Photo courtesy of Philadelphia Union
Philadelphia Union fell 5-3 to Montreal on Saturday in a shootout that saw Marco DiVaio net a first half hat trick.
In a match thoroughly dominated by the hosts, the Union got two goals back in the second half, but a porous defensive display saw Montreal build on its lead with each time.
DiVaio nosed ahead in the race for the Golden Boot as the Italian tallied twice after Jack McInerney had equalized for the Union inside of 5 minutes. Despite nearly one way traffic Antoine Hoppenot pulled a goal back midway through the second half before Lancaster-born Andrew Wenger glanced a header past Zac MacMath. Sebastien Le Toux again pulled the Union within a goal, but substitute Blake Smith sealed the victory for the Impact with his first MLS goal, in second half stoppage time.
First Half
With Bakary Soumare transfered back to Chicago on Thursday, Jeff Parke returned to the Union starting lineup, marking the only change from the side that beat the Fire last weekend. But despite having the full week to recuperate from a grueling week in which the Union played three matches, they opened the match with a sluggishness that had the Impact immediately on the front foot.
Less than two minutes into the match, DiVaio had Montreal on the board. When Justin Mapp was not closed down in midfield, he played in Wenger up the line. Cutting his low cross back with his first touch, Wenger found the mercurial Italian who had drifted behind Kleberson to belt home the opener.
It nearly got worse for the Union as a turnover allowed DiVaio another chance to run at goal, but MacMath looked on gratefully as his shot rose over the bar.
Moments later however, McInerney had the Union back on level terms. When Jeb Brovsky failed to adequately deal with a cross from Sheanon Williams, Michael Farfan pounced to set the table. His first time ball found McInerney at the back post where he turned on his shot, burying it behind Troy Perkins.
With both teams looking to catch their breath from a feverish start, the focus turned to the midfield battle. The Union pressed high up the field, but Montreal maintained possession. Where Montreal looked to play quick, direct soccer, the Union struggled to possess the ball, with Kleberson in particular looking off the pace against Patrice Bernier.
Chances were hard to come by for either side, until Farfan nearly broke the deadlock in the 21st minute. It was a poor touch from Alessandro Nesta that teed up Farfan, but the Union midfielder whistled his shot just the wrong side of the near post.
Let off the hook, the Impact poured forward through Andres Romero, forcing Parke to intervene on his dangerous cross. Moments later, DiVaio bagged his second goal, thrusting Montreal back into the lead. When Danny Cruz failed to pressure Mapp driving through the midfield, the former Union man had all the time and space he needed to flight a ball into the path of the streaking DiVaio who had ghosted in behind Williams while being held onside by Amobi Okugo.
Before the Union could compose themselves, DiVaio had the ball in the back of the net again, completing his first half hat trick. With Romero proving a handful on the Union’s right flank, Williams lost his footing. Romero sent a cross toward the back post and found a wide open DiVaio left to run free after Gaddis followed the crashing Mapp and Kleberson failed to track the run from the top of the area.
The Union were stunned and could have easily conceded a fourth when Williams turnover led to shot from Romero straight at MacMath. DiVaio should have grabbed his fourth first half goal in the 38th minute when he again got behind the Union defense, but fired his volley high over the target. It was one way traffic as Bernier dribbled through 4 players as he made his way into the Union box and the visitors were fortunate to limp into the halftime break only down two goals.
Second half
In dire need of an urgent response to open the second half, the Union came out flat and nearly conceded immediately. Mapp was allowed to again run free by Cruz, this time as he crashed into the back post where he headed Romero’s cross just over the crossbar.
Wenger spurned a gilt-edged chance to add to the advantage in the 58th minute, but could not get his shot away after doing the hard work to settle Felipe Martins’ cross and square himself on goal.
With the Union in need of a spark, John Hackworth hauled off Cruz in favor of Conor Casey with Le Toux dropping into midfield.
But the substitution did little to stem Montreal’s attacking tide. First Okugo managed to shut down DiVaio in the box after his turnover had allowed the Impact to break. Next, Ray Gaddis did just enough to keep Wenger turning his shot on goal as he streaked into the area. The flurry subsided after Parke managed to keep Wenger from breaking free in the box, allowing MacMath to smother the ball off his line.
