'We need to win' – Noonan refuses excuses as FC Cincinnati chase playoff life against D.C. United

Noonan's blunt message to Cincinnati

FC Cincinnati head coach Pat Noonan has delivered a brutally simple message to his players ahead of Wednesday's crunch MLS encounter with D.C. United: no excuses, just wins.

Cincinnati arrive at the fixture embroiled in a tight tussle for the wildcard slots in the Eastern Conference, with Decision Day fast approaching. The pressure intensified after Columbus Crew clinched a 2-0 derby victory last time out, leaving Cincinnati ninth in the standings.

"We have D.C. next, and that's the focus," Noonan said after the loss to the Crew. "How do we position ourselves for a better result? Right now, we can talk about stats all we want. We need to win. That's it. We need to win, however that looks, however that feels, we need to win games."

A crowded playoff picture

Cincinnati are one of seven teams separated by just six points in the Eastern Conference, and D.C. United are not yet out of the running for the postseason either. The form book, however, makes for grim reading on both sides: Cincinnati have won just one of their last nine league games, while D.C. have managed only one win in six.

Noonan insisted the solution is not a radical overhaul of his team's approach.

"We don't need new ideas and strategies," he added. "But if you look at how the games are being played right now structurally, chance creation, we still concede in almost every big moment that we concede or give up. I wouldn't say a lot drastically needs to change, other than winning the boxes. That's something that we haven't done.

"You still want to play the game the way we're playing it, but have a little bit more, I would say, game understanding of when you're playing with the league, when you're trailing, when I say urgency of how do we make the most out of specific moments in the game to change an outcome?

"Because there were enough there to finish off some plays, but as a game progresses and you're down, or you've been losing games and things aren't going your way, how do you approach that mentally to either cave or keep pushing."

Players to watch

FC Cincinnati – Evander
The Brazilian playmaker has 13 goals and 10 assists in MLS this term, ranking joint-sixth for goal involvements in 2026, while his 78 chances created rank second in the competition, behind Carles Gil (81).

D.C. United – Tai Baribo
Baribo, who scored D.C.'s lone goal in their defeat to Orlando City SC on Saturday, has scored in 13 different matches this season, including each of the last two. The only D.C. players to score in more matches in a single season since 2010 are Christian Benteke (15) in 2024 and Ola Kamara (14) in 2021.

Opta prediction: Cincinnati to edge it

Cincinnati are the favourites to take the three points, according to Opta's predictive model, which gives the hosts a 57.3% win probability against D.C.'s 21.5%, with a 21.2% chance of a draw.

Yet there are warning signs for the hosts. Cincinnati have conceded 70 goals in MLS this term — the third time they have done so (75 in 2019, 74 in 2021), making them the only team in MLS history to have three seasons shipping at least 70 goals. D.C., meanwhile, are winless in seven straight away matches (D4 L3) and have won just five of 32 away matches in all competitions since the start of the 2025 season, including two of 15 this year.

History, though, favours the visitors at this venue. D.C. recorded a 2-1 win last May in their last road match against Cincinnati and have just one loss in eight visits to the city (W4 D3). Their 1.88 points per match at Cincinnati is their highest points-per-match average on the road against any MLS opponent.