The party down in Nashville quickly became its own brutal hangover. Now that the transfer window is closed, the Orange & Blue have to sober up and get back to business.
FC Cincinnati (8-7-7, 31 pts.) return home to take on a vastly improved D.C. United (5-10-7, 25 pts.) this weekend. Owners of last season’s Wooden Spoon, the Black-and-Red find themselves hovering around the playoff line. They hope to steal another three points at TQL, where D.C. took home a 2-1 victory in May of 2025.
FCC are struggling to find their form after a forgettable 4-0 loss to Nashville SC. A dominant first half by Nashville led to disrepair in the second half that was not immediately observed by Pat Noonan after the match.
“Looking back at the game, there were things that you see even after the fact that were even more frustrating,” Noonan noted on Friday. “We’ve probably had a handful of those, which feels like a lot, after the game and after you watch it back, it’s not what we want to be. So hopefully tomorrow can help with a better performance in front of our fans, but what you analyze and what you talk about are that it’s not at the level that we would like it to be.”
Meanwhile, D.C. United prevented their own free fall with a 0-0 draw against LAFC at the nation’s capital. While it may have been a positive result against a strong team, it’s another case of lost points. D.C. United lead the league in draws (10) along with Toronto FC.
A win would stabilize the ship in a turbulent race toward the MLS Cup playoffs. Another home loss against D.C. would push United back into contention. It may be just another six-pointer at TQL Stadium again, but FC Cincinnati need to find goals against a team that has the potential to lock up offenses.
D.C. UNITED
D.C. United have spent their 2026 season countering the sour results in 2025. Despite almost making the playoffs in his first season, the team sacked head coach Troy Lesesne halfway through his second season after losing ten of their first 20 matches.
The addition of Rene Weiler as head coach led to four positive results over the final seven matches. However, D.C. still finished at the bottom of the standings, their fifth “Wooden Spoon” finish in the club’s history. The poor result was their sixth straight finish outside of the MLS Cup playoffs.
The front office decided to roll big over the offseason, with primary focus on scoring. D.C. United were last in goals (30), despite the breakout year for Christian Benteke in 2024 (23 goals in 30 matches). The team purchased the contracts of forwards Tai Baribo (Philadelphia) and Louis Munteanu (CFR Kluj) to bolster the attack. Meanwhile, the full forward attack, minus Brazilian Peglow, were dismissed.
The duo of Baribo (12 goals) and Munteanu (6) have produced dividends, making up 64% of the offense. While the defense has also improved with Sean Johnson taking charge as goalkeeper, not every piece has worked. Defender Sean Nealis, transferred from Red Bull New York in the offseason, has started only four matches. His benching means more minutes for midfielder Andre Dozzell at center back. The Englander’s work with Jacob Murrell and Matti Peltola has done enough to keep the goals low.
Forward Gabe Segal (lower leg) is likely out for Saturday, but the team could see Baribo (knee) return to play after a few weeks of rest. D.C. will also get back right back Silvan Hefti after a red card suspension.
THE ORANGE AND BLUE
While the road has not been so good for FC Cincinnati, play at home has been solid (7-2-2). The Orange & Blue have been undefeated at home since a 5-3 loss to Miami in May. However, their last home match against Seattle resulted in a 1-1 draw after conceding a late goal.
The biggest shift over the past 24 hours is the news that center back Matt Miazga will depart the team soon, as first reported by Laurel Pfahler. Miazga was to be a free agent this winter, but he is likely to sign with another team for the remainder of the 2026 season. Miazga would depart FC Cincinnati after four seasons if his release is finalized.
While this move would open some cap space, it also leaves the defending line in tatters. The defense is still seeking answers, despite the move for Argentinian defender Julian Malatini before the transfer window’s closing. The Orange & Blue have not notched a clean sheet since April in MLS play. Their 51 goals allowed is second worst in MLS.
Evander comes into this match with a second-consecutive Player of the Month award. Over July and August, the Brazilian notched nine goal contributions (four goals, five assists), tied for first over that span. Overall, the midfielder has MVP-like stats once again, second in the league with 23 contributions (13 goals, 10 assists).
However, the offense has become a bit dry outside of Evander’s contributions. After scoring nine goals in nine matches, forward Kevin Denkey has not scored in his last five MLS matches and eight matches over all competitions. The overall offense has only scored four goals in their last four matches, as opposed to 16 in the four matches before that.
The hope is that Czech wingback David Doudera is ready to contribute when his visa is accepted. Doudera joins the team after four seasons at Slavia Prague, scoring 13 goals and 19 assists for the Czech Republic giants.
The injury bug finally bit the roster after weeks of full health. Samuel Gidi (concussion) and Kristian Fletcher (knee) will both miss Saturday’s match due to injury. Both are looking to recover for matches next week.
Predicted lineup:
The anticipated departure of Miazga, absence of Gidi, and the upcoming schedule congestion will force some lineup configuration. Noonan will likely link Miles Robinson in the back with a combination of Kyle Smith, Andrei Chirila, and Teenage Hadebe.
New arrivals Doudera and Malatini will not be ready until their visa situations are sorted, meaning that Pavel Bucha might start on the edge again. However, if there is a need to conserve midfielder depth, Bucha may start in the middle with Bryan Ramirez and Ender Echenique on the edges.
Match Info
Where: TQL Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio.
When: Saturday, September 5th at 7:30 p.m.
Watch: Apple+
Listen: ESPN 1530 iHeart Radio w/ Tommy Gelehrter and Kevin McCloskey
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