Photo: Stephen Speer
Believe it, folks: Philadelphia Union will play for MLS Cup next Saturday.
The Union mounted a furious second-half comeback with goals from Julian Carranza, Daniel Gazdag, and Cory Burke to defeat New York City FC 3-1 in front of an jubilant crowd of 19,770 at Subaru Park on Sunday night, winning the Eastern Conference Final and securing a date with destiny next week against LAFC in California.
Maxi Moralez had City’s sole goal.
Jim Curtin made one change to the lineup that defeated FC Cincinnati, and it was a significant one. Club captain Alejandro Bedoya returned from a hip flexor injury to his regular place in the Union’s midfield diamond, sending Homegrown Jack McGlynn to the bench.
For the visitors, key starters in defense and attack — Maxime Chanot and Talles Magno, respectively — both missed out due to injury.
Noise poured out of the stands at Subaru Park more than an hour before kickoff, and the atmosphere was raucous. After the pregame lights show, Carli Lloyd banging the drum, and a parade of pyrotechnics, the match that Union faithful had awaited for nearly a year finally kicked off at 8:30 p.m.
The match started frantic and physical, as both sides looked to settle in and establish themselves. Bedoya, looking fairly spry in his return, was everywhere as the Union tried to work down the right side of the pitch.
Subaru Park thought that Daniel Gazdag had a 16th minute winner, heading a free kick from Kai Wagner past Sean Johnson. But it took Gazdag and the crowd a moment or two to notice the assistant referee’s flag was raised for offside, and replay confirmed that the Hungarian started the play in an illegal position.
At the other end, it took 28 minutes before anyone tested Andre Blake, and he easily smothered a tough-angle shot from Gabriel Pereira. Julian Carranza curled one well high and wide a few minutes later, drawing frustrated arms from Gazdag and Mikael Uhre as they ran in transition.
Gazdag took a good crack from distance in the 34th minute, but a NYC player got a block and Johnson pounced on the loose ball just ahead of Carranza, taking a whack to the head in the process.
The half was marked more by physical play than attacking brilliance, with the two teams combining for 17 fouls in the first frame. Jose Martinez picked up the game’s first yellow card for a crunching, late tackle on Santiago Rodriguez in the 39th minute.
In the final minute of the half, City worked the ball into a good position off a free kick, teeing up a free header in front of goal. But Alexander Callens couldn’t put enough into the header, and it presented no real danger. At the other end, a gorgeous looping ball from Gazdag got Carranza behind the defense, but the shot was right at Johnson.
The sides went into the locker room scoreless.
Bedoya looked spry in the early going, but by halfway through the first half he was clearly laboring, frustratedly throwing his arms up to the bench on multiple occasions. At halftime, Jack McGlynn replaced him.
Maxi Moralez gave NYCFC the lead eleven minutes into the second half at the end of a full-field move. The visitors sprayed the ball into the Union’s left, then back into the center, where Santiago Rodrigues controlled and flicked to the onrushing Moralez. His one-time shot narrowly missed Jack Elliott, Jakob Glesnes, and a full-stretch Blake before sneaking in the far post.
Just like that, the Union had about 35 minutes left to save their season. First, though, they needed to stop the bleeding, and as always Blake was the bandage. A close-range Callens header looked destined to be the second goal, but Blake made a spectacular reaction save to get down and keep the ball out of the net.
With 30 minutes to go, Curtin made a second change, introducing Cory Burke for Uhre. Keaton Parks came on for the light blue, replacing Pereira.
Julian Carranza leveled the match just moments later, sending the crowd into a frenzy. Glesnes took a quick free kick that acted as a through ball, sending Carranza behind the defense, and the Argentine attacker slipped the ball past Johnson from close range.
And within two minutes, the Union had the lead. Glesnes picked off a pass and found McGlynn, who played a looping ball to Carranza. This time, he made a nifty pass to find the onrushing Gazdag, who fired emphatically into the top netting from close range.
