FC Cincinnati make their first-ever trip to Portland this weekend, one of only three MLS cities or clubs they have never visited since joining the league in 2019.

But that maiden voyage is hardly the top story of the week.

The Orange and Blue’s star midfielder, Evander, who is deep in the thick of the 2025 MLS MVP race with 19 goals and 7 assists, makes his first return to his former club. The return is one that could evoke some heightened emotions, given the circumstances, but according to Head Coach Pat Noonan, the build-up to the match has been very normal.

“He's been normal all week. I'm sure he's excited to go back. There's connections that you have when you've had success at a previous club and spent time there. So I know, despite the exit and us being fortunate enough to add him to our group, he's excited to go back,” Noonan said in his prematch press conference on Thursday before heading to Portland. “So he's been steady as usual, and we're hoping to get a strong performance out of him to help lead our team.”

The Brazilian midfielder played two seasons with the Timbers, scoring 15 goals and 17 assists in 2024, on pace to be a MVP finalist nomination for his play. However, in his return to Portland, a place he described on Thursday as being key to his development as both a player and a person, Evander said his focus is on representing his new club and helping them secure a win, even though he is looking forward to seeing old friends and mentors.

“I’m just going be focusing on the game, on the club that I'm playing for right now, which is FC Cincinnati,” Evander said Thursday. “So we want to go out there and win the game, especially because our last game wasn't good enough.”

“It’s going to be mixed feelings for sure, there's still a lot of players that I played with and good good guys that work in the club, amazing football club, so it's going to be excited to meet all the fans and all the players and people that work in the club again,” Evander continued. “I’m just trying to be focused on my team. I know that I played there for two years, and I know that a lot of things happened throughout those two years, but I gotta represent Cincinnati. I have to be focused on the game, try to do the best for Cincinnati, and hopefully win the game. I know it's going to be tough.”

Evander would later say that he doesn’t know what to expect in terms of a reception by the fans at Providence Park, but that he isn’t in control of that, so he’s not worried about it.

Portland Timbers Head Coach Phil Neville said in his prematch press conference that he hopes the fans don’t cheer for Evander as he’s not their player. Evander, on the other hand, had glowing things to say about his former manager and the impact he had on his career.

“He was amazing. He's a person who was always taking care of me. Who gave me the chance to be one of the captains in the club when I was there,” Evander said of Neville. “I think he was trying to push me to be at my highest possible.

“I learned a lot with him. He's an amazing guy so it’s going to be nice to meet him again. I think he was a very important piece in the story of my career.”

Ender Echenique makes a quick impression

FC Cincinnati make their first-ever trip to Portland this weekend, one of only three MLS cities or clubs they have never visited since joining the league in 2019.

But that maiden voyage is hardly the top story of the week.

The Orange and Blue’s star midfielder, Evander, who is deep in the thick of the 2025 MLS MVP race with 19 goals and 7 assists, makes his first return to his former club. The return is one that could evoke some heightened emotions, given the circumstances, but according to Head Coach Pat Noonan, the build-up to the match has been very normal.

“He's been normal all week. I'm sure he's excited to go back. There's connections that you have when you've had success at a previous club and spent time there. So I know, despite the exit and us being fortunate enough to add him to our group, he's excited to go back,” Noonan said in his prematch press conference on Thursday before heading to Portland. “So he's been steady as usual, and we're hoping to get a strong performance out of him to help lead our team.”

The Brazilian midfielder played two seasons with the Timbers, scoring 15 goals and 17 assists in 2024, on pace to be a MVP finalist nomination for his play. However, in his return to Portland, a place he described on Thursday as being key to his development as both a player and a person, Evander said his focus is on representing his new club and helping them secure a win, even though he is looking forward to seeing old friends and mentors.

“I’m just going be focusing on the game, on the club that I'm playing for right now, which is FC Cincinnati,” Evander said Thursday. “So we want to go out there and win the game, especially because our last game wasn't good enough.”

“It’s going to be mixed feelings for sure, there's still a lot of players that I played with and good good guys that work in the club, amazing football club, so it's going to be excited to meet all the fans and all the players and people that work in the club again,” Evander continued. “I’m just trying to be focused on my team. I know that I played there for two years, and I know that a lot of things happened throughout those two years, but I gotta represent Cincinnati. I have to be focused on the game, try to do the best for Cincinnati, and hopefully win the game. I know it's going to be tough.”

Evander would later say that he doesn’t know what to expect in terms of a reception by the fans at Providence Park, but that he isn’t in control of that, so he’s not worried about it.

Portland Timbers Head Coach Phil Neville said in his prematch press conference that he hopes the fans don’t cheer for Evander as he’s not their player. Evander, on the other hand, had glowing things to say about his former manager and the impact he had on his career.

“He was amazing. He's a person who was always taking care of me. Who gave me the chance to be one of the captains in the club when I was there,” Evander said of Neville. “I think he was trying to push me to be at my highest possible.