After seeing off the latest wave of pressure, the Union pulled a lucky goal back. After Okugo sprayed the ball wide for Antoine Hoppenot, the substitute beat Blake Smith up the touchline before sending his cross into the box. Hoppenot’s cross flew high over Perkins’ head and into the net.
The Union nearly had the final 20 minutes to search for an equalizer up a man. Sliding in to win a ball in midfield, Martins followed up his intervention by raising his foot to Farfan’s groin. Despite the clear and dangerous intent, referee Juan Guzman only saw fit to yellow card the Brazilian.
Montreal was quickly back on attack through Mapp as he raced in behind and squared for Wenger. Unable to get his foot to the original cross, Okugo’s prone body was in the right place to block off Wenger’s point blank chance to provide his side with an insurance goal.
On the ensuing corner kick however, Wenger finally got on the board. Outjumping Casey at the near post, the ball caromed off Wenger’s head and shoulder, sending the ball towards the back post. Having raced off his line before rapidly retreating, MacMath was unable to make a play on the ball, watching helplessly as it raked across the face of goal, before tucking just inside the back post.
Down two goals with a quarter of an hour to go, the Union pressed forward with all four of their forwards in play. And with 5 minutes remaining in regulation time, Le Toux struck for the Union, notching his first goal since the 2013 opener against Kansas City. When Montreal failed to deal with Williams’ long throw, the ball fell to Le Toux at the top of the box. There was plenty of work left for the Union forward as he expertly settled the ball, pushing across his body onto his left foot where he rifled it through traffic to the back post.
But again given a chance to steal a valuable road point, the Union wilted. First Martins got free and had his drive deflected behind, before Wenger beat Parke to the endline and smashed his shot off MacMath at the near post.
The Union nearly gave away an embarrassing own goal in extra time as Parke played the back to MacMath. With his feet not set, the ball rolled past the keeper, who was alert to recover and slide the ball clear off the goal line. The relief was short-lived however as Bernier released Smith in the final minute of stoppage time with the Union pressing forward. Racing in on goal, Smith slotted his finish coolly to the near post, emphatically reminding the home fans that the match was not as close as the scoreline indicates.
Philadelphia Union
Zac MacMath; Sheanon Williams, Amobi Okugo, Jeff Parke, Ray Gaddis; Michael Farfan (Keon Daniel ’78), Brian Carroll, Kleberson (Antoine Hoppenot ’65), Danny Cruz (Conor Casey ’60); Sebastien Le Toux, Jack McInerney
Unused Substitutes: Chris Konopka, Matt Kassel, Don Anding, Leo Fernandes
Montreal Impact
Troy Perkins; Jeb Brovsky (Karl Ouimette ’77), Matteo Ferrari, Alessandro Nesta, Dennis Iapichino; Justin Mapp, Felipe Martins, Patrice Bernier, Andres Romero (Blake Smith ’60); Marco DiVaio (Sinisa Ubiparipovic ’85), Andrew Wenger
Unused Substitutes: Evan Bush, Wandrille Lefevre, Sanna Nyassi, Collen Warner
Scoring Summary
2 – MTL: DiVaio (Wenger, Mapp)
5 – PHI: McInerney (Farfan)
28 – MTL: DiVaio (Mapp)
32 – MTL: DiVaio (Romero)
69 – PHI: Hoppenot (Okugo)
74 – MTL: Wenger (Martins)
85 – PHI: Le Toux
90 – MTL: Smith (Bernier)
Discipline Summary
44 – PHI: Farfan (caution)
70 – MTL: Martins (caution)
90 – MTL: Smith (caution)
Referee
Juan Guzman
| Montreal Impact | Philadelphia Union | |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | Attempts on Goal | 12 |
| 9 | Shots on Target | 4 |
| 6 | Shots off Target | 8 |
| 5 | Blocked Shots | 0 |
| 10 | Corner Kicks | 3 |
| 8 | Fouls | 10 |
| 9 | Open Play Crosses | 18 |
| 2 | Offsides | 1 |
| 3 | First Yellow Cards | 1 |
| 0 | Second Yellow Cards | 0 |
| 0 | Red Cards | 0 |
| 50 | Duels Won | 41 |
| 54% | Duels Won % | 45% |
| 420 | Total Pass | 354 |
| 79% | Passing Accuracy % | 77% |
| 53.9% | Possession | 46.1% |
spot on analysis of this game. hats off to you, sir.