In the span of just three minutes, everything had changed. Now it was City who needed a goal to save their season. They responded well, getting more attacking-half possession. Moralez was everywhere. But the Union held firm, with Glesnes and Elliott putting out fire after fire.
Burke made it three in the 77th minute, putting the game to bed. His marauding run into the City box looked to have been cut out, but the tackle took a fortuitous deflection back into his path. Burke fired past Johnson at the near post and sent the crowd into euphorics.
The final moments of the match were a party for the Philly faithful.
So here it is: Saturday afternoon, the Union will play in MLS Cup for the first time in franchise history. Their opponent will be the Supporters’ Shield winner and Western Conference champion Los Angeles Football Club. It will be a fascinating match between the two best teams in the league this year. Kickoff from Banc of California Stadium in Los Angeles will be at 4 p.m. Eastern.
Three Points
- Soak it in. The Union have been the best team in the Eastern Conference all year. They deserve their place in MLS Cup. And Union fans deserve to enjoy it after a long history of struggle for this franchise.
- Comeback kids. Philly aren’t really a team built to come from behind, and it seemed like trouble when the visitors took the lead. But the comeback was furious, and it was spurred by some high-quality attacking moves.
- Revenge is a dish best served cold. Last year, it was the Union who saw a second-half lead vanish in the blink of an eye. They returned the favor to NYCFC this year.
Lineups
Philadelphia Union
Andre Blake, Kai Wagner, Jack Elliott, Jakob Glesnes, Olivier Mbaizo, Jose Martinez, Alejandro Bedoya (Jack McGlynn HT), Leon Flach, Daniel Gazdag, Mikael Uhre (Cory Burke 62′), Julian Carranza
Unused subs: Matt Freese, Nathan Harriel, Matt Real, Brandan Craig, Quinn Sullivan, Paxten Aaronson, Chris Donovan
New York City FC
Sean Johnson, Alexander Callens, Thiago Martins, Justin Haak (Thiago Andrade 78′), Anton Tinnerholm, Maxi Moralez, Nicolas Acevedo, Kevin O’Toole, Santiago Rodriguez, Gabriel Pereira (Keaton Parks 65′), Heber
Unused subs: Luis Barraza, Tayvon Gray, Malte Amundsen, Samuel Owusu, Alfredo Morales, Andres Jasson, Matias Pellegrini
Scoring Summary
NYC: Maxi Moralez — 57′ (Santiago Rodriguez, Anton Tinnerholm)
PHI: Julian Carranza — 65′ (Jakob Glesnes)
PHI: Daniel Gazdag — 67′ (Julian Carranza, Jack McGlynn)
PHI: Cory Burke — 76′
Discipline Summary
PHI: Jose Martinez — 39′ (foul)
Statistics
| PHI | Statistic | NYC | PHI | Statistic | NYC |
|
35.5 |
Possession % | 64.5 | 56 | Duels Won | 46 |
| 10 | Shots | 12 | 17 | Tackles Won |
7 |
|
6 |
Shots on Goal | 4 | 3 | Saves | 3 |
| 2 | Blocked Shots | 6 | 9 | Clearances |
18 |
|
294 |
Total Passes | 540 | 18 | Fouls | 9 |
| 68.4 | Pass Accuracy % | 85.4 | 1 | Yellow Cards |
2 |
|
3 |
Corners | 3 | 0 | Red Cards | 0 |
| 5 | Crosses | 5 | 1.7 | xG |
.6 |
|
2 |
Offsides |
1 |
My son watched at home. I watched from a plane over the Atlantic. Made an idiot of myself celebrating Gazdag’s almost goal in the first half from seat 22C, somehow knowing I’d embarrassed my kid even from this far away. I bet we both yelled yes at the screen at the same time.
Felt it all. Bedoya’s struggle to get to halftime. That sinking feeling when NYCFC precisely picked the locks on our defense for their goal. Hope in Blake’s save to avoid 2-0.
