Queen City Press Podcast

FC Cincinnati ended its Champions Cup run in the Round of 16 last week with a 3-1 loss at Tigres and couldn't bounce back in a 2-0 loss at Charlotte FC on Saturday after another quick turnaround. Now the Orange and Blue have a full week to recover and prepare for the next match at home against Atlanta United, but there are serious concerns at centerback with all five top options up in the air beca...

FC Cincinnati was looking for a response following a disappointing loss at Philadelphia last weekend and saw much better performances the next two matches, but the Orange and Blue still haven't shown what they might be capable of yet. They took an early lead against Tigres in a Champions Cup Round of 16 match Tuesday and settled for a 1-1 draw, then needed a 73rd-minute penalty kick to break throu...

FC Cincinnati found immediate success in its first week of action despite several newcomers in the lineup and concerns of what it would look like after a challenging preseason. The Orange and Blue collected a 4-1 win at FC Motagua on Wednesday in Champions Cup play in Honduras, then battled New York Red Bulls for a 1-0 win in the MLS opener Saturday at TQL Stadium. Among those making club debuts w...

FC Cincinnati will go into the 2025 season with a new-look attack -- one that won't include Luciano Acosta for the first time after four years that included a Supporters' Shield and the club's first three playoff appearances. Evander takes over as the team's new No. 10 and will be linking up with DP forward Kevin Denkey and rising young star Luca Orellano -- if FCC can keep him invested in the pro...

With breaking news that FC Cincinnati is finalizing a trade to send Luciano Acosta to FC Dallas for a guaranteed $5 million, we decided to do a brief bonus, "emergency podcast" episode. We discuss the move, why it came to an in-league trade and more as the saga with FCC's best player officially is coming to an end.  Be sure to find Queen City Press Podcast  now on Spotify through your Patreon subs...

FC Cincinnati improved to 2-0-1 in its preseason games with a 4-1 win against the Philadelphia Union on Friday over 120 minutes, and this was the first time coach Pat Noonan saw real progress being made. Having Luca Orellano and Yuya Kubo available helped, but Lucho Acosta's status remains uncertain as he was only expected to be integrated into the group Sunday. We discuss Friday's match -- the on...

Luciano Acosta opened up about his reasons for wanting to leave FC Cincinnati in a statement provided to Queen City Press on Wednesday, so we discussed that situation in an emergency-of-sorts (but overdue) episode. We take listeners behind the scenes a bit on how this story came about, what it means for FCC and Acosta moving forward and more. Be sure to find Queen City Press Podcast  now on Spotif...

FC Cincinnati had three players not show up for the start of preseason training, but at least two of them are back or making steps toward a return to the team. Coach Pat Noonan on Friday called out Luciano Acosta, Luca Orellano and Yuya Kubo for not living up to their obligation to their team to show up on time. Orellano arrived later that day, and now Acosta is back in town and making steps towar...

FC Cincinnati players reported -- or were supposed to report -- Sunday, but Luciano Acosta and Luca Orellano did not and now there's talk of the club potentially looking to acquire Evander from Portland. Eric was unavailable this week to record, so Laurel brings in special guest David Gass, founder and host of Soccerwise, to discuss that and more as preseason is underway (about 11 minutes in). Gas...

The offseason comes to a close this week for FC Cincinnati as players report for preseason Saturday, but the club has made just one new signing and there's still much work to be done to get the roster ready. It's been pretty quiet ever since the acquisition of new DP forward Kevin Denkey, which immediately followed the buzz around Luciano Acosta's comments he was considering a departure from Cinci...

In a somewhat surprising move Monday, FC Cincinnati traded centerbacks Chidozie Awaziem and Ian Murphy to Colorado Rapids for $1 million in GAM, plus an additional $200,000 in GAM if certain performance-based incentives are met. We decided to do a brief podcast to discuss the moves, why they were necessary and what it means for the roster moving forward. Be sure to find Queen City Press Podcast  n...

FC Cincinnati general manager Chris Albright spoke this week after the end-of-season roster decisions were announced, and he provided some clarity as to why some of those moves were made. We discuss the state of the roster and what work still needs to be done based on those decisions already made, plus hear Albright's responses to questions about Luciano Acosta and Alvaro Barreal in his press conf...

