FC Juárez edged out FC Cincinnati in a tight Leagues Cup match on Sunday, winning in penalties after a 2–2 draw in regulation. The away team jumped out to a 2–0 lead before a late FCC surge forced penalties, where Juárez ultimately claimed the extra point.
First Half
FC Juárez opened up the scoring first 39 minutes in, as Ricardinho placed a header past FCC keeper Roman Celentano, which made it 1-0.
It was 1-0 heading into halftime after a sloppy half from FCC, where they did not generate much up the field.
“We were a little bit disjointed in the first half,” head coach Pat Noonan said postmatch. “Just a step off in a lot of ways. That can happen when you’re playing a new opponent you don’t have as much familiarity with. I thought we just lacked conviction.”
“It didn’t look like we had any conviction with what we were doing—maybe a lack of confidence,” he added. “The body language just didn’t show that we believed we’d get it going.”
Second Half
FC Juárez’s Guilherme Castilho extended the lead to 2-0 at the 63′ mark, continuing FCC’s nightmare of a match.
Evander later trimmed the deficit to 2-1 with a perfect shot outside of the box, right into the top-left corner around the 71-minute mark.
“Evander’s goal was obviously a huge moment, and then to get the second shortly after showed our guys weren’t quitting on the result,” Noonan said. “We gained momentum once we got the first one, but struggled to break them down early.”
An own goal from FC Juárez evened the match up at 2-2 off a corner kick from Evander, who was credited with the assist.
With the score tied 2-2, according to League Cup rules, the match headed to penalty kicks.
Roman Celentano made a huge save in Round five, but Evander was later denied as FC Juarez took the two points, while FCC got one, bringing them to a total of four through the first two games.
“I think we did enough in the second half to win the game, honestly,” Noonan said. “But that’s the format. Credit to Juárez; they converted their penalties and took their two points.”
“We’re in a fortunate enough position,” Noonan said. “A lot will be clear once we play on Thursday. Hopefully, this point proves to be important and we control our own fate.”
FCC will face Guadalajara on Thursday at 7:00 PM ET back at TQL Stadium, a match that they hope matters in terms of moving on to the Quarterfinals.
Author
