Brenner scored in the 63rd minute and FC Cincinnati overcame finishing a man down to hand the visiting Seattle Sounders FC their first defeat of the young season with Saturday night’s 1-0 victory.
Moments after Brenner hit the side of the net following a Seattle turnover by goalkeeper Stefan Frei, the Brazilian did not miss his next opportunity.
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Following another Sounders’ giveaway in their own end, some nifty Cincinnati passing led the ball to the foot of Brenner, whose low, side-footed shot deflected off the hand of a sprawling Frei. It was his first goal of the season coming in the 63rd minute.
The aggressor most of the contest, Cincinnati (2-0-1) found itself in a precarious situation some 20 minutes later, when a hard foul resulted in a red card for defender Nick Hagglund. He was initially shown a yellow, but the game officials changed the booking.
Seattle (2-1-0) appeared to have leveled the match in the 90th minute. However, Yeimar Gomez’s successful header was taken off the board following a video review that showed a Sounders foul leading up to the score.
FCC’s defense remained stout enough to stay unbeaten through three matches to open a season for the first time in the five-year MLS history of the franchise.
Brenner’s strike was the first goal allowed in 2023 by the Sounders, who outscored Colorado and Real Salt Lake 6-0 at home to open the campaign.
A rather frenetic start gave way to a feeling-out stretch within the first 15 minutes.
The first real scoring chance of the match came from Seattle in the 16th minute. Jordan Morris curled the ball from the wing but just wide of an open net with Cincinnati goalkeeper Roman Celentano well out of his area.
Though FCC held 62.6 percent of the possession and responsible for most of the sustained pressure, their four overall shots during the first half resulted in just one on target. The Sounders blocked two Cincinnati attempts before the break.
Seattle finished with 12 overall shots, but just one on target.