The bright tactical awareness of our first goal. The beauty of McGlynn’s pass for the second, a pass you have to think only he makes that way. Freight Train Burke’s determination and strength for the third.
My son and I were with y’all in Chester tonight. By the end, if you listened closely you might’ve heard us profanely taunting some lost pigeons, in retribution for 2021. Sports gods, spare us a bit more joy this week, if it ain’t too much to ask?
Poetic
+1
That first paragraph… My sentiments, exactly.
I’m searching my heart for empathy for NYCFC. Nope. None found.
The U won ugly but it was the right outcome. I’ll take an ugly win next week as well: let’s go mess up the Welsh’s man-bun!
Indeed! That 10 on NYCFC is annoying as all f. And the Welsh bun doesn’t even start for LAFC. Shame they have homefield advantage for the Cup. It should really be neutral site… like, can’t the Rose Bowl be like Wembley? Cheers. Doop!
DOOP ⚽️ !!!
Congratulations to the Union and all of their fans!!!
How do we get away supporters tickets?
Try this: https://phillysportstrips.com/trips/mlscup/
Electric comeback. Electric atmosphere. Congrats to the U.
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Ale, my heart goes out to you. Thank you for your leadership.
Doop-a-delphia. This is the post.
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First time since the 1973 NASL Atoms, I believe, a Philly men’s pro soccer team made it to their league title game.
Does the KiXX’s 2007 MISL title count? Shawn Boney Doop
Outdoors!
That stadium was literally rocking tonight. How to go from despondent to desperation to jubilation in 5 minutes.
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Two things…
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The save by Andre that kept the game 1-0 was just otherworldly and a buoy for them adrift at sea at that moment in the game. They were rattled completely and for some reason that being rattled is what snapped them out of it.
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Two… I will never offer a poor word about Corey Burke again. He changed the entire game. Just refused to be denied and brought an energy that was sorely lacking- then multiple moments of class. He’s herky jerky and a handful and was Colossal.
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Lastly… I am hopeful the team has finally woken up. They have been in a slumber these last two games and will simply not be able to be this lackluster in LA. Maybe they have snapped to attention. It sure seemed like everything became crisper.
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So hard to sit through a two week international break.. play a couple games…sit through a two week bye… play a game then sit for 10 days again.
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Otherwise… I am at peace. They did what was necessary. I would love them to win MLS Cup and think they are good enough… but it is a Tall Order to travel across the country and play that team on their home turf. I guess we will find out and that is what matters the most.
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That and Just Play Well.
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Well done boys. Your response tonight was exactly on point. “We ain’t losin'” as a buddy opined at halftime to me. 🙂
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I am proud of you. I am thankful we completed this part of the mission. Now let’s see what happens next week.
+1, Burke was amazing, a force to be reckoned with, super sub!
Hat tip to both Reggae Boyz — Kingston and May Pen should be especially proud this morning.
Burke has been playing like this for a while now. Curtin finally got through to him that his only role on the team is to be a constant pressure. Hes always won the majority of 50/50 balls, but when starting chooses his moments to press with real gusto. As a sub he has been willing to run tirelessly and create chaotic turnover opportunities. So nearly scored a beauty with that poach turn bend vs cincy, glad the luck went his way this time. love the triple celebration to hahahaha
I’m right with you on Burke. I’ve always groaned a little inside when he gets minutes, due to his propensity for firing sitters high and/or wide. But all season he’s improved and improved. His holdup play is very good, his ability to provide for the other strikers shows through lately, and now he can even find the broad side of a barn! Love it!
I will now simply shut up and be thankful that we have him as an option.
When Curtin subbed in Burke for Uhre, I told my son, sitting in section 128 beside me, that it was a mistake. Boy was I wrong. Burke *brought it* last night. He’s really taken a step up this season.
Nice win, although I’d really like to see Uhre get back on track for next week.
