New York City FC earned a statement 1-0 road win over former Eastern Conference leaders FC Cincinnati, extending their MLS winning streak to three straight games.
NYCFC didn't move from 8th Place but are now undefeated in five games, with four wins and a draw, and remain undefeated in eight matchups against the Eastern Conference's top five teams.
Here are four thoughts from New York City's fourth road win of the season.
1. Alonso Martínez wins battle of the strikers
It was a battle of two in-form strikers on Saturday night: NYCFC's Alonso Martínez and Cincinnati's Kévin Denkey — the pair entered the game with a league-leading seven game-winning goals each this season.
But it was Martínez who ended the night with the eighth. He nearly opened the scoring in the 31st minute, rattling a long-range shot off the left post. But early in the second half, he found the back of the net in typical Martínez fashion.
Aiden O'Neill played a line-breaking pass to Maxi Moralez, who played a through ball to Martínez. The Costa Rican used his pace to beat the Cincinnati defense and poke his shot past Roman Celentano for his 14th MLS goal of the season.
Alonso Martínez scores his 14th goal of the season | Courtesy New York City FC
Notably, it was Martínez's 30th career goal for New York City, surpassing Moralez's 29 goals for the third-most in club history, only behind David Villa's 77 and Taty Castellanos's 50.
New York City FC | All-Time Leading Goal Scorers, MLS
| Name | Years | G | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | David Villa | 2015-18 | 77 |
| 2 | Taty Castellanos | 2018-23 | 50 |
| 3 | Alonso Martínez | 2024- | 30 |
| 4 | Maxi Moralez | 2017- | 29 |
| 5 | Ismael Tajouri-Shradi | 2018-21 | 26 |
| 6 | Héber | 2019-22 | 24 |
| Santiago Rodríguez | 2021-24 | 24 | |
| 8 | Jesús Medina | 2018-21 | 23 |
| 9 | Alexandru Mitriță | 2019-20 | 16 |
| 10 | Frank Lampard | 2015-16 | 15 |
When looking at Martínez's performance, Moralez's game can easily go under the radar. The playmaker tallied his team-leading sixth assist of the season and now has four assists in his last four MLS games.
Moralez also won the battle of the No 10s against Cincinnati's Evander, who is currently having an MLS MVP-level season with 16 goals and eight assists.
Evander would have been on the scoresheet if not for Matt Freese, who made five crucial saves to earn his seventh clean sheet of the season.
2. Return of Thiago Martins helps seal the win
NYCFC's backline took a massive blow when it was announced in July that captain Thiago Martins underwent knee surgery, keeping him out of the lineup for nearly one month.
Despite missing only five games, Thiago Martins's absence was felt. During that stretch, New York City conceded nine goals and kept just one clean sheet.
The backline of Justin Haak and Strahinja Tanasijević improved the more they played together, but it was a rough first two games, allowing three goals to FC Dallas and Club Puebla.
The defense looked more composed today despite the dangerous Cincinnati attack. Thiago Martins looked great in his return, keeping Denkey and Evander quiet. The Brazilian had four clearances, two interceptions, and five recoveries, showing exactly what his side was missing without him.
Andrew Leigh
3. Andrés Perea goes down
After scoring his second goal of the season in the 2-1 victory over Nashville SC last Sunday, Andrés Perea earned his ninth straight MLS start against Cincinnati.
Perea's night was cut short in the 39th minute, though, as he went down with what looked like a knee injury. Perea tried to tackle the ball away from Evander, but ended up landing awkwardly on his left leg and hyperextending his knee. He was able to walk off the pitch as Jonathan Shore came on as a substitute.
It's unclear the severity of the injury, but if Perea is to be out for some time, it would be a big loss. New York City's midfield depth is already shallow with Keaton Parks presumably out for the season after undergoing surgery to address blood flow issues in his right leg.
Perea's versatility has been on display all season. He's played as a defensive midfielder, a traditional midfielder, and even as a left winger at times. If Perea is to miss some time, head coach Pascal Jansen could look to O'Neill and Shore to start in a double-pivot, which is something we've already seen multiple times this season.
Hudson River Blue Staff
4. First win at TQL Stadium since 2021
NYCFC was one of the worst road teams in MLS heading into the brutal four-game road stretch in July. But that slate went better than expected, as New York City picked up seven points — including two dramatic victories over Orlando City and Dallas, respectively.
Saturday's game against Cincinnati was NYCFC's first away game since the aforementioned road stretch. New York City had struggled at TQL Stadium in recent years, losing four straight games there from 2023 to 2024.
Oliver Strand
NYCFC put an end to that bad run of form, eliminating Cincinnati on penalties in Round One of last year's MLS playoffs, and followed it up with Saturday's 1-0 victory — the team's first regulation win at TQL Stadium since September 18, 2021.
It's clear that New York City can defeat anyone at home, even the best teams in the league. But it seems like NYCFC has figured out how to translate that to road games, which is crucial for the team's playoff aspirations with eight games remaining in the regular season.
