FC Cincinnati coach calls onside goal decision for Columbus 'embarrassment to our league'
There was a time when FC Cincinnati's 2022 season was defined by its progress in results and performances, but lately, it's been all about officiating controversies and being undone by the video-assistant referee (VAR).
FC Cincinnati was again frustrated at the hands of match officials Saturday, and it colored the latest installment of the "Hell is Real" rivalry with Columbus Crew, which saw FCC twice concede leads in the final 20 minutes in an eventual 2-2 draw at TQL Stadium.
The Crew's Steven Moreira stunned a capacity crowd of 25,037 when he scored deep in the sixth minute of second half stoppage time to salvage a draw for Columbus.
The score cancelled out FC Cincinnati defender Matt Miazga's 76th-minute go-ahead goal, which immediately followed the Crew's first score.
The controversy in question was that first Columbus goal, a 74th-minute score for 1-1 from Derrick Etienne Jr., and the matter drove FC Cincinnati to post-match obscenities.
Etienne Jr. scored to tie the match, erasing the 1-0 lead FC Cincinnati took in the 35th minute through Brandon Vazquez, but the Crew player appeared in replays to potentially be offside.
Referee Kevin Stott wasn't advised by his video-assistant referee to review the play on the field-side video monitor, though. FC Cincinnati fans howled in disapproval and FCC coaches protested in the bench area, but the goal stood.
"(The fans are) interested because it’s f****** clear. That’s why they’re interested. It’s because this has happened to a point now where it’s an embarrassment to our league," FC Cincinnati head coach Pat Noonan said afterward. "I feel for our guys. I watched the Portland-Seattle goal (on Friday). It’s not just us – I will continue to say that but it is a huge problem that guys that put in that much continue to get punished by just really, really poor officiating across the board.
“Let me be clear: We should see the game out. You’re asking about the offside (for 1-1). We should see the game out, so that’s on us. Again, I wonder where six minutes (of stoppage time) comes from, and the reasons you get for the offside goal – the checkpoint’s different than what they see in Atlanta. How can the checkpoint be different? How do you not have that view or how can you not just look at it and say ‘I should check this. This is something that doesn’t look right.’
"Right now, I’m the excuse guy and that stinks but I want to protect our players because they put too much into it."
Reached by The Enquirer for comment to clarify the officiating decision via Major League Soccer's pool-reporter system, the Professional Referees Organization (PRO) responded in a statement: "The (video assistant referee) did not feel there was conclusive evidence that Derrick Etienne Jr. was ahead of the back foot of Cincinnati No. 6, which was the line of offside. This point was partially obstructed from view from the best available camera angle to determine offside. There were no other camera angles the VAR could reliably use to conclusively establish that the on-field decision was clearly and obviously incorrect."
PRO followed up with a secondary comment to clarify which FC Cincinnati player directly impacted the play, stating: "The mention of Cincinnati No. 6 was inaccurate. The Cincinnati player referenced should be No. 4, Nick Hagglund."
According to VAR rules, the officials watching video monitors in a closed, in-stadium room with multiple angles of the on-field action need to alert the referee to a clear and obvious error in order to utilize a field-side video review. Only then can the initial decision be overturned.
The controversy was an extension of what FC Cincinnati feels is a repetitive theme: Bad calls that are costing it in a long-awaited playoff race. Matches on Aug. 20 and Aug. 13 against New York Red Bulls and Atlanta United, respectively, were also marred by officiating decisions, and those are just the examples from recent weeks.
More:Matt Miazga scores in FC Cincinnati's 1-1 tie with New York Red Bulls
Once again, and just as it was when the clubs played in Cincinnati July 9, 2021, it was Columbus head coach Caleb Porter taunting FCC fans post-match as FCC picked up the pieces of a disappointing tie with its biggest rival.
The end product of FC Cincinnati's unsuccessful arguments and post-match complaints amounted to little. The final score dictated that FCC failed to avenge its July 17 loss at Columbus, and that it would remain outside of the Eastern Conference playoff picture for another week.
Given that FCC was seconds away from collecting the victory and three valuable points in the standings, the draw felt like a loss. It could also turn out to be significantly damaging to the club's playoff push.
At the final whistle, and with additional games still to be played in the Eastern Conferene this weekend, Cincinnati moved into eighth place on an 8-8-11 record and 35 points. The club has seven matches and 21 possible points in the standings available to it, but a narrowing window of opportunity as the ties continue to accumulate.
"Thank you to the fans. They were incredible tonight," Noonan said. "That atmosphere was special and I really wish we could have given them a proper sendoff... it wasn’t meant to be. I’m also very proud of our group and the players and the effort they put in. I wish they could be reward with three points today. This is a tough one."
Columbus moved to 8-6-12 and 36 points to maintain its hold on the seventh and final playoff position in the east.
As Noonan indicated in his post-match remarks, FC Cincinnati wasn't without fault in the game even as the club was quick to point to the perceived officiating error.
Moreira's goal came as a result of a failed clearance. Center back Geoff Cameron headed the ball from the right side of the penalty area directly up the middle of the field. It landed at the top of the penalty area, where Moreira had a clean, well-taken attempt.
Prior to that, substitute striker Dominique Badji had a one-versus-one chance in the 89th minute that could have sealed the win at 3-1. He dribbled wide of Crew goalkeeper Eloy Room, but the wide berth took him too far to the left, allowing Columbus defenders time to recover.
Badji's eventual shot was cleared away without any real threat of a goal.
On a night when Vazquez scored his team-record 16th goal of the season in his first match since signing a multi-year contract extension and Miazga scored for the second match in a row after arriving to the club earlier this month, the officiating decision overshadowed everything from a Cincinnati perspective.
"How does VAR work in this league? I don't know, because in Europe, they have the (onside-offside) line. It's yes or no," Miazga said. "Everyone sees it. It's yes or no, and you move on. If it's a goal, it's a goal... you move on. It's like we're all waiting to figure it out. I don't know what he (referee Kevin Stott) is waiting for. He can't go check himself. There's just no transparency. That's what it is for me. There's no transparency."
Vazquez's goal off an assist by Luciano Acosta arrived about a minute after he skied a close-range shot over the net and into the Bailey supporters section. He said the score capped an emotional week, but also lamented the missed opportunity in the 34th minute.
"Feels like a loss. It's been so many times in the situation where we just can't keep the lead and it's a little heartbreaking for everybody," Vazquez said. "We feel it. It hurts."
Of the first Columbus goal, Vazquez said, "it looked pretty clear to me, but, yeah, you know, I hope VAR is making the right decision. I think it could have been a different game if that hadn't happened."
Cincinnati returns to league play next weekend at TQL Stadium against expansion side Charlotte FC on Saturday.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: FC Cincinnati ties Columbus Crew on controversial MLS goal review
