D.C. United falls to FC Cincinnati as Evander scores and sets up Barlow

Johnson returns; D.C. makes an early change

Sean Johnson returned to D.C. United’s starting lineup at Audi Field after injury had kept the goalkeeper out of the teams’ previous meeting. D.C. then made a personnel change before either side scored, replacing Jackson Hopkins with Nikola Markovic in the 34th minute.

Evander strikes from outside the box

Cincinnati opened the scoring a minute later. Pavel Bucha found Evander centrally, and Evander took a touch before hitting a right-footed shot from outside the box. His 35th-minute finish gave the visitors the first goal of the match.

D.C. could not find an equalizer over the remainder of the first half. Cincinnati took its one-goal advantage into the break, with Evander’s strike separating the teams at halftime.

Barlow adds the second

The second goal began with a long ball reaching Evander as Bryan Ramirez’s forward run occupied D.C. defenders. Evander passed to Tom Barlow, who finished from close range over the diving Johnson in the 52nd minute.

Barlow’s finish was his tenth goal of the MLS season. It also took Cincinnati’s season total to 64 goals, matching the club record.

D.C. finishes without a goal

D.C. introduced Oscar Avilez for Silvan Hefti and Jared Stroud for Brandon Servania in the 65th minute. Its second-half efforts produced no goal; D.C. finished with 13 shots, two on target, and eight corners.

Cincinnati brought on Gerardo Valenzuela for Bucha in the 85th minute, marking Valenzuela’s 100th club appearance. The visitors completed their first MLS clean sheet since April 25 against Red Bull New York.

D.C. remained 13th in the Eastern Conference with 33 points and a 7-12-12 record after the defeat.