FC Cincinnati walked away from TQL Stadium with a point on Saturday night. A hard-fought, gritty, never-say-die kind of point that overcame a two-goal deficit in the final 10 minutes plus stoppage time of a game that felt like the magic just might not be there. But regardless of circumstances, the Orange and Blue, led by Evander in key moments, scored twice late to earn a 3-3 draw at TQL Stadium and salvage a point.
It has been a strength of FC Cincinnati’s many times this season; their belief in themselves and resilient attitude have rescued points and turned tides. It has helped keep a challenging season a little brighter and shown why the potential is still very much there for the club as they look to get past a difficult time.
But the reality of the situation, and the reality that all members of FC Cincinnati faced head-on postgame on Saturday night, was that, while yes, this was a good result and one to be happy with, this was also a missed opportunity.
It was a crisis created by their own accord, and a hole they dug themselves into and had to dig themselves out of. So while a mountainous effort had to be taken to get themselves back to square, that’s not really the point. The goal is to win games, particularly at home, and digging holes for yourself to climb out of isn’t helping that; it’s only making the job harder.
“We find ourselves in too many holes that we try to dig ourselves out of and too big a hole to climb out of to get the win. But the fight is good. We've seen that, but we need more to start games to not find ourselves chasing the game,” FC Cincinnati Head Coach Pat Noonan said after the match. “We found two goals against a good team in the second half where I thought we pushed the game well, and I liked the way we pushed the game. I don't like how we can't figure out how to do that earlier in the game and be more courageous and be just more tuned in to a lot of things so that we don't find ourselves in the hole we're in.”
FC Cincinnati had one of its strongest offensive outputs of the season and halted a key trend by not taking a red card for the first time in four matches. They registered over 3xG, earned 23 shots (the most in an MLS game this season), 10 shots on target (also a season high), nine corner kicks to Chicago’s zero. They held Chicago Fire to 46.2 percent possession (the fourth lowest they’ve had all season), allowed just six shots on target, and dominated the tempo of the game from the 50-minute onward by outpossessing the Fire in every five-minute interval from minute 51 to the final whistle.
And yet, all the great work done to score goals and perform in such a way that could have earned a victory will be lost to the memories of a draw. Three points were on the table Saturday night, and FC Cincinnati players and coaches alike knew that.
“Character is not the issue. It's our attention to detail of the game. First half, we have two turnovers where we force the play, and I know, mistakes are going to happen. They have two good moments, two throw-ins that get behind us and are two of their best chances,” Noonan explained of the problems. “Two plays where we don't get organized. How we communicate to be tougher to play against.”
“These are basic things that we continue to get wrong.”
“Both of (Hugo) Cuypers' goals are very well-taken goals, but how the ball gets there and the whole lead up... there are so many things that can prevent those moments. So we'll continue to try to figure it out.”
“We are still struggling,” Evander said after the match. “There's a small progression…but we need to keep pushing. We (need) to get better as a team, both ways, defensively and offensively. So, we're trying to improve and get back to our normal, which is (winning).”
Evander was the catalyst for much of FCC's success Saturday, contributing to all three goals, including a finish of his own for the first time in 2026.
Chicago Fire got the lead early with one of two goals on the night from Hugo Cuypers, but FC Cincinnati answered quickly to equalize on a dangerous sequence sprung by Evander and finished by Tom Barlow in the 41 minute.
But just before halftime, a penalty kick was awarded and scored by Chicago, giving them the lead at the break.
Three minutes after the restart in the second half, Cuyper scored his second goal in nearly identical fashion to his first – a one-touch volley curled to the far post – and gave Chicago a 3-1 lead. A margin created in, effectively, five minutes.
The comeback began almost immediately as FC Cincinnati all of a sudden began to control play and push the action in a way that hadn’t happened to that point yet, but it didn’t get traction until the 79 minute.
Evander expertly flicked a pass to Gerardo “Dado” Valenzuela, running through the box, and Valenzuela was dragged down in his efforts to make a play on the ball. The referee pointed to the spot, awarding FC Cincinnati a penalty kick for the first time this season, and Evander stepped up and scored to make things 3-2. His first goal of the season ended a notable scoring drought in the midfielder's prolific MLS career. The goal was his 43rd career finish in MLS action, tying him for the league's all-time record for goals by a Brazilian-born player.
Seven minutes later, it was Evander again. His free kick, darted in from the right side to a spot just in front of goal, was intended to be for Ayoub Jabbari, but the pace and placement of the kick meant that even when a Chicago defender got to it first, the bounce sent the ball into the net for the equalizer. An own goal, yes, but one created by Evander.
“I was happy to see the first one go in, and he had a strong game,” Noonan said of Evander’s performance and contribution. “He was influential in our attack, certainly, and I thought he worked hard defensively. Hopefully, this gets him going in the way of production, but still, leading up to tonight, there have been plenty of good moments.”
At the end of the night, was getting a point for a draw a good thing? Absolutely yes. Was it important to fight back and earn that point, given the circumstances? Again, absolutely yes. Is it something to be proud of? Sure. Were there positive takeaways both on an individual and macro level? Yes.
Was there more to be had? 100 percent.
Despite all the negatives FC Cincinnati had Saturday, in the final 10 minutes, FC Cincinnati was level with its opponent and had control of the game. So, instead of being in the lead and seeing out a win, they needed to go for one more goal to earn that final three points, and that’s what alluded them.
Pat Noonan and his players have set expectations high for themselves, and to reach them, they need to get over that hump.
“We want to win at home, we know we need those three points…it shows a little bit of character in the team, resilience to come back, but it's tough going down two goals,” forward and goal scorer Tom Barlow said postgame. “We need to learn from it, and we'll get better…we’ll take the point (but) we want to win, and we think it's a huge advantage being here at home with our fans. We need the three points, and that's unfortunate, so we'll take the point tonight (and) learn from it.”
FC Cincinnati will have another chance to get it right this week when they travel to New York City to take on NYCFC at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx on Wednesday, April 22.
