Evander says Cincinnati can’t afford to drop points in playoff race

Every match matters for Cincinnati

FC Cincinnati enter the final stretch of the MLS regular season in eighth place in the Eastern Conference, but their place in the top nine is far from secure. Columbus Crew are four points behind in 10th, while seventh-place Orlando City are level with Cincinnati on 42 points.

With the playoff race tightening, Evander says Cincinnati can no longer afford to treat any fixture as expendable. The team’s next test is a Wednesday trip to face third-place Inter Miami.

“We cannot choose games anymore. We have to win. Whether playing at home or playing away, we can’t lose points anymore.”

Cincinnati travel on the back of consecutive wins over D.C. United. Evander led the way in the latest 2-0 victory, scoring from distance before setting up Tom Barlow for the second goal.

The assist was Evander’s 15th in the 2026 MLS season. He became only the second player in league history, after Lionel Messi, to reach at least 15 assists in three consecutive seasons. Cincinnati head coach Pat Noonan praised the performance, saying: “That’s Evander being Evander.”

Evander said he had been pushing himself to get back on the scoresheet, but stressed that helping the team win was the priority. He described scoring and taking all three points away from home as a special moment.

Miami bring a strong recent record against Cincinnati

Inter Miami come into the meeting after a 2-0 loss to the New York Red Bulls. Lionel Messi played 34 minutes as a substitute in that match without a goal contribution, his third consecutive substitute appearance for Miami without one. However, he had been involved in at least one goal in each of his previous 19 club starts, a run dating back to early May and comprising 21 goals and 14 assists.

Miami have won their last two meetings with Cincinnati, including last season’s Eastern Conference semifinals, by an aggregate score of 9-3. They have also won their last two home league matches, keeping clean sheets in both.

The preview’s Opta win probabilities give Miami a 52.4% chance of victory, compared with 23.3% for Cincinnati and 24.3% for a draw. Cincinnati’s matches had produced 135 goals in the 2026 MLS season at the time of the report—64 scored and 71 conceded. Two more goals in the Miami fixture would take that total beyond the league single-season record of 136, set in games involving Miami in 2025.