Photo courtesy of the Philadelphia Union
Despite a dominant first-half and a brace from league-leading scorer Tai Baribo, a late surge from Inter Miami CF—powered by Lionel Messi and a stoppage-time equalizer from Telasco Segovia—saw Philadelphia and Inter Miami split points in a 3–3 draw.
How The Match Unfolded
Playing in front of an electric, sold-out Subaru Park on Saturday night, the Union’s early pressure paid off in the 7th minute when homegrown midfielder Quinn Sullivan opened the scoring. After a short corner from Kai Wagner, Sullivan found space at the top of the box and blasted home a screamer into the far corner.
Baribo doubled the advantage just before the break. In the 44th minute, after a chaotic scramble in the box, Mikael Uhre laid off a chance for Baribo, who finished for his 12th goal of the campaign—continuing his red-hot form and giving the Union a 2–0 lead at halftime.
Messi & Co. responded in the second half, when, in the 60th minute, Noah Allen delivered a cross that found Tadeo Allende, whose header snuck past 19-year-old keeper Andrew Rick to make it 2–1.
Minutes later, Miami looked to have equalized, but an offside flag kept the Union in front. Philadelphia capitalized on the momentum shift in the 73rd minute, when a long throw-in and a deflection fell to Baribo, who buried his second goal of the night to make it 3–1.
But the drama wasn’t over. In the 87th minute, Lionel Messi curled a trademark free kick past Rick to bring Miami within one. Then, in stoppage time, Telasco Segovia stunned the home crowd with a 95th-minute equalizer, salvaging a 3–3 draw for the visitors.
Philadelphia Union now head into a crucial two-game road stretch to close out May, beginning with a midweek clash against Toronto FC on Wednesday night. Kickoff is set for 7:30 PM ET on MLS Season Pass via Apple TV.
3 Points
- Captain America, is that you? Quinn Sullivan delivered a masterclass performance just days after earning his first-ever senior team call-up—putting the world on notice.
- Lucky number 13: Tai Baribo remains unstoppable, extending his lead in the Golden Boot race with his 13th goal of the season.
- Missed chances: The draw keeps the Union atop the Eastern Conference, but the two dropped points could prove costly depending on Cincinnati’s result Sunday night against Atlanta.
Lineups
Philadelphia Union (4-4-2): Andrew Rick, Olwethu Makhanya, Jakob Glesnes, Kai Wagner, Nathan Harriel, Jovan Lukic, Danley Jean Jacques, Indiana Vassilev (Bruno Damiani–75′), Quinn Sullivan (Frankie Westfield–87′), Tai Baribo, Mikael Uhre (Jesus Bueno–63′)
Unused Substitutes: Oliver Mbaizo, Oliver Semmle, Alejandro Bedoya, Cavan Sullivan, Jeremy Rafanello, Chris Donovan
Inter Miami CF (4-4-2): Oscar Ustari, Gonzalo Lujan (Fafa Picault–78′), Tomas Aviles (Marcelo Weigandt–61′), Noah Allen, Ian Fray (Telasco Segovia–61′), Sergio Busquets, Yannick Bright (Federico Redondo–40′), Jordi Alba, Tadeo Allende, Luis Suarez, Lionel Messi
Unused Substitutes: Maximiliano Falcon, Hector Martinez, Benjamin Cremaschi, Allen Obando, Rocco Rios Novo
Scoring Summary:
PHI – Quinn Sullivan – 7′
PHI – Tai Baribo – 44′
MIA – Tadeo Allende – 60′
PHI – Tai Baribo- 73′
MIA- Lionel Messi- 87‘
MIA- Telasco Segovia 90’+5′
Disciplinary Summary:
MIA- Ian Fray (41′)
PHI- Indiana Vassilev (41′)
PHI- Jesus Bueno (75′)
MIA- Jordi Alba (76′)
PHI- Jakob Glesnes (86′)
MIA- Federico Redondo (90’+2′)
PHI- Danley Jean Jacques (90’+7′)
Not on Jay
Not on Tanner
Not on Carnell
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2 goal lead with 3 minutes plus stoppage to go, and Union concede 2 goals while missing 2 sitters that would have salvaged the win. Dropping the points tonight is 100% on the eleven players on the pitch at the end of the match.
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Not the end of the world, but the inability to close out matches is now an issue.
I knew it was coming. This is their weakness this year. Sure, one of those almost chances for us goes in just before the goals and even a win. But leaving the 2 pts on the table stings again
They let that one slip away a bit. That said at the start i was fine with a point tonight.
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Union played like they didn’t give a shit about Miami which was refreshing from the previous encounters. Union played very well tonight and are proving to be dynamic and resilient and at times abit green with room to mature which hopefully they do..