FC Cincinnati wasted no time getting some important business done this offseason and is expected to soon announce the signing of forward Kevin Denkey, who arrives on an MLS-record fee of $16.2 million on a transfer from Cercle Brugge. We discuss that deal in this episode but botched the pronunciation of his former club, as well as a couple other things, so please excuse. The correction comes later...

Publisher's note: This was recorded before news of FC Cincinnati's pursuit of forward Kevin Denkey came to light. Otherwise, it would have been discussed. There will be plenty of offseason topics to discuss, along with that, next time! FC Cincinnati's season ended in disappointing fashion with a penalty shootout loss to New York City FC on Saturday in the decisive Game 3 of their first-round serie...

We've hit 100 episodes! Thanks to our listeners for supporting this podcast, now in its third season. It started as an every other week show but has become a weekly venture, thanks to your support, and we are excited to see how we can grow as we work toward our next milestones. What a week for the 100th episode as FC Cincinnati faces a do-or-die situation heading into Game 3 of its first-round pla...

FC Cincinnati beat New York City FC 1-0 in its playoff opener Monday at TQL Stadium and heads to Citi Field for Game 2 on Saturday with a chance to eliminate the Boys in Blue. We discuss the team's most complete game in months, DeAndre Yedlin's injury and how that could impact the lineup that finally seemed set and what to expect in Game 2. Plus, hear Pat Noonan talk about Yamil Asad's game-winnin...

FC Cincinnati won a Decision Day game against the Philadelphia Union, 2-1, on Saturday to close the regular-season on a high note, despite needing an own goal for the game-winner. The Orange and Blue now head into a Best-of-3 first round playoff series against New York City FC with Game 1 set for Monday at TQL Stadium. We'll recap the win at Philly and look ahead to the playoffs a bit in this epis...

FC Cincinnati dropped a pair of losses last week against New York City FC and Orlando City SC, and now is trying to work on some things to get back on track before the playoffs. The Orange and Blue are off from games this week during the international break but play their regular-season finale Oct. 19 at Philadelphia, needing a win to secure their place in the Concacaf Champions Cup for next year....

FC Cincinnati dropped a 2-1 loss to Los Angeles FC on Saturday, a disappointing result especially considering a full squad was available to start the game and LAFC had some rotation coming off a midweek U.S. Open Cup final. Chidozie Awaziem injured his leg trying to make a tackle in the 31st minute and needed replaced. At the time of recording, FCC had not shared an update on MRI results that Pat...

FC Cincinnati collected a good win on the road Wednesday, beating Minnesota United 2-1, and then added a point with a 2-2 draw at Nashville SC on Saturday. That was good enough to clinch a top 3 seed in the playoffs, but the game came with a bit of controversy after Niko Gioacchini's goal was disallowed because of an offside interference call on Yamil Asad. The officials also made a similar call a...

FC Cincinnati played a scoreless draw against Columbus Crew SC in the second "Hell is Real" derby of the season Saturday at TQL Stadium, and the hard-earned point with a depleted defense should be applauded. We discuss the result, continued concerns with the offense and the state of the team going into this week's games against Minnesota United and Nashville SC. Plus, hear clips of interviews with...

FC Cincinnati heads into the "Hell is Real" derby feeling fresh after the international break allowed players to rest and recover after a 4-1 win over CF Montreal on Aug. 31. We took last week off from the podcast so we touch on the biggest takeaways from that match, as FCC ended a four-game losing streak in league play. To preview Saturday's match against Columbus Crew SC, Laurel chatted with Col...

FC Cincinnati coach Pat Noonan was disappointed in the lack of effort and intensity in last weekend's match against Inter Miami CF. We tried to put our best effort into discussing deeper what's going on with the team right now, sitting on four straight losses in league play and not looking particularly strong in Leagues Cup action. You'll hear everything Noonan had to say on the slow starts of lat...

FC Cincinnati general manager Chris Albright spoke with media on Tuesday, so we took the opportunity for a unique episode diving deeper into his responses to various questions related to the summer transfer window and plans moving forward. You'll hear clips from the press conference in this episode, and Laurel shares her thoughts on some of the topics discussed. We also look ahead to this weekend'...

FC Cincinnati made two signings during the summer transfer window, but wasn't able to fill Aaron Boupendza's designated player spot with a "major signing" fans had come to anticipate behind national media and club hype for an ambitious plan to improve the roster. Bringing forward Nico Gioacchini on loan from Italian club Como and acquiring centerback Chidozie Awaziem improved the roster from a mon...