“I learned a lot with him. He's an amazing guy so it’s going to be nice to meet him again. I think he was a very important piece in the story of my career.”

Speaking of E-named players, newcomer to the squad Ender Echenique has made a strong first impression in his first two weeks with the team. In that stretch, the Venezuelan has appeared in three matches and started in one of them.

In his third game with The Orange and Blue, which was also his MLS debut, Echenique continued to showcase his quality both as an attacker and a willing defender.

But what has stood out most, perhaps, is the speed and drive Echenique has been able to use in his time on the field — catching opposing teams flat-footed with his pace and leaving defenders in the dust.

“He was lively. He was lively with his minutes up until the red card, where then he was kind of isolated up there for a while on his own and tough to have an impact,” Noonan said of the new young player on his squad. “But initially, he was dangerous and getting behind some good off-the-ball runs. Good chance creation. Did well with his minutes again.”

Echenique’s lightning speed caught the eyes of FC Cincinnati fans, whose “oohs and ahhs” were audible when he made his dribbles against Charlotte. His teammates were equally impressed by his speed, but admittedly had seen some of that top-end speed in training.

In his 45 minutes, Echenique clocked the three fastest runs of the match for FC Cincinnati. However, even after witnessing the speed in training, Echenique’s teammate Evander noted that taking those skills from the training ground to a match is challenging, and displaying his skill alongside his pace against a team as defensively stout as Charlotte was impressive.

“I think, and it’s what everybody says, it’s how quick he is,” Evander said Thursday of what has stood out most to him in Echenique. “I think he's gonna be the game changer for us, especially when you're in tough moments where you're gonna need some guys that can run in behind and can drive with the ball.”

Echenique, after his debut against FC Juárez in Leagues Cup, highlighted how excited he was to play with Evander and how he will be looking to both learn from the MLS MVP frontrunner but also do all he can to support the star. Evander returned the praise to Echenique, seeing him as an important piece to the team and happy to see him fitting in thus far.

“He's one where we are really pleased to have him,” Evander added of Echenique. “We’re pleased he didn't feel the pressure. He just came here and played his game. I think all the games that he played, he made an impact.”

Last Look On Leagues Cup

Leagues Cup is now firmly in the review mirror for FC Cincinnati for at least another year. The Orange and Blue did not get their results they wanted, not advancing past the opening phase in the challenging new format for the 2025 season, but got through the tournament mostly in a good way.

FCC earned a statement victory against CF Monterrey in the opening match, then chose to (or rather needed to) rotate for the final two matches. But while they didn’t advance, FCC came away from the tournament healthy, with several players getting game action to remain fit and limit the effects of any kind of “rust” that could come from a long break.

It was, in the eyes of Pat Noonan, making the best of the situation as it presented itself and with information for the rest of the season and beyond.

“It helps you understand, if the format remains the same, the challenges of getting out of those first few games that happen to be very consistent with your play,” Noonan said after the final match with Chivas Guadalajara. “To not have a stretch, I think, in the Juarez game, where the play dropped in the first half and we positioned ourselves in a difficult way to advance, just based on when we get the point out of that game.”

“On an individual level, I've already mentioned that we got some good performances and good answers from some of the younger guys that haven't been getting the minutes,” Noonan continued. “And I think as a collective, there was enough from the three games to see progress in areas that we were looking at, and also areas to continue to focus on as a whole, specifically defensively, with our line, with how we stepped to the ball, with the communication to change roles, those things stood out to improve on."

One of those players who earned some credit for their performance was Stiven Jimenez, 18, who had a few opportunities to make his case in the midfield and did so effectively. Jimenez made another appearance against Charlotte after that first one and continued to earn praise.

Another example of the value the later stages of the tournament had for players is Brad Smith and those who may be in a similar situation.

Smith is a key piece to the first team bench as an outside back and will surely be called upon at times this season. When they do call on him, he needs to be ready and will need to be able to make an impact in a short period of time. Having players like Smith get extended minutes in the tournament helps set them up for success later so those players can build themselves up.

“It was super important for all of us to get minutes out there,” Smith said after the match with Chivas. “You know, it's an important stretch of the season coming so it's really good for us to get minutes because we might be called upon in these big games to come and push for MLS. So, yeah, very important.”

Smith is as experienced in Major League Soccer as any player on the squad. Since coming to America in 2018, Smith has played over 100 matches, won an MLS Cup and US Open Cup and has played every role on a team there is. As the stretch run of the season comes, players like Smith know how to operate within their role with limited minutes, but when an opportunity for extended time comes they jump at the chance knowing how valuable those minutes are to their game.

“We can definitely build on this performance,” Smith said of Leagues Cup as a whole. “I think as a good team we're all disappointed that we've missed out on one of the opportunities (for a trophy), because I think as a one off game, our team stacks up very well. So guys are disappointed that we've missed one. But we've had a great season up to now, and we got to focus on the league…so it definitely helps us to rotate and get some minutes for guys that need it.”