again next Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. ET. This time the game will take place at TQL Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio. After that game, both teams travel on Saturday. For Toronto FC, they will play Canadian rivals, Vancouver Whitecaps FC, at BC Place at 4:00 p.m. ET. This is while Cincinnati will travel to St. Paul, Minneapolis. There, they will face Minnesota United FC at Allianz Field on May 7 at 8:00 p.m. ET.

The Minnesota-Cincinnati game will be shown live on MLS LIVE on DAZN, TXA21, KMPX-29, and FOX 13+. Additionally, both TFC games will be televised nationally on TSN and both Cincinnati games will be shown live on STAR 64.

Lastly, this is what TFC head coach Bob Bradley said on TSN before the game began. Jonathan Osorio played his 300th appearance last week for TFC.

“I think people who know football, who know the league, have a lot of respect for him.”

Three takeaways as FC Cincinnati ends Toronto FC’s three-game winning streak at home

Jonathan Osorio’s 300th appearance as a Toronto FC player was celebrated. Last weekend, Jonathan Osorio made his 300 appearances for TFC at Citi Field against New York City FC. Before the game began, former TFC players and Osorio’s immediate family congratulated Osorio on the accomplishment. He is the only player for Toronto to make 300 all-time appearances for the club.

Toronto FC struggled with set-pieces. Both of TFC’s goals given up were from set pieces. The first from a corner and the second from a throw-in. Toronto needs to improve their set-piece defence if they want to make the MLS Cup playoffs.

FC Cincinnati ends Toronto FC’s three-game winning streak at BMO Field. TFC won three-straight games at home after losing their home opener against the New York Red Bulls. Unfortunately, for TFC, they were unable to extend that streak as they lost to Cincinnati 2-1.

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