Pat Noonan had some stern words for his FC Cincinnati players after their 3-3 draw with FC Dallas in midweek, labelling their second-half display as "embarrassing". 

Noonan watched on as his team led 2-0 going into the break, before Petar Musa and Anderson Julio hauled Dallas level with 68 minutes gone in the contest. 

Gerardo Valenzuela thought he had won the game for Cincinnati four minutes from time, only for Sebastien Ibeagha to grab a late equaliser in second-half stoppage time. 

Though Cincinnati sit second in the Eastern Conference standings after 16 games, Noonan reiterated that his team's display in the second half showed how far they are from becoming a real team that can compete this season. 

"It was a tale of two halves. We were excellent in the first half, and we were embarrassing in the second half," Noonan said. 

"So it falls on me, because there were guys that had no idea how to manage a two-goal lead and manage the momentum we had coming out of the break. 

"So, there'll be some good conversations around what we want this to look like moving forward and what we want to accomplish, because there were guys that were nowhere close in the second half.

"You get the answers from the games, and like I said, the second half shows how far we are away from becoming a real team."

Noonan will be hoping for an improved display this weekend when they welcome D.C. United to the TQL Stadium, with the visitors finally ending their goal drought in midweek. 

Troy Lesesne's team have struggled without top scorer Christian Benteke, failing to score in four-straight games prior to their 1-1 draw with the New England Revolution. 

Gabriel Pirani snatched a point for his team in second-half stoppage time, with his first goal of the season ending D.C.'s 495-minute scoreless rut in the MLS. 

Lesesne, though, always knew of Pirani's quality, saying: "We needed a special play. And Gabby does make special plays.

"We needed that moment because everyone recognised it could have been a match where it ends 1-0, and it's a different conversation.

"Now he's getting back in the mix. This is a big moment for him, and you can see what it means to him, too."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

FC Cincinnati – Gerardo Valenzuela

Valenzuela has scored three goals in his last four matches, including in each of the last two.

The 20-year-old could also become the youngest Cincinnati player to score a goal in three consecutive regular-season games this weekend. 

D.C. United – Gabriel Pirani

With Benteke still a couple of weeks away from a return to action, Pirani will be looking to make an impact in his absence after his substitute cameo last time out. 

Indeed, despite being introduced in the 81st minute, he registered team-high totals for shots (three), while only Peglow (three), who started the game, created more chances than the Brazilian (two, level with Hosei Kijima and Jared Stroud). 

MATCH PREDICTION: CINCINNATI WIN

Cincinnati have recorded back-to-back wins over D.C. United, with both victories coming at Audi Field. D.C. have also lost only one of their seven all-time visits to the TQL Stadium (W3 D3).

Noonan's team are also unbeaten in 11 straight home matches in all competitions (W6 D5) following a 3-3 draw with Dallas. This is Cincinnati's second-longest home unbeaten run in all competitions as an MLS club after a 20-match stretch from February to August 2023.

D.C., meanwhile, have won only one of their last seven away matches (D2 L4), though they did manage a scoreless draw at Nashville in their last match on the road. The 0-0 draw was their first road clean sheet since a scoreless match at Cincinnati in March 2024, ending a run of 22 straight away matches allowing a goal.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

FC Cincinnati – 61.3%

Draw – 20.4%

D.C. United – 18.3%