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I thought McGlynn had a great second half taking over for Ale, although I’d still like to see the captain start next week if possible (he was definitely limping after the game.
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I’ll offer some kudos to NYCFC for staying on the field for the ceremony and for several of their fans who encouraged the Union to beat LA next week as we were walking back to our car.
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I believe next week will be the first chance the Union have to win a trophy where I will not be in attendance (unless they had a chance to wrap up the shield a week earlier in Columbus in 2020).
Doopamillion.
Best kind of win. Scratch it out and stick the dagger in. Very philly, with some hardscrabble Chester for good measure.
Worried about Uhre though. Is he hindered?
Beat LA.
When I saw Bedoya in the locker room after the game, he was limping pretty severely. He said he was “sore” and that he started to feel the injury again in about the 20th minute. I’m not a doctor, but I’d be really surprised if he were fit to play next week, even for a half. We’ll see.
Bedoya should not have played at all. Bad decision by Curtin to start him. Yeah, the leader and all, I get it, but you are just hurting the team by playing when you are not fit or in form.
McGlynn will be playing overseas before you know it. His passing game is golden.
Did anyone else feel like they were at a Steelers game with the yellow towels they handed out before the game?
I am a season ticket holder from day one and have always regretted not having a team color. Almost any other major sports team you go in the stadium or Arena and you are engulfed in the team color. We have never had that, that has been a big disappointment to me.
Everybody around the world watching the World Series they’re going to see Citizens Bank Park on their screen and the fans will be in red. And so on. I waved the rally flag, but somehow it felt inauthentic, like why am I waving a gold flag for the Union? How I would love to have a unified color
Dark Blue just doesn’t do it for ‘battle flags’.
Yellow, for TV, just works…… and made the atmosphere perfect and electric.
We ALMOST hosted MLS Cup!
NOW WIN IT.
Doop!
PS…
Ale = Willis Reed, Kurt Gibson, all in one!
My Captain o My Captain. Get well soon.
I figured we’d have yellow rally flags at some point this postseason, with the marketing tag the U have been using (“bleed gold.”). And so many people have been wearing the yellow sweatshirts (including me last night!) playing off the road uniform accent color. Yellow didn’t feel “out of the blue.” Now, let’s make sure they wear the yellow shorts at MLS Cup. No white shorts!!!
i did think that too, while i was emphatically waving one! i feel the colors from last season’s towels would work but, to differentiate from the sky blues we were facing, coupled with the “we bleed gold” or whatever that forced postseason tag is, it worked.
It’s that domino effect, we just have it this year. Tonight was no different after our first goal…that overwhelming desire to suffocate the other team and dispossess and counter. It produced so many lopsided results this year and NYC fell victim to it in the last half hour. All three goals were tremendous in their own way. Of course I hope they somehow pull it off on Saturday, but no matter what, there’s a lot to be proud of with this team.
Uhre was bad. Burke was great. Time for a change in the biggest game?
Please no. Burke is our new Ilsinho, just more physical and with less finesse. We need him to be the sub that the other team says “Oh shit” when he’s subbed in. Corey is our OS sub.
Correct. Corey doesn’t have the skill needed to play 90. What he has is the strength, speed, and determination to be an absolute nightmare to defenders after they have already been running for 60-70 minutes. That’s where his strengths lie now.
agreed. great in his limited role. Uhre for the 60 before it
Burke off the bench. He has proven he can dominate in that role. When he starts he tires easily and can dissappear for stretches. He seems to have embraced the super sub role! Good for him. Uhre is still finding the game. By that I mean adjusting to the schedule, travel and maybe a bit of lost form with the end of season breaks this year.
Two inflection points: Gazdag’s offside header and Blake’s save at 0-1.
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Prior to the first Union were dominant and NYC couldn’t get out of their own end. Afterward they worked their way back into the game and while not a great threat, at least not so abjectly poor.