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Couple moments by Uhre again when his feet bottle moments or more importantly the ‘corta luz’ was on right outside the box and he wasn’t aware which thwarted an attack.
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Union were the better team tonight and have esrned their place looking down upon nearly the entire league.
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Andrew… gotta save that Messi kick and there are a few moments when you gotta put your foot on the ball and draw the other team forward instead of thunder clapping it forward; especially in those moments when we’ve had possession and are resetting through you. You’ve done beautifully so congrats.
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Carry on. Its all been much better then expected so. Right on.
Come on, pachy, no one stops the free kicks. It’s kind of a thing.
Sorry Deez. I disagree. Rick was even positioned on that side. I’m guessing he was expecting Messi to go over the wall, and might’ve been caught leaning. He had a “oh shit, he’s coming here” moment and wasn’t ready. There’s a reason you cover one side and let the wall do its thing. Oh well young master, you had your chance. Better keepers than you, much better have be thus schooled by the true master.
SO Union.
An encouraging at times, but ultimately dissapointing performance and outcome.
The Union squandered opportunities to put the game away and sagged defensively late.
Unfortunately, they do get caught ball watching… especially late in matches… and it too often costs them.
Keep in mind that I’m insane, but after taking that two goal lead in the second half I was screaming for Carnell to sub in the fresh legged, agile baby Sullivan, for the elder.
My instructions would have been “Cavan, you have one job. Run with Messi, affording him ZERO free space. Just be a pesky, annoying, unshakeable little mosquito on him. PERIOD”.
Messi’s free kick was laudable, and incredible.
However, inexplicably, he was given a lot of space to make plays in the second half.
But what do I know?
This written, I’m not blaming Bradley.
He’s improved on critical managerial areas that had come to frustrate me with my beloved Curtin.
It will indeed be interesting to witness the trajectory and outcome of this season!
First Columbus, now Miami. Almost the exact same scenario except this time it was twice as bad. They leave a goal off the board not once but twice in this game and Miami just like Columbus made them pay. They need to learn the lesson of don’t give good teams any hope at the end of the game. It’s the demon of losing the Cup in this franchises soul that still hasn’t been exorcised.
You had to bring up THAT loss after last night’s disappointment – you are absolutely correct, but hope remains alive.
Yes I was pissed off leaving the Soob after the game. What I feel has to be said is that Danley may be the most complete box-to-box midfielder in MLS. He may have been the best player on the field in this game. (Yes in their day the 4 Barca men were better) and they can still produce magic. Danley was fantastic on defense generally as the second man in as the ball carrier turned away from the press, or even just stepping into passing lanes. The OMG moments when he charges forward with the ball makes me wonder why is he playing in MLS?
Saw flashes of that with Danley last year. Either coaching/tactics change or his own confidence (or both), have made him a standout player this season.
Not only the missed chances that should have been goals, but several fine runs in behind lacked the final pass that was always too heavy. Imagine if the Union had just a little more of Miami’s quality in those moments.
Here is the view from Section 105:
1) The park was sold out and there were many pink GOAT jerseys in the house. That said, most of the regular season ticket-holders in our section attended this game, and I would guess that about 2/3 for cheering for the Union.
2) Our expectations for this team have been elevated. We should not have been surprised that the Union played well and established a lead in the first half.
3) Miami really do not defend well. I don’t know what the Union’s xG’s were, but every set piece seemed like a scoring chance for the U.
4) As a team, Miami are slow, which seemed to be on full display last night. For those of you who remember, Miami seemed like a team of Ilsinhos, and on those occasions when they established possession in the Union offensive third, they were dangerous.
5) SoccerDad’s observation about Danley is spot on. He is playing in MLS because he is Haitian and Europe has overlooked most of CONCACAF. Let’s enjoy him while he is here. His 2nd half run in overdrive was a thing of beauty, a gazelle with the ball.
6) Nate Harriel was back on the wing, and so took some long throws into the box which created a number of chances. Mostly I thought Makhanya had a good night at center back until very late in the game.
7) On the negative side, I do have to call out Coach Carnell’s puzzling substitutions and change of formation. First sub, Bueno for Quinn Sullivan. No! Quinn Sullivan has a 90 minute motor and good speed. Quinn did not seem gassed to me. Then, Carnell changed shape and went to a single striker set with Damiani as the single striker. Why? One of the things that I really appreciate about the Union strikers (including Donovan) is their willingness to get back behind the ball and help on defense. The combination of substitutes and change of shape made the Union more passive. The Union simply don’t defend their third of the field well when they concede possession, period.
Re: 5) Let’s not forget that Danley *was* playing in Europe when the Union signed him.
Danny H on the broadcast said the Bueno sub and formation change was to have Bueno sit in front of the CBs and allow Danley and Lukic to press higher up the pitch. Not sure it worked, but that was the tactical rational from an analyst who is usually pretty accurate.
