Ayoub Jabbari, Roman Celentano help Cincinnati clinch postseason spot with 1-0 victory over Union

Ayoub Jabbari scored in the second half and Roman Celentano made it stand up as FC Cincinnati clinched a postseason berth with a 1-0 victory over the Philadelphia Union

ByThe Associated Press

October 31, 2026, 4:18 PM

CINCINNATI -- Ayoub Jabbari scored in the second half and Roman Celentano made it stand up as FC Cincinnati clinched a postseason berth with a 1-0 victory over the Philadelphia Union on Saturday.

Neither team scored until Jabbari was in the right place in the 70th minute after Andre Blake saved but couldn't reel in a shot by Evander Da Silva Ferreira.

Celantano had five of his six saves in the first half for Cincinnati (12-11-10). It was his third clean sheet in 29 starts this season, helping the club improve to 10-4-3 at home.

Blake finished with two saves — both in the second half — for Philadelphia (13-12-8), which had already earned a playoff spot before falling to 6-8-3 on the road.

The Union beat Cincinnati 5-0 at home on Sept. 9 behind a hat trick from Bruno Damiani. Cincinnati was forced to play a man down after the 16th minute when midfielder Obinna Nwobodo was tagged with a red card.

It's all over but the seeding for both clubs heading to Decision Day.

Philadelphia: Hosts Toronto FC to close out the regular season on Saturday.

Cincinnati: Hosts Nashville SC on Saturday to finish the regular season.