FC Cincinnati 2 fell to Philadelphia Union II, 1-0, at Subaru Park in Chester, Pa. in Matchweek 2 of the MLS NEXT Pro season. The Orange and Blue continue their current stretch of road matches next Sunday, March 15, against New England Revolution II.
Philadelphia’s Finn Sundstrom scored the lone goal of the match in the 37th minute off a corner to give the hosts three points on the afternoon. Union II midfielder Willyam Ferreira assisted on the goal.
It was another week of FC Cincinnati Academy debuts at the MLS NEXT Pro level, as Santiago Sanchez came on at halftime in place of Nathan Gray. Sanchez becomes the second FC Cincinnati Academy player to make his debut in MLS NEXT Pro this season.
Midfielder Noah Gassan, who made his MLS NEXT Pro debut last Sunday against CT United FC, earned his first start, playing a full 90 minutes.
Matt Miazga saw his first match action since playing 80 minutes against Nashville SC on September 15, 2025. Miazga played the opening 45 minutes against Philadelphia on Sunday.
FC Cincinnati 2’s match against New England Revolution II kicks off at 1 p.m. ET from Beirne Stadium in Smithfield, Rhode Island. The match can be streamed live on OneFootball platforms and MLSNEXTPro.com.
FC CINCINNATI 2 GAME REPORT
FC Cincinnati 2 at PHILADELPHIA UNION II
Date: March 8, 2026
Competition: MLS NEXT Pro Regular Season
Venue: Subaru Park | Chester, Pa.
Kickoff: 3:03 p.m. ET
Weather: 69 degrees, clear
SCORING SUMMARY: 1-2-FT
PHI: 1-0-1
CIN: 0-0-0
PHI – Finn Sundstrom (Ferreira) 37’
CIN – None
LINEUPS
PHI: George Marks, Jordan Griffin (Kaiden Moore 55’), Rafael Uzcategui (C), Finn Sundstrom, Oliver Pratt, Kellan LeBlanc (John Ruf 80’), Oscar Benitez, Isaiah Mendoza (Hehan Hasan 69’), Willyam Ferreira (Matheus De Paula 69’), Sal Olivas, Malik Jakupovic
Substitutes not used: Alex Smith, Theo Reed, Andrew Craig, Lennon Harrington
Head Coach: Ryan Richter
CIN: Bryan Dowd, Andrei Chirila, Matt Miazga (C) (Will Kuisel 46’), Michael Sullivan, Ayoub Lajhar, Nathan Gray (Santiago Sanchez 46’), Noah Gassan, Deiver Mosquera (Dilan Hurtado 46’), Jack Mize (Chrlie Holmes 61’), Stefan Chirila, Ademar Chavez (Leo Orejarena 61’)
Substitutes not used: Luke Broz, Mathias Vazquez, Yair Ramos
Head Coach: Sammy Castellanos
STATS SUMMARY: PHI/CIN
Shots: 13 / 3
Shots on Goal: 3 / 1
Saves: 1 / 2
Corner Kicks: 7 / 2
Fouls: 15 / 11
Offside: 0 / 3
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MISCONDUCT SUMMARY\\
CIN: Nathan Gray (Yellow Card) 3’
CIN: Matt Miazga (Yellow Card) 7’
CIN: Ayoub Lajhar (Yellow Card) 45’
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OFFICIALS\\
Referee: Rodrigo Albuquerque
Ast. Referees: Jeremy Smith, Andrew Stefanick
Fourth Official: Marie Durr