I thought it was clear Parke is not 100% yet. He was leaving passes short the whole game, and was really struggling by the end. I wonder why they couldn’t wait a week to pull the trigger on the Soumare trade.
The almost own goal at the end would have clinched a”2″ for Parke…….but he might be there anyway. Soumare would have provided options if Parker wasn’t ready. Maybe time for Jordan to come back from Harrisburg, but let’s not panic yet……right?
What is the point of panicking when you are already underwater.
Man oh man our defenders got smoked…That totally SUCKED!
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I’m feeling a bit queezy knowing we just shipped out two MLS starting quality defenders leaving us tissue paper thin on our back line.
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Sak is the WORST GM EVER. Totally clueless. Am I wrong?
Is Sak the GM? I have no idea what his actual JOB is. He claimed he had no input on GM decisions while Nowak was here. So what does he do?
We shipped out one starting quality defender, and one guy who would BE a starting defender, but he didn’t want the job.
Yes, but he still could have played LM and helped out on that side
There is no excuse for this team to fail to spend money on quality players while in its fourth year of existence. So to answer your question, yes.
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If they have an excuse they need to give it now… i.e., stadium payments, etc…
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This building for the future stuff is non-sense. Its meant to cover up what appears to be greed.
The Union looked like amateurs. The Montreal FO know how it is done and what a professional outfit should look Iike. Too bad we have to live with amateurs.
And we thought defensive line was our strength. Kleberson was weak, but he is supposed to be an attacking midfielder not the last man on defense. Carroll never found dangerous runners and Williams was particularly poor. No organization, communication or marking on back line at all. I think I will focus on the three Union goals scored to maintain a positive outlook, since I am a “glass half full person”, but we were sleep walking the first 32 minutes.
So are we allowed to criticize our back line now or is every goal MacMaths fault again?
If there is a fault to be found in MacMath other than the odd blunder. He must organize that back line. The Union looked like kindergarten recess out there especially compared to what I saw Dortmund doing in the Champions league final.
That is such a failure on Hacks part thought its pathetic.
Have a young, still learning GK prone to mistakes starting!? Well, lets start two new CBs (one who is a converted DMid who may be getting exposed as not a top level CB), a average RB learning the ropes at LB and a RB far off the pace of his former NT potential.
Oh, and who needs a veteran GK behind him to calm him down and teach him. Not us!
Its so clear Hack has no management experience.
This is true. But this is the situation we have and it looks like Zac is gonna have to raise himself so like it or not he is gonna have to take control.
Lol, yeah let’s keep blaming Zac. Hahaha Its been his fault all year. People take the easy way out to point the finger.
I feel sorry for the players. However, as long as this team remains under the illadvised management of Hackworth and Sakaiwicz, they are getting exactly what they deserve. This organization is a joke from top to bottom! MacMath was never ready to go it alone, he needs a veteran presence pushing him. Carroll is taking up a roster spot with Daniels. This team couldn’t mark with a sharpie. Yeah the back four looked like a sieve. John Hackworth has depleted this team even more and has no clue as to how to manage a pro team. I don’t trust anything this organization says. 3rd rate organization and a 1st rate dog and pony show. I was happy Le Toux scored at least.
Baffled. Totally baffled. Can we have a two week training session on defending PLEASE. When are we going to learn that Amobi and Gaddis are not strong enough defenders to start in an already weak back line? Parke and Carroll are the only two on the field who have solid defensive skills, and they too haven’t been 100%. Sheanon relies too much on his last step in, amobi is a fabulous midfielder but does not have the defensive skills for CB, and Gaddis relies on his speed and stepping but his feet aren’t quick enough for quick change of direction. The whole lot of them don’t understand the two major concepts of defending: marking up and communication. Baky may not have been the quickest, most eloquent CB but he took control of that line from game 1. Does Parke ever open his mouth? Now we’re left with a group of ball watchers. Almost every single goal scored on the U this season we have 6+ people in the box and the opposition has 3-4 yet EVERY time they get on the end of it unmarked. I know 12 year olds who understand the concept of defending better than this group. When we lost our savior Carlos who won every cross in the box our weaknesses became clear. I just pray FO opens their eyes.
