Evander gives FC Cincinnati its best MLS Cup chance yet | OneFootball

After a tough start to life in MLS, FC Cincinnati has established itself as one of the league's major players.

A Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup semifinal, consecutive Concacaf Champions Cup appearances, and a Supporters' Shield title have all come since the beginning of 2023.

Having called some of the league's best players their own, including the likes of Lucho Acosta and Brandon Vázquez, the side's recent success shouldn't have come as much of a surprise.

But one thing has still alluded Cincinnati. Despite being favorites to clinch its first MLS Cup in 2023, an Eastern Conference final loss to Columbus Crew saw Pat Noonan's side end the season on a gutting note.

Fast forward two seasons and a smash-and-grab victory at fellow contenders Orlando City on Saturday night moves Cincinnati to within one point of Philadelphia Union at the summit of the Supporters' Shield standings.

Cincinnati is once again one of the MLS Cup favorites in 2025. And despite all of the talent in southwest Ohio in recent years, it's the Brazilian Evander who gives Cincinnati its best chance yet of a first-ever MLS Cup title.

Given the potency of Orlando's attack, Saturday's encounter could've gone either way. But a perfectly coached game from Noonan and Evander's on-field exploits saw the Orange and Blue come away with all three points.

It was just another day's work for the man who is probably the best player in MLS right now. Just another two goals, including a spectacular free-kick to open the scoring, that single-handedly won Cincinnati the game.

The nerve to try the outrageous

Evander's late first-half free-kick was as outrageously clever as it was spectacular.

Instead of delivering an inswinging cross for the likes of Matt Miazga to attack, Evander surprised everyone on the field by aiming for goal from the angle.

Yes, Orlando 'keeper Pedro Gallese gave him far too much room at the near post. But only a player with insane levels of confidence ever tries to score from that situation, let alone succeeds.

Evander's free-kick completely changed the game for Cincinnati. It gave Noonan a lead to defend in the second half and forced Orlando to commit more and more players up the field to find an equalizer.

Leaving increased amounts of space in behind, Orlando soon found themselves 2-0 down. Once again, it was Evander who provided the hammer blow.

In tight games further down the line, it will take just one moment of magic from either team for Cincinnati to win or lose. Luckily, with the help of Evander, Cincinnati is more likely than most to come out on top.

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Unrivalled attacking output

Let's not forget, Evander is not a striker.

His two goals on Saturday made it 11 on the MLS season. Of all the other players with 11 or more strikes this term, the Brazilian is the only one who doesn't lead the line for his team.

Add to that his seven assists, and you have the most potent all-round attacking outlet in the league.

Despite the magic of his first, Evander's second goal against Orlando was arguably as impressive. He showed the desire to sprint forward on the counter, and was rewarded for his efforts by being found on the edge of the Orlando box by Kévin Denkey.

He then showed the composure to skip past David Brekalo and make Robin Jansson look like he was stuck in the mud, before cooly curling beyond Pedro Gallese into the far corner.

Evander has a knack of turning up on the biggest of occasions when his team needs him the most. This spells trouble for whoever Cincinnati faces in the MLS Cup Playoffs later this season.

Elevates those around him

Cincinnati deserved the win on Saturday, but Orlando dominated much of the game.

If not for Evander's two goals, it's unlikely all three points would've followed Cincinnati back to Ohio.

But Evander doesn't just win Cincinnati points by himself, he makes his teammates perform better as well.

Denkey has also notched 11 goals in what is his debut MLS season, largely down to Evander's creativity. An incredible overhead kick assist to the Togo international in May's Hell Is Real derby is probably the pick of the bunch.

On Saturday, Evander also handed a golden chance to substitute Kei Kamara in the 63rd minute, but the MLS veteran was denied by Gallese.

Above all, though, Evander's desire to sprint forward on the counter for Cincinnati's second summarized what Noonan's team did so well.

Orlando is a tricky place to come, and Cincinnati was always going to have to work for all three points. Noonan's defense and 'keeper Roman Celentano threw themselves in front of everything, even if their time-wasting tactics went unpunished by referee Marcos DeOliveira.