Winning truly cures everything.
FC Cincinnati's 1-0 victory over Querétaro FC in their Leagues Cup opener not only ended their three-match MLS losing streak, it secured the Orange & Blue's spot in the Round of 32.
Not bad for your first game of the tournament, right?
"It was strong, outside of the finishing," head coach Pat Noonan said of Thursday night's performance at TQL Stadium. "We put ourselves into enough good situations to have it as interesting as I suppose it was at the end of it. But we win and we advance out of the group."
Awaziem delivers in debut
Despite their push to repeat as Supporters' Shield winners and their strong start to the season, it hasn't been smooth sailing in recent weeks for Cincinnati. Losses to Charlotte FC, Chicago Fire and New York Red Bulls saw their momentum plummet heading into Leagues Cup, with a brutal injury crisis leaving their backline threadbare.
Enter Chidozie Awaziem. The 27-year-old Nigerian international - signed just last week amid season-ending injuries to Matt Miazga and Nick Hagglund, as well as the extended international absence of Miles Robinson - started and played the full 90 minutes despite having no competitive minutes since mid-May.
Noonan was impressed.
"This is a guy who's played two weeks. He's essentially in preseason form and figures out how to get through 90 minutes," said the coach. "He managed himself in a game in a good way."
The win was the latest for MLS in this tournament against LIGA MX opposition, with the league's clubs winning 11 of 19 matches in regulation time. And with qualification to the knockout stages assured, Noonan hopes Cincy can build from Thursday's much-needed victory.
"The result was important because any time you go through a losing streak, the longer that carries on, the harder you're pushing for the win. And sometimes, you're pushing the wrong ways," said Noonan. "We still have to perform, and I think in a lot of ways, we performed well. But for this group and this moment, I think the win was important."