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Then the lightning strike of their goal, pretty much against the run of play but nevertheless well executed and very well finished lit a bit of a fire under them and Union were pressured until Dre did his thing. This seemed to get Union to realize they needed to up their effort which they did brilliantly. It looked like they could have scored another goal or two beyond the 3 they bagged.
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As usual another poorly officiated MLS game. Do they all fall for the “player dives, call a foul” ruse? While the match was definitely physical, it seemed to me that quite a few NYC players had inner ear problems the way they couldn’t keep their balance.
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Oh yeah, luckily Martinez didn’t get sent off. There were a couple of nervy moments where I thought it was possible. Par for the course, I guess.
When judging Chapman as a ref, don’t forget how much time-wasting Johnson was doing with the score 0-0 without seeing a card.
Watching the replay this morning, as usual Chapmann was equally bad… under the assumption… ‘let them play’.
It’s just poor officiating, as usual.
Like hockey did, put 2 bad refs on the field, and maybe then we’d have a well called game.
How ’bout it “Head CLOWN” Garber?
Agree with you on the time-wasting, Andy. It appeared to me it was part of NYCFC’s game plan. I don’t think they were confident they could win it outright, so by slowing down, play they were hoping to drag out the game and keep it a tie, then take their chances with a shootout.
I also agree with Rick – another poorly officiated MLS game. Chapman called fouls against both teams. However, according to the stats, the Union had 19 fouls to NYCFC’s 9. There’s no way the Union fouled twice as much as NYCFC! There were a lot of Union players going down and no fouls were called. Yes, the officiating was marginally better than the Cincinnati game, but that game was so poorly officiated that’s a pretty low bar for comparison.
In my observation, one player in particular – Mikael Uhre – was beat up and knocked down several times but most of those fouls were not called. He left the match in the 62′, but I don’t think it was a matter of fitness – I think he became frustrated with so many no-call fouls that he started giving up which affected his play. That’s when Curtain pulled Uhre and put in Cory Burke, who played fantastic. Gazdag and Carranza both took a beating as well, but they didn’t let it affect their game. They played through, dished it out, and had great games. With a year of playing in MLS under his belt, I’m hoping Uhre will know what to expect, approach 2023 with different understanding, and like Gazdag, his game will take a giant leap in his second year in the league.
34 minutes. Including the playoffs, that’s how long the Union trailed for at Subaru Park ALL SEASON. 12 minutes in the opener against Minnesota, 14 minutes in July against New England, and 8 minutes last night.
THAT is truly amazing. Thanks.
I should have pointed out that by contrast, the Union led for 62 minutes in LA this season. Yes, that’s right, LAFC trailed at home in one game for a longer period of time than the Union did all season.
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Let’s hope that the Union can score first and break their string of 6 consecutive blown leads against LAFC going back to 2019.
all amazing stats. cheers!
Damn… Thanks for those stats. They are remarkable.
What a night, what a win, what a season. Thought again, the guys weren’t connecting up top. They just look a 1/2 step off. That being said the way they came back was incredible. They could have shrunk, like they kinda did until Blake made that save, but got over the goal and pushed forward. I didn’t celebrate the 2nd goal because I assumed gazdag was offside. After watching the reply his timing was perfect. Cory was in beast mode last night. Great win men. Go out west and have fun. Bring it back to Philly. Why not?
One of the funniest parts of last night was that “Head CLOWN” Garber was not there…. and his ‘mouthpiece’ was just boo’d when he mentioned NYCFC before handing the EC Cup over… his face just perfectly surprised that we acted that way?
That’s why “Head Clown” Garber wasn’t there last night.
What a bunch of ballers we got. That’s a statement win. To go down a goal, nearly concede a second only to roll up your sleeves and emphatically score two within minutes is the stuff genuine champs are made of. It was great being in the stands to sing off those NYCFC fans who streamed out after Cory’s goal. Best win ever.
