FC Cincinnati’s Evander did something on Saturday that only Lionel Messi had done before him in Major League Soccer. The Brazilian playmaker scored a long-range opener and added his 15th assist of 2026 in a 2-0 win at D.C. United, becoming only the second player in league history, alongside Messi, to record at least 15 assists in three consecutive seasons, according to MLS.
Evander got Cincinnati started at Audi Field with a stunning long-range goal before setting up Tom Barlow’s result-sealing tally for that 15th assist. The goal, in the 35th minute on the sequence described by the league, also snapped a nearly two-month, seven-game scoring drought for the midfielder.
“That’s Evander being Evander,” head coach Pat Noonan said of the performance. The win was Cincinnati’s second in four days against D.C. United, and it moved the Orange & Blue to 42 points and into eighth place in the Eastern Conference, firmly in the Audi 2026 MLS Cup Playoffs mix, the league reported.
Evander’s season totals underline why Cincinnati’s postseason hopes run through him. The two-time MLS Best XI selection and three-time All-Star now has a team-best 29 goal contributions — 14 goals and 15 assists — and sits one contribution shy of reaching at least 30 for a third straight season.
“I knew I was gonna score again at some point. I’ve been pushing myself to be on the scoresheet,” Evander said. “More than that, just trying to push the team to win the games. I think it came in a special moment: a goal and a win in an away game is really good.”
The test gets harder from here. Cincinnati has three regular-season games left, and all three opponents are above the playoff line in the East — starting Wednesday with a visit to Messi and defending MLS Cup champion Inter Miami, with kickoff at 7:30 p.m. ET. It is, fittingly, a meeting with the only other player in the record Evander just joined.
“We understand the situation we’re in right now,” Evander said. “We cannot choose games anymore. We have to win. Whether playing at home or playing away, we can’t lose points anymore.”
For Cincinnati fans, Saturday offered both a result and a reminder: a road shutout, two points of breathing room in the playoff race, and a star playing his best when the margin is thinnest. Wednesday’s trip to face Inter Miami will show whether the Orange & Blue can carry that form into the toughest fixture left on their schedule.
Photo: Cornfield948, CC BY-SA 3.0