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Djiby Fall scored the game-winner in the 68th minute after Justin Hoyte beat his defender down the left side to send in the assisting pass, and FCC’s defense absorbed several late Miami chances to maintain the shutout.
Here’s a look at the top 5 things to know from the match:
Top-notch defense
If defense truly wins championships, FC Cincinnati has a chance at joining the 1999 Rochester Rhinos as the only non-Major League Soccer teams to win the Cup in the MLS era.
FCC hasn’t surrendered a single goal in the tournament this year – that’s 510 minutes of shutout soccer, including two games that went into extra time. Four of the five wins during this run were 1-0 games with the other one decided in penalty kicks, where goalie Mitch Hildebrandt stopped three of the four shots he faced from MLS side Chicago Fire SC. FCC also beat MLS’s Columbus Crew SC 1-0 on a late goal.
Wednesday’s feat was almost as impressive as the two that came against MLS teams, just by the mere fact FCC was able to hold off a dominant Miami attack that had scored 11 goals in its first four Cup matches. Cincinnati actually outshot Miami 13-12 for the game but thwarted several more chances before a shot could be had.
In the 89th minute, the visitors almost miraculously stopped standout midfielder Kwadwo Poku’s shot, as Hildebrandt got just enough of a hand on the ball to push it wide. Poku had slipped in the winner at the death in the Round of 16 to beat MLS side Atlanta United 3-2.
Always the hero
Fall leads FCC with 15 goals through all competitions this season and has all four of the team’s goals in four Cup appearances. He sat out the Fire game with an injury that surfaced just before the match.
His tally on Wednesday – which went between the legs of Miami goalie Daniel Vega – made Fall the first player in the modern era to score four game-winning goals in a single tournament. His yellow card last night was his third of the tournament and means he’ll be suspended for the semifinal vs. New York Red Bulls.
The Senegal native joined FCC this offseason amid questions he could still be productive at age 32 after several seasons without many goals on his resume. Fall quickly negated any doubts and ranks fifth in the USL with 11 goals in league action despite missing six games to suspension. He is suspended for Saturday’s match against Orlando City B after a double-yellow card ejection last weekend.
Postponement helped
This match originally was supposed to take place on July 12 but never began as storms swept through the area and appeared likely to hover for several hours.
FC Cincinnati seemed the biggest benefactor of the three-week postponement, as it was coming off a busy stretch of games and missing several key contributors, including three defenders that started Wednesday.
Harrison Delbridge was out at that time because of an abdominal strain, while Hoyte and captain Austin Berry were battered by the full slate with little rest. All three were impact players Wednesday. Hoyte beat Hunter Freeman on a nice move to get the pass off to Fall for the game-winning goal, Delbridge had several big stops and was mentioned on the TV broadcast as a potential “Man of the Match,” and Berry also served as an anchor on the back line.
Cincinnati also had two newcomers that were not available three weeks ago, as midfielder Kevin Schindler and defender Sem de Wit got their first starts. They both signed with the team on July 11 and were not yet with the team when it first traveled down to Miami.
The hot ticket
U.S. Soccer awarded the winner of Wednesday’s match the hosting honors for the semifinals during an envelope draw on July 14, but in all reality, the federation got exactly what it wanted.
FC Cincinnati drew more than 30,000 fans to Nippert Stadium for both of its Cup matches against MLS squads, and a sellout for the semifinals wouldn’t be a surprise. Cincinnati hosts New York Red Bulls at 8 p.m. Aug. 15 in a game expected to be broadcast by ESPN.
The throng of 32,287 fans that attended the Round of 16 win against Chicago surpassed the second largest attendance in Open Cup history (31,311) that Seattle Sounders FC drew for the 2010 final against the Crew. Seattle holds the all-time record at 35,615 for the 2011 final.
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FCC’s largest ever attendance was 35,061 for an international friendly against English Premier League’s Crystal Palace, which was considered a sellout.
MLS taking notice
Earlier on Wednesday, MLS commissioner Don Garber held a press conference prior to the league’s All-Star Game to address some hot topics in the media, including the expansion process for which FCC has applied.
MLS plans to announce two of the last four expansion clubs by the end of the year, choosing from a pool of 12 applicants, and Garber noted Cincinnati as one of the four markets that have been “very energized” over the last couple of months. Specifically, he mentioned the club’s U.S. Open Cup run as an attention grabber.
“I will say what is happening in Cincinnati is remarkable,” Garber said in the press conference. “I know they have a game tonight, and both on and off the field, we talked about it a bit when we presented the Miami section at our board meeting. Two games in the U.S. Open Cup at 30,000 (attendance) is just something they should be very proud of. Carl Lindner and Jeff Berding are doing an amazing job.”
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