That was a spectacular night I got to enjoy with one of my sons and my two grandsons. I have a few observations from Section 105:
1) I had to drive a lot this week and I listened to some of the pre-game commentators on the SXM FC channel. They don’t get us and get this team. For this team (and us fans who attended last year’s match), this was a REVENGE game and a statement game and for the most part, the team played that way.* (See Comment 4 below.)
2) The Union mostly benefited by Alan Chapman being the referee. Notwithstanding the (deserved) yellow card he gave Martinez in the first half, Chapman allows far more physical contact than most MLS referees and the Union are generally bigger and more physical than NYCFC.
3) Perhaps because NYCFC were missing Chanot and Talles Magno, from the beginning, NYCFC annoyingly slowed the pace of the game. At times, referee Chapman seemed annoyed, but nothing more than a “stern” talking to came about. The Union played the first 30 minutes on the front foot and had far the better scoring chances (including the goal called back for offsides) than NYCFC even though the Pigeons had the majority of possession. Fortunately, the soccer gods noticed.
4) NYCFC picked up the pace at the end of the first half and . . . as has been their wont this year, the Union came out of the locker room for the first 10 minutes or so of the second half, missing El Capitan, flat as a pancake. Though the Union had prevented NYCFC from having good chances in the middle, NYCFC capitalized on open spacing and delivered the first goal which was perfectly struck. It looked as though Andre Blake was slightly screened which prevented him from getting enough of a jump to tip it away.
5) NYCFC celebrated their goal. The stadium went silent for a minute. We could see the Union players hanging their heads a bit as they walked back to midfield. Then the fans came to life with a “Un-ION” chant which built to a loud crescendo as the Union lined up to take the the tap at midfield. The Union would play on the front foot the rest of the night.
6) The Carranza goal was beautifully struck–we have seen this movie before–perfectly angled into the far corner. His header to Gazdag for the go-ahead goal was even more perfectly struck. MOTM!
7) In the 70th minute, NYFC were behind and were punished for all of their time-wasting. It was they for whom the bell tolled.
8) Most of the fans stayed for the trophy presentation, and it was great to see the players and their families on the field–I particularly liked the players’ kids with their respective dad’s jerseys.
9) In every other league in the world, the Union would be hosting MLS cup. They must overcome this nonsensical rule and win on the road at LA. Fortunately, they have proved their ability to score against this team, but they cannot afford any 2nd half letdowns like we have seen many times this season.
I particularly agree on Chapman. I thought he was mostly evenhanded and erred on the side of letting both teams play on. Noticed in my corner, 120, that the source of poor calls was generally the linesman on our side. Called fouls Chapman would not have given elsewhere and every ball out of bounds was a coin toss as to whether it would be given accurately or not. On the whole, the officiating was much better than it was for Cincy.
I thought Chapman did a pretty good job of making sure the game didn’t get out of hand. I thought it was going to turn nasty, but it was a pretty clean game. Martinez deserved his yellow. Rodriguez could have gotten a yellow for simulation a few times, but that is rarely called.
Overall, the fact that no one took a swing at another player was fairly surprising to me, and a bit of a credit to Chapman.
It is a low bar to be better than Referee Tim Ford was in the Union v. Cincinnati FC match. Good observation about the AR on your side. I thought the AR on our side did a pretty good job.
#5 on your list was a really cool moment. This crowd wasn’t going to let them lose, and really stepped up the energy again. Kudos to Wagner as well, who was waving the crowd on as NYC made their way back for the ensuing tap.
Watched from home- it was so special to hear the unION chant SO LOUD and unified right after conceding the goal. Also, wagner has been waving on the crowd for a while now, but its like other players (burke, flach) just realized that they could do this.. love it
The crowd was definitely urging the Union on. But none more important than after conceding the 1st goal. Loved the players waiving the crowd on. Blake’s highlight reel save started the U back into the game. Awesome night. Actually made it work on time! Lol!
1) To me this was revenge on what the league did last year and not on the baseball team.