The midfield isn’t much better either. I was excited for Kleberson after the last two games, but he was invisible last night. Pair that with Farfan diving every time someone runs at him and Cruz’s errant passes and it’s no wonder we didn’t lose 7-0. Teams have us figured out. Oh and Zac’s lack of consistency is beyond frustrating.
One of the biggest issues with Farfan, when deployed out wide, is that he likes to slot himself in the middle of the pitch. This, essentially, forced Kleberson out of “his” space. Thus Kleberson became a non-entity
Amen, brother John! +1
Couple questions I had while watching the game.
How does a professional soccer team go out and play like that? How can they be so sluggish? So unprepared? The collectively play far worse than the sum of their parts.
Did we just not appreciate Justin Mapp while he was here. Or did we just make him look like an All star?
Does the Union only play well when Zac MacMAth looks healthy and well rested, which is almost never?
For all the criticism we deserve I will never forgot why we were happy to let Mapp go. He was basically a less talented Adu. Showed signs of greatness, about once every 10 games. And only in a handful of plays.
It speaks to who Mapp is as a player that I am still seeing “Is this the year Mapp has finally “found it”!?!?” articles coming from MTL/MLS.
Mapp is still better than any of the LM we have on the team as it sits right now.
Some positives:
1. Jack Mac continues to be in good form. Feed him and he will score.
2. Despite everything that went wrong, this team was in a position to steal a point on the road in the dying minutes of the match.
jack got his goal but i’d didn’t think he looked that good aside from that.
Pretty hard to look good with his supporting cast.
Personally, I think if Hackworth does not make the playoffs he needs to be replaced. Obviously, I don’t think that the F/O would do that because he follows the party line of “no expenditures/just keep the team afloat.” With that I would not even trust the F/O to get a proper replacement. Their judgement is highly questionable.
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As for the game on Saturday. Kleberson was invisible. Playing Cruz is like playing with a man down. He has absolutely no technical ability. The need to add some quality. Parke makes me miss Soumare. Parke was terrible. Finally, if a 37 year old Italian professional can rip them apart, a proper acquisition of a talented player can also do wonders for the Union. They need quality DP reinforcement. Otherwise, this team is not going anywhere but down.
Agreed. It would be nice to seem them go out and actually acquire a need and spend some money. And Danny Cruz is going to be the death of me. That dude stinks.
I think Cruz’s marking (or lack-there-of) would not be as much of an issue if we could put a fullback behind him who isn’t perpetually out of position.
MacMath needs to step it up. The whole game isn’t his fault, but he has to organize that back line and get them together. Our defense is a joke all of the sudden. Now we can score goals but can’t defend?! One thing I will say on a positive note is that it was nice to see the U fight and try to come back, on the road, against a good team. Fact is that we are in the 5th spot in the East for a reason. We aren’t good enough.
When Soumare was in he was organizing the backline like a master. Parke is no leader, and for that matter neither is Carrol.
A better coach would realize that and make a move to help a young GK with young defenders in front of him. Yet HAckworth traded the only player in here since Califf who actually took charge o the backline and yelled for the whole game.
Fear not my friend the Califf rumors have started anew.
Allocation money for Kader Keita’s salary. summer transfer.
Thank you James, you forgot about Valdes tho. Spot on with Parke and Carrol. Okugo is not a CB. I would of fired Hack weeks ago. He’s a youth coach, no wonder he looks clueless managing a pro team. I don’t want Califf back, there’s a reason he left Chivas and riding the bench in TFC.
If Valdes comes back, and if, it’ll be after the 2014 WC.
If you Wikipedia Kader Keita it says he plays winger for the U? Is that true? Anyone have more info?
He was trialing a little ways back. I guarantee that the allocation money goes to his [possible] DP salary – I think the Union have three or four more international slots available.
This was a winnable, if not tie-able, match. Let’s start with the negative and try to end on a positive note here.
