Ayoub Jabbari Off the Bench Sends FC Cincinnati to the Playoffs in 1-0 Win Over Union

Philadelphia did the knocking all afternoon. FC Cincinnati got the candy.

Ayoub Jabbari, six minutes after coming off the bench, pounced on a rebound in the 70th minute, and FC Cincinnati beat the Philadelphia Union 1-0 on Halloween afternoon at TQL Stadium. The goal clinched Cincinnati a place in the 2026 MLS Cup Playoffs, the club's fifth straight postseason, and it came on a day when the Union outshot the hosts 15-7 and won 12 corners to Cincinnati's three. Roman Celentano made six saves. Jabbari took one shot. That was the whole story, and it was enough.

Philly Pours It On, Celentano Says No

The first half belonged to the visitors in everything but the scoreline. Bruno Damiani, who scored a hat trick when these teams met in Chester on Sept. 9, had a header saved by Celentano in the fifth minute. Frankie Westfield tested him in the 18th, Nathan Harriel had a close-range effort saved in the 21st, and Damiani forced another stop in the 25th. Neil Pierre's header in first-half stoppage time was saved too.

By the break, the Union had taken ten shots to Cincinnati's two, and Celentano had already made five saves. Cincinnati's best moments were a Pavel Bucha effort that sailed high in the 28th minute and a Samuel Gidi shot that slid just wide in the 40th.

Pat Noonan went to the bench at halftime, sending Evander on for Gidi, and the Union kept coming anyway. Damiani headed a Kai Wagner corner off the crossbar from close range in the 53rd minute, the closest Philadelphia came all day, and Quinn Sullivan drew Celentano's sixth save in the 56th. Ryan Richter, Philadelphia's interim head coach, sent on Cavan Sullivan and Jesús Bueno on the hour.

Then the game turned on two Cincinnati substitutes. Noonan introduced Jabbari and Ender Echenique in the 64th minute. Six minutes later, Evander let fly from the left side of the box, Andre Blake got a hand to it, and Jabbari was first to the loose ball, tapping it in from point-blank range for the only goal of the match.

Cincinnati had to see out the lead without Teenage Hadebe, who went off injured in the 80th minute and was replaced by Alvas Powell. Nick Hagglund, wearing the armband for the sixth time in his career per the club, marshaled what was left in front of a crowd of 24,013. Philadelphia pushed numbers forward for the last 20 minutes plus six minutes of stoppage time. Harriel headed wide off a corner in the 84th, the Union won three more corners in added time, and Cavan Sullivan's last-gasp attempt from distance flew high and wide. Cincinnati cleared the ball 46 times on the day, and every one of them felt necessary.

Celentano and the Super Sub

Celentano was the reason Cincinnati was still level when Jabbari arrived. Six saves, two of them on headers from inside the box, and a clean sheet that the club says was his fourth of the season and the 49th of his FC Cincinnati career.

Jabbari, meanwhile, has turned into the most reliable late-game cameo in the building. According to the club, it was his third MLS goal of the season and his fifth in all competitions, every one of them scored as a substitute. That leaves him one goal shy of the club record for goals off the bench. Evander deserves an assist in spirit, too, even if ESPN's data does not credit one: his shot from the left side of the box forced the save that created the chance.

For Philadelphia, Damiani had three shots, two on target and one off the woodwork. Quinn Sullivan matched him with three attempts. Blake was barely tested, making one save, and was beaten on the rebound from that one.

Off the Bar, Out of Luck

The 53rd minute was the sliding-doors moment. Damiani's header off the bar would have put the Union ahead after a half they had controlled, and with a lead, Philadelphia's numbers in the box would have looked like dominance instead of frustration. Instead, it stayed 0-0, Noonan's substitutes went to work, and Cincinnati's second shot on target of the entire afternoon decided it.

That is the cruel math of this one. The Union put six shots on goal; Cincinnati put two. Cincinnati won.

The Lopsided Numbers

• Shots: Philadelphia 15, Cincinnati 7. On target: Philadelphia 6, Cincinnati 2.
• Saves: Roman Celentano 6, Andre Blake 1.
• Corners: Philadelphia 12, Cincinnati 3.
• Crosses: The Union tried 29 and completed six.
• Possession: Nearly even, 50.9 percent for Cincinnati to 49.1 for Philadelphia.

Cincinnati Punches Its Ticket

Cincinnati moved to 12-10-11 with 46 points and is now unbeaten in four league matches, with three wins in that stretch. The club says the win also snapped a three-match skid against Philadelphia, a nice bit of payback after the 5-0 loss at Subaru Park in September. The postseason ticket is punched, and seeding will be settled on Decision Day, when Cincinnati hosts Supporters' Shield winner Nashville SC on Nov. 7.

Philadelphia, which had already clinched a playoff berth with a 0-0 draw at Nashville on Wednesday, slipped to 13-8-12 with 47 points. The Union sat sixth in the East in the standings ESPN showed after the match, one point ahead of seventh-place Cincinnati. They are now winless in four, and Cincinnati's account noted it was just their second loss since the World Cup break. Richter fielded another lineup the club described as never-before-seen, with Danley Jean Jacques suspended for yellow-card accumulation. The Union close the regular season at home against Toronto FC on Nov. 7.

Trick or Treat

There is a version of this match the Union will replay all week: the crossbar, the six saves, the 12 corners that came to nothing. Cincinnati will remember a simpler version. Two substitutes, one rebound, one goal, and a fifth straight trip to the postseason. On Halloween, sometimes the house with the porch light off still hands out the full-size candy bars.

Stats from ESPN's match data. Club notes as reported by FC Cincinnati (fccincinnati.com) and the Philadelphia Union (philadelphiaunion.com).