In case you needed further confirmation that New York City FC's 1-0 away win at FC Cincinnati was a tactical masterclass in how to defeat one of the toughest teams in the Eastern Conference, Major League Soccer named head coach Pascal Jansen to the Team of the Matchday presented by Audi. It's a first for Jansen, who joined NYCFC before the start of the season.
In addition, Midfielder Aiden O'Neill was named to the Starting XI, another first. The defensive midfielder is starting to earn league-wide recognition for being a two-way threat. Not only can the 27-year-old neutralize some of the most potent No 10s playing today, his ability to quickly send the ball upfield with accurate progressive passes has directly led to New York City scoring key goals in recent games. Earlier this week, O'Neill was voted Player of the Match by Hudson River Blue for the first time this year, taking almost 70% of the vote.
In the write-up for the Team of the Matchday, MLS confusingly cited the "game-winning assist from midfielder Aiden O’Neill." In fact, it was Maxi Moralez who provided the assist by releasing Alonso Martínez with a through-ball, but MLS now counts "hockey assists" in the league's statistics.
O'Neill is the fifth New York City player to make the Starting XI. He joins Matt Freese (2), Mitja Ilenič (1), Alonso Martínez (2), and Hannes Wolf (3).
Alonso Martínez was named to the bench, marking his fifth appearance on the Team of the Matchday. Martínez was in the Starting XI on Matchday 14 after scoring in the 2-0 win over New York Red Bulls, and was Player of the Matchday after his hat trick in the 4-3 win over FC Dallas.