1. The Union have failed 3 times now [NYRB, LA, and MTL] to mark and dismantle dangerous, veteran fwds.
2. The Union could not find a creative/playmaking midfielder, even though they tried three different options [Kleberson, Farfan, Daniel]
3. A disorganized midfield allowed Bernier to play his game.
4. MTL’s wide play/movement was dangerous and punished the Union
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1. Farfan finally garnered an assist after 800+ minutes of playing time.
2. McInerney stays in the boot race.
3. 3 goals from 3 different players, 2 from the run of play. Over time this will make the Union an offensively dangerous team.
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Other things worth mentioning:
1. The Soumare and Garfan trades will net the Union 2 First round and 2 Second round draft picks.
3. The allocation money, estimated around $150-$200k, will be used to pick up free agent Kader Keita. The Cote D’Ivoire international has been without a club for almost a year, but he could provide some much needed width and playmaking ability if deployed out wide as a RM/RW. Let’s just hope he doesn’t dive all over the pitch.
4. Now that the Union CB depth is shallow, Roger Torres is low on the Midfield pecking order, and Danny Califf is “sick,” there is a high likelihood that we’ll see the former Captain return to Philly. Of note, Leo Fernandes, a 2013 Supplemental Draft pick from Stonybrook, was selected for both the recent Chicago and Montreal matches [even entering the Chicago match late, chosen over Torres] and Kassel, a trialist who signed this year with the Union, was selected for the bench over Torres. Union fans can now pick their poison: Would we rather see Torres, rotting on the bench, deep in the depth charts. Or the return of fan-favorite Califf, who can provide some defensive depth and team leadership. Trading one fan-favorite for another is difficult enough, but I’d put big money on seeing this trade go through by the end of the month.
Forgot to mention:
Possible bargaining chips to use with the possible Torres-Califf trade. 1. One of the two acquired draft picks from the Soumare and Garfan trades. [1 natural first round, 1 natural second round] 2. the surplus of international roster spots. Out of a possible 8, we are using three/four [Daniel, Torres, Fernandes, and Hernandez – Valdez is out on loan, and any other players either are U.S. Citizens or hold a Green Card. Not sure about the status of CH as he is both a homegrown player and currently on loan.]
And I understsand people like Califf, but seriously. IS he going to be anything other than a PR move? Atleast LT can play still. There is no secret Califf coming here would be a PR move for him to sit on the bench.
We have problems with the players ON the field right now. Its almost insulting that our big hush-hush trade is going to be for someone who is going to ride the bench.
and yet do you expect anything different from the union FO?
The Cote D’Ivoire international has been without a club for almost a year
That’s suppose to make us feel better!?!?
Not at all. That was to emphasize that there will not be a transfer fee. and I think that if Califf comes in, Hack might start Danny and shift Okugo to the midfield.
Jim, really? If he didn’t move Okugo to Dmid when we had Soumare, what makes you think he will if we get Califf. Don’t you realize that’s 1 of Hacks personal projects. Not to mention Cruz and Daniel. Things WILL NOT change with Hack.
Once Soumare went public with the transfer situation, he buried himself as a non-starter. It’s possible that with time, Soumare could have worked his way in.
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The concept that Hackworth has “personal projects” is incredibly silly. Okugo is playing CB because that was and continues to be the best option since Califf was traded last June. Daniel is a quality player, albeit his recent form has been terrible. Cruz is the only [and I can’t stress the word “only”] player on this squad that stretches an opposing defense on the wing. Hack’s decision to start him is not entirely unfounded. Cruz is also the most productive MF we have.
by “recent form” do you mean the last two years?
The lack of vocal leadership on this team was on display in the Montreal game. Carroll, Parke, MacMath, Okugo, Gaddis and Williams do not communicate and there is no Mondragon to yell out runs and provide general order. Soumare did a great job with this in the two Chicago games (watch the replays because he is clearly screaming and ordering Gaddis around). Patrice Bernier was excellent. I really like him both as a player and as a captain. During any incident he was there talking to players on both sides, dragging his players away and chatting with the referee. He is a leader and that is something the Union lack. Carroll is far too quiet and uninvolved and there is no logical replacement for him. The Union have a great locker room, but they need an energized and vocal field leader.
No need to discuss the need for an actual left back or Williams poor play as of late. A left back would strengthen our defense and provide competition for Williams at right back.
