Playoff Hell 2025 Game 1
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The winning play started with a goal kick, which was more of an outlet, by FC Cincinnati keeper Roman Celentano. Two quick passes later, the ball was on the foot of attacking midfielder Evander, to whom the crowd was chanting "MVP," on and off, all night.
"On the goal kick, we know what they like to do," Crew coach Wilfried Nancy said. "We know that they like to do this kind of pattern, (but) we were not aggressive on this one. ..."
Evander had enough time, space and command of the field to spot a diagonal run on the right flank. It was Ender Echnique, who got behind Crew wingback Max Arfsten. Evander put a perfectly weighted ball ahead to Echnique, who had a full head of steam as he cut into the penalty area.
"Yeah, it was a goal kick," Arfsten said. "I was kind of in-between thinking about jumping on the midfielder or staying back and, you know, I got caught between two different decisions and I got beat on the inside. Which was my fault.
"And then, yeah, just unlucky bounces. ... But I've got to be better there, and I know it, and I'm not afraid to say it. I've got to be more disciplined."
Echnique sent a cross to the back post, where FCC center back Alvas Powell – who'd entered the game just eight minutes before – had a half step on Crew wingback Andres Herrera – who's defensive responsibilities on this night were vast and unrelenting. Herrera went into a feet-first slide in an effort to cut off the pass. The ball went through his scissored legs and Powell was able to excuse-me redirect the ball, probably with his ankle, to the front of the net.
And there was super striker Kevin Denkey, a very wealthy Designated Player, to clean up the garbage on the front porch. He tapped the ball it past Crew goalkeeper Patrick Schulte, who was sent from post to post and back again and could do little from a prone position but get a hand up in a desperation stab. Schulte was tremendous in making five saves on this night, but he had little chance on Denkey's dink-in.
And so it was that the lone goal was scored in the 78th minute of a spirited game at TQL Stadium. The FC Cincinnatis beat the Crew 1-0 before a crowd of 23,371. It was Game 1 of their Round One, best-of-three MLS playoff series. Game 2 will be in the new Crew stadium on Sunday and Game 3, if needed, will be back at TQL on Saturday, Nov. 8.
"Anything can happen at any moment," said Crew center back Sean Zawadzki, who was brilliant in the middle of a back line that had to try to contain two single-named Brazilian attackers (Brenner and Evander) as well as the monster poacher Denkey. But that is part of the story of this game, and of the Cincinnatis – the quality they have throughout their lineup, but particularly up front, is enough to overcome. Their underlying numbers may not be great – but their talent is undeniable, and they can win with moments of magic.
The Crew and the Cincinnatis have the excellent Hell is Real derby-derby nickname, the in-state rivalry thing and the, how shall we say, vibrant discussions on social media between their supporter groups. There's a lot of texture. There's also some real meat to their meetings.
Since 2023 – Pat Noonan's second season as FCC coach and Nancy's first with the Crew – no other team has racked up more points in league play than these two. No one, other than these two, have amassed 54 or more points in each of the past three seasons.
Nancy said this series is like jazz with both teams looking for new improvisations on the same song. Noonan tried an early riff. FCC upped their tempo, activated their press more quickly and patiently switched the field rather than force line-breaking passes. The Cincinnatis had more of possession and the better chances. They outshot the Crew, 5-3.
The Crew had one shot on goal in the first half – a good look when Arfsten got behind the defense – but Arfsten ran out of room and put his shot into the chest of Celentano.
The Crew had to be happy to get to halftime with a 0-0 score. They also had to be happy that, while they weren't breaking down the defense in front of them with their usual alacrity, they had their chances – in both halves. Herrera, for one, had two cracks from a hard angle (in the 49th and 77th minutes); one was stopped by Celantano and the other narrowly missed wide.
"We did a good game," Nancy said. "It was a good game offensively and defensively. It's not easy to play here. ... Yes, we didn't attack the box as much as we're used to, but I felt that it was a good game. I liked it because we played with personality."
Diego Rossi, the Crew's leading scorer, was back in the lineup after missing the regular-season finale with a hamstring injury. He used everything in his tank. Otherwise, Nancy came back with the same starting lineup – with Lassi Lappalainen playing the left flank and Hugo Picard the right flank up front. Daniel Gazdag entered the game for Lappalainen early in the second half. Taha Habroune and Jacen Russell-Rowe came on for Dylan Chambost and Rossi in the 75th minute.
Then, the Cincinnatis struck.
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Michael Arace
