CF Montreal v FC Cincinnati: Captain Miazga wants to build on away win

FC Cincinnati captain Matt Miazga is hoping to build on their last away game.

Kevin Denkey scored the only goal when Cincinnati beat the New England Revolution on the road last time out, ending a four-game winless run in MLS.

Cincinnati are four points behind Eastern Conference leaders Philadelphia Union, who are on 37 points.

Miazga is hopeful that Cincinnati can build on their win over New England and get back to top spot when they take on CF Montreal this week.

“Since I've been here, this club hasn't been used to a week like we had two weeks ago. So we needed to change that and get things going in the right direction,” said Miazga.

“We didn't have a great week, but football is like this in a season this long. There's moments where you do well, there's moments where you don't do well, but we needed to get back on track. I think we had a good day today, and we hopefully can build on that.

“We have another small break, 10 days to our next game, so I think it's good for our confidence. Go back to work with confidence, boys are happy, and we got to keep moving forward.”

Head coach Pat Noonan was impressed with his side’s defensive display before the break but hopes to be better in attacking transition.

“Defensively, I think our structure was pretty good for the majority of the game,” Noonan said.

“But, there are still moments where I think, as we were stepping to the ball, how we were able to deal with their midfield trio and get one of our centre backs releasing in behind Obi or Pavel, I think we got a few of those moments wrong. That's something that stood out.

“But how we were able to defend deeper, closer to our goal, I thought was solid. We defended crosses very well tonight, and that was a focus leading up to the game, and a takeaway from the three games prior. So that part was an improvement.”

Montreal are rooted to the bottom of the East.

The Canadian team ended a winless run of their own last time out, beating the Houston Dynamo 3-1 for their first victory in six games.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

CF Montreal – Prince Owusu

Prince Owusu has been a key performer for Montreal this season. The striker is the team's top scorer with six goals, two of those having been the critical first of the match.

He scored twice in their 3-1 win over Houston prior to this match.

FC Cincinnati – Kevin Denkey

Cincinnati have been led by Denkey, who has netted on 11 occasions, including six match-opening goals.

The striker ranks third in the league's scoring charts in 2025, bettered only by Tai Baribo (13) and Sam Surridge (12).

MATCH PREDICTION: CINCINNATI WIN

In seven league matches at Stade Saputo this season, Montreal are winless with three draws and four losses. Montreal are in the midst of an eight-match MLS home winless streak dating to October 2024 against Atlanta United.

Cincinnati have earned 16 points from 30 available this season in league matches away from home, the third most points in away games from teams in the East.

The previous MLS fixture between the sides saw Cincinnati emerge victorious 4-1 at TQL Stadium last season. Luca Orellano led the Orange and Blue with two goals, netting in the 53rd and 57th minute. Kevin Kelsy and Sergio Santos also found the net. Mahala Opoku scored the only goal for Montreal.

In their last six league matches, Montreal have won one, drawn two and lost three. Cincinnati, meanwhile, have won two, drawn two and lost two in their last six.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

CF Montreal – 27.9%

Draw – 24.2%

FC Cincinnati – 47.9%