Finally, can someone tell Hackworth that a 4-2-4 with four strikers is a formation that will never work. Even if you get dumb luck, aka our 2nd and 3rd goals yesterday, you will give up counter attack goals.
Poor Poor display by the boys last night. We literally looked like a college team. Too many mental lapses, no leadership, no communication, bad game overall…
I could not help it but to watch the Fire game last night to see how soumare would fare out and he was absolutely fantastic, what a beast out there. Throughout the game you can see him yelling and screaming at his teammates putting them back in position.
When Sounare was out there, not only he was a physical presence but he consistently communicated with the guys in front of him. Caroll, Gaddis, and Okugo all look so much better when playing alongside Soumare.
Hopefully this is just one bad game to forget, but I’m pretty sure hackworth really mishandled the Soumare situation. Time will tell.
Just see all the tweets from his former teammates to see how much Soumare means to his teammates.
Yeah he mishandled it from preseason saying it was open competition @CB, when he had his mind made up last year. He’s a joke!
Oh, he already helped the Fire earn a point against RSL. I bet we give up more than 1 against RSL.
Johnson stole a point for CHI.
+1 MarcFutbol. I was thinking the same thing while watching Soumare play for the Fire on Sat night. People underestimate how important an attribute that organizing is for a central defender.
We got beat by a superior squad. They have better players AND play together like the seasoned team they are! It’s frustrating how the Montreal franchise model is totally outclassing our team’s model. The Union? We build with youth, blah, blah, blah…
Montreal had a plan that combined…gulp…a Designated Player, veterans, overseas dudes and a couple high draft picks and local kids. It’s been an immediate recipe for success. They are one heck of a team!
The Hare beat the crap out of the Turtle last night! Slow and steady? I say: Bullsh*t.
Give Montreal’s Front Office a ton of credit for having a REAL PLAN. They deserve the success they are enjoying.
+1. Montreal’s FO showed they meant business from the get-go, when they took Brian Ching in the expansion draft. Maybe it’s the poutine.
Yep. Their blueprint is looking far superior to our grow (cheap) young players and sell them off when they mature gameplan. We’re perpetually running in place while they go for it in year #1. Must be nice!
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It is what it is. I’m totally on board, hoping and praying that they catch lightning in a bottle and gel. Who knows? That’s why they play the games! Go Union! Cinderella story! Go out and shock some folks!
truth
I agree 100%, but in considering those Italians, let’s remember that Montreal is a much more attractive city to many European players. I’m not sure the U could execute the same plan.
If yo pay them they will come.
I don’t want to overreact to this loss, but looking at our roster, I can’t help, but feel like we are an expansion team. Of our top 13 players (putting GK aside), four are forwards, four are defenders (2 of which are learning new positions) and the rest are midfielders. Just one injury or suspension to the backline and we’re in an emergency situation. That just shouldn’t happen at this level. This roster feels like a randomly assembled grab bag full of players and that really concerns me since we’re in our FOURTH year. Think about how many of these defenders will have to play versus Ocean City instead of resting for more important matches.
As much as Hack and the FO will talk about adding to the roster, I’m not expecting them to do too much. I expect a Califf trade because for some reason, the FO thinks that this will make the fan base happy and they couldn’t be further from the truth. Columbus and New England are starting to play better so we’re going to have a hard time getting that 5th spot with our current roster.
+1
You nailed it. This is a team with “small market” ownership, management and players.
My thoughts after giving myself a few days to reflect.
The defense only hd to keep tabs on ONE guy, and they failed to do so. The midfield is a disaster still, I’m not trying to let the defense off the hook, but how many times did the midfield give Montreal the ball on our side of the field? Every team in MLS has figured out we have no one on the left side of the field (I think Gaddis is good, but he still isn’t good at LB, if you do that to a young player you need to give him support, which the Union have not) all opposing teams have to do is maraud down that flank, watch the defense shift to that side and leave the rest of the field for opposing players to crash the box.(sorry about the long run on sentence) We need to parlay this “money” and draft picks into some players now, not next year. The fan base will only hold on for so long before outright mutiny. I don’t want to be the Arsenal of MLS, always building new talent and only aspiring to be OK.