It did not work–the team became passive.
Also, Sullivan went 87 minutes. Bueno came on for Uhre. Damiani came on for Vassilev and was paired up with Baribo.
I’m pretty sure Bueno came in for Uhre as the first sub. I thought Westfield came on for Sullivan in the 87th min
They are always architects of their own demise. Mascherano should be embarrassed to suck so bad with all that talent.
The Union are nothing but hacks and grunts. Slow ass brick masons with nothing going for them than doggedness. That said; they pissed in Miami’s face and deserved nothing less than the win.
I thought they were going to get it…… but then MLS decided:
You can grab a guy’s nuts-if you are Miami.
You can elbow a guy in the mouth-if you are Miami
You can throw yourself on the ground for an automatic FK goal -if you are Messi and Miami.
Sport is rigged in favor of the glamour clubs who spend.
Also-Rans like Philly will never be allowed to fairly compete.
Carnell: you are a good coach, but the subs didn’t help you.
You are carrying a ton of absolute bums.
Better get Tanner off the stick by July…….
JFav, is this you? Are you back?
“Nothing but hacks and grunts”? Really?
“Absolute bums”? Really?
+1 The Union will never be one of Garbers Darlings. Miami and Messi and company will be blown out in world cup tournaments. Messi should retire but he has no self respect unlike Modric. Messi is a money grabber and kind of a fraud playing at least one level down then where he should be playing. He was one of the best ever but he is playing way below his ability level. WHAT a Sandbagger !
Union were winning. And then Messi turned it on. When he does he’s unstoppable. I’m glad I got to witness him play like that; that free kick was immaculate. I have no complaints with the Union performance. They played really really well. Sure a couple missed chances, a couple uncalled fouls. Those happen every game. All in all we didn’t play scared. Sometimes Messi gonna Messi. Simple as.
+1
Union played well. Need to close out games. Most impressed by the not playing scared. Unlike the Leagues Cup match…
Pablo Maurer remarked – “Having done a dozen or more of these Miami games in person, I feel entirely comfortable saying that Philly treats Messi with less reverence than any other MLS crowd. Legendary sports fans, obviously, and some of the only who actively boo him at almost all times.”
Well done Union fans!
Was a great game, too bad we Union-ed at the end. I’ll admit I didn’t see the Union being here at the start of the season, so I’ll just enjoy the ride.
A couple of other things that I need to say:
1. Suarez is a Champions League winner’s brain going around in a Sunday League player’s body.
2. Pink Phony Club isn’t Inter Miami, it’s anyone who is older than 12 that wears a Pink Messi jersey to an away stadium despite not really giving a crap about the league he is playing in. (I hope the STH’s who sold up managed to pay for a good chunk of their season tickets with the Pink Phony Clubs money)
3. LOVED the SOB’s Tifo last night
Fun game to watch. Blake’s absence was difference in the result.Rick played well but he is not Blake.Union played with no fear. Vassilev non call was bad. The nut grabber non call was also b.s. I am truly surprised that Suarez did not bite someone yesterday. Miamis old guard know how to foul and dive and how to get away with it. Somebidy shoyl close line Messi. It would be worth the Red card.
Posted in the wrong article, so reposting:
Feel so bad for the boys. Everyone played their hearts out tonight. If I had to sum it up, the powers that be at MLS and the strategy did them in. I’ve said it before, great teams in Europe don’t try to lock in 2 goal leads, they add more. I love the new coaching, and the subbing of more fresh legs, but please stop this practice of trying to hold leads and sub like for like instead. They sub Off. for Def., to have to turn right around and sub Def. for Off. when it got back to one goal. You don’t count on preserving leads playing against a guy who can literally put it in on any set play near the goal. We literally stopped pressing and causing turnovers, too, and had to wait for defensive stops in our end to get the ball back.
As for MLS, me thinks there was a directive that Inter could not go down like this going into the Club World Cup. Doesn’t matter what happened, elbow to the face…with cocked action and full extension/carrythrough, grab Baribo’s personal of personal, assault Wagner…..anything went to get Miami to close the gap. I’m not sure that Damiani wasn’t held onside by the Defender up top, too. It was certainly worth an Official’s look. Also, Messi flops in the box, but no penalty is awarded? It has to be a simulation penalty, then, right? Nope. Finally, 5 minutes of stoppage? I’ve seen 3 minutes be the average for games with no major injuries.
So MLS ended up with what they engineered. They couldn’t have PHI crush Inter right before the Club World Cup. I mean that would mean FIFA would have to change their own rules at the last minute, again, after realizing that they left the superior Union out.
+1
Shame.
5+ minutes of added time felt like the league had their fingers on the scale.