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8) It was nice that many of those who missed the celebration when they won the shield with 15% capacity got to be there for last night. The shield was still a little more special since it was the first.
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9) Actually, in every other league in the world, the Union would have already won the championship because the concept of playoffs doesn’t exist and people realize that how you do over 9 months is more significant than how you do in 3 or 4 games.
#5 Was indeed very cool. Hope in some small ways the fans helped the team keep their intensity and focus leading to Blake’s awesome save, that then shifted everything else. #doop!!!
+1 on 9). For me the Union have already won the championship. That hardware up for grabs in LA is to convince the nonbelievers.
Carranza, the City Killer.
Great observations, was there last night as well.
Number 5 was the most telling to me that this fanbase was no longer willing to bend towards the narrative of past Union failures. I was so proud of our crowd and how we all acted to try to lift the side up from that gut punch. While the effect wasn’t immediate, Blake’s save on Callens finished the job and really sparked the side.
Great atmosphere last night which the Union clearly picked up on. Thanks to everyone who was there making the Soob a fortress all season. I’m not a fan of Burke, but he was a beast last night. I take back all my disparaging comments from the year. Great leadership from Ale to last until halftime, when he was clearly struggling. Blake showed why he is MVP. Can’t wait for Saturday to get here! My inaugural season Bimbo-less jersey remains undefeated for the year….
I’ve been wearing the inaugural season jersey too all season long (except I went for a different jersey for the Pachuca friendly).
A great night all around. So glad to have been there in person. Sections 101 and 102 were rocking. Kudos to Coach Curtin for making all the right moves. When Martinez got his yellow, I told my wife that he needed to be subbed out so as not to risk having to play a man down. He stuck to his game and walked the line perfectly. I think NYCFC’s over celebration of their goal came back to bite them as did the NYCFC fans chanting “We won the Cup”. KARMA! Thank you soccer Gods! BEAT LA!!!!
UUUUUUUUUUUUUNION!!!!!!!
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Best game in Union history by a considerable margin. One takeaway from our success over the past few years has been the interest level building from “casual” Philly sports fans. I have to imagine last night minted new fans in droves.
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Bedoya in spirit for next game, let’s have Mcglynn out there from the start vs LA.
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Is it me, or are more teams playing intentionally on Mbaizo’s side? I feel like this is an attempt to take Wagner out of the game. Luckily for us, Mbaizo and Mcglynn have been up to the task.
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I am licking my chops vs. LA even though it’s on the road. They love to play wide open and press forward. This should benefit us greatly to get out on the break in transition. They have played us before, but I feel like they will still be blindsided by our relentless tenacity trying to dispossess the ball. Does their back line have the stamina to handle that? How will Chelini etc react to constantly being scuffed, nicked, stepped on, fouled, bodied, etc for 90? Martinez will be FULL BRUJO MODE on Vela and Chicho.
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ANDRE BLAKE.
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LETS GOOOOOO UUUUUUUNION WIN THE CUP!!!!
Droves of new fans who will soon forget about the team when there is no over the air TV coverage.
+1
Next year, it will be a case of the choir being preached to. I’m still scratching my head over this – I know the money Apple offered was big, but isn’t growing the league the goal for MLS?
It going to be a problem for a team like the Union, which has struggled with attendance for routine matches. Just when the Union starts getting traction in the Philly sports market, Apple will be taking that critical exposure away. No one is going to pay for watch a team they only have casual interest in (heck, I might not even pay if Apple tries to gouge us).
But that’s next year. This year we get to watch he Union play for the MLS Cup OTA on Fox. I can’t wait! Go Union! Beat LA
IIRC according to the recent article in the Athletic 40% of the games will not be behind a paywall, they’ll be free on Apple TV. And mls is negotiating with the regular networks to simultaneously broadcast the big games.
Even if it’s not behind a paywall, how many of these new fans will actually go to Apple TV to watch games compared to just flipping on PHL-17. I know one is much easier to do on my TV than the other.
