FC Cincinnati and Charlotte FC Battle to 2-2 Draw in Thrilling Match

In a battle between the two Queen Cities Saturday night in Charlotte, FC Cincinnati squandered a two-goal lead in the second half and settled for a 2-2 draw with Charlotte FC.

FC Cincinnati (4-4-4, 16 points) drew first blood in the 36th minute, when Evander took a free kick. The ball was saved by a diving Kristijan Kahlina, but Kahlina deflected it right to Kevin Denkey. Denkey unleashed a leaping kick with his right foot to give Cincinnati a 1-0 lead, marking his seventh goal of the season.

Evander didn’t have to wait long to find the net himself. With Cincinnati on the attack as the first half wound down in the 43rd minute, Evander unleashed a lofted shot from the edge of the box that found the top-left corner, extending Cincinnati’s lead to 2-0. This goal was Evander’s fourth in Cincinnati’s last two matches.

However, less than 10 minutes into the second half, Charlotte (4-5-3, 15 points) roared back to tie the match within three minutes. Idan Toklomati headed in a goal in the 51st minute with a headed assist from Tim Ream, and Pep Biel equalized in the 53rd minute with his team-high sixth goal, burying a centering pass from Djibril Danil into the top of the net past Roman Celentano.

Cincinnati narrowly outperformed Charlotte on the stat sheet, with 13 shots to Charlotte’s 11, 5 shots on goal to 3, and 53.8% possession compared to 46.2%.

Both teams had opportunities in the second half to break the draw but were unable to find the net. The match was a physical battle, with Cincinnati receiving four yellow cards while Charlotte was assessed one. The two teams combined for 23 fouls.

Kahlina made three saves in goal for Charlotte FC, while Celentano made one for Cincinnati.