Yes…. But “Head CLOWN” Garber has his $$$.
Sepp Blatter,
version 2… never welcome in Chester.
I’m right behind you, my man, but one thing: Chiellini was pulling shirts and throwing elbows before McGlynn was born. That man has been to war. As old as he is, I wouldn’t want to be up against him.
We were there last night in 102. The SoB tailgate was actually sold out, and one of the leaders gave an absolute incendiary speech that I hope gets posted somewhere. I thought the officiating wasnt great, but perhaps a hair better than the Cincy game. Many halftime crowd coments that the fix was in to get the NYC LA final. Amazing how the crowd responded after that deflating NYC goal. El Brujo was sprinting all over the field like he was literally on fire. He was a disruptive force! Great to see two of our big three up top get back on track. That header pass for goal 2! It would not surprise me to see Uhre make some noise next Saturday. Love this team and its fans! Plus we got out of the lot pretty quickly, which was the cherry on top. A true shame we dont get one more game in Chester but its all good. Heres hoping for a really in-depth article of how we match up with LA. I would expect nothing else of this quality site!
Just an awesome night. i was there for the Captain America shield, the Open Cup finals and all the other goodness or heartbreak. the comeback was incredible. a tale of two substitutions: NYCFC make one, and Burke comes on. the impact of these were significant.
I went to the playoff El Trafico a couple weeks ago. the Banc is a great place. the energy —wow!— and the team feeds off it. Galaxy were up and twice LAFC got it done, including the stoppage time winner. we cannot sleep. we cannot become unfocused. But… we can certainly beat them. it will be glorious
I was there for the Captain America shield too.. and the City loss last year… and last night of course. Absolute madhouse. Energy was off the charts. I made it to work, late of course, but I did it. I also scored tickets to the game Saturday. Going with my son for the weekend. Gonna be wild either way. LFG! Love this team!!
enjoy it! would love to have gone right back to LA for it. i know the logistics, the airport woes and a good place for a breakfast burrito — with pastrami!
also, they do this weird thing before matches where they bring out a falconer and the falcon flies around the stadium, teased with a “puck” containing the opponents logo on it. sure, whatever floats your boat, LA
Wow. Just wow.
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There are countless Philadelphians who like, even love, soccer, but don’t pay the Union much mind. Yesterday gave them 19,770+ reasons to give it another look. That game, and that atmosphere, ought to be Exhibit A for what club soccer can be in this country. It was loud, it was fun, it was Union. Leon Flach making a lung-busting 80 yard sprint to close down a midfielder, a centerback, and then Sean Johnson with 80+ minutes on the clock and a 3-1 lead tells you everything you need to know about what this squad is and why we love them so much.
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I’m not the overly sentimental type, but the crowd starting the ‘UNION’ chants that swelled to a roar as the ball went back into play after going down a goal gave me chills. What a response from the fans, and from the team. NYCFC got to experience 15 minutes of what we’ve watched the Union do so many times in Subaru Park this season: get ahold of a little snag of yarn and pull until the other side unravels. And Cory Burke–Cory Burke!!–was absolutely massive. No defender wants to see him charging onto the field after 60 minutes of dealing with Uhre and Carranza.
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Let’s not kid ourselves. It’s going to take something special to beat LAFC in their park, on their side of the country, as in form as they’ve been. But the Union are no strangers to something special.
Yes…. But “Head CLOWN” Garber has his $$$.
Sepp Blatter,
version 2… never welcome in Chester.
Welp, my tickets for that match were worth very nickel I paid for them.
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As others have mentioned, the two moments that I think turned the game around were:
1. The crowd lustily chanting the Union on after conceding the opening goal. That was a big, big, meaningful moment.
2. Blake’s amazing save on Callens.
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I screamed myself hoarse. Been waiting for this since home game #1 in 2010. (Or maybe I should say, since Zoso…)
I cannot wait to board that plane to LA on Friday!
Our time is now!