The Philadelphia Union returned to Subaru Park tonight looking to steady themselves against a Columbus Crew side sliding in the wrong direction. While the Crew arrived in Chester having dropped three straight league matches and leaking goals at an alarming rate, the Union are searching for consistency of their own after a turbulent midweek loss in Orlando.
Head coach Bradley Carnell responded with two changes to his starting XI. André Blake returned in goal after missing Wednesday’s match, bringing leadership and stability back to the back line. In front of him, Ben Bender slotted in at left back alongside Olwethu Makhanya and Geiner Martinez at center back, and Nathan Harriel at right back. across the defense. Newly named Haitian World Cup midfielder Danley Jean Jacques partnered Jovan Lukić in central midfield, while Cavan Sullivan replaced Jeremy Rafanello in the attack alongside Indiana Vassilev. Up top, Bruno Damiani and Milan Iloski were tasked with leading the front line as the Union looked to continue their scoring ways after netting three on Wednesday.
After another shaky defensive start put them behind early, the Boys in Blue fought back through Iloski’s second-half equalizer to earn a hard-fought 1-1 draw.
How The Match Unfolded
First Half
The Crew took a deserved 1-0 lead into halftime after controlling much of the opening 45 minutes against a disjointed Philadelphia Union side at Subaru Park.
The warning signs appeared early for the
Photo courtesy of Philadelphia Union
Union when Bender picked up a yellow card in the ninth minute. Columbus immediately capitalized on the resulting set piece opportunity. André Gomes whipped a dangerous ball into the box that eventually fell to Hugo Picard at the top of the area, and the winger lofted his shot into the far corner in the 10th minute that left Blake with little chance. Once again, Philadelphia’s defending left plenty to be desired, and the sequence stemmed directly from Bender’s foul.
Columbus continued to look the more dangerous side throughout the half. Sean Zawadzki nearly doubled the lead in the 20th minute when he met a corner kick with a header, but he failed to generate enough power and sent the attempt wide. Two minutes later, the Union were again caught asleep defensively and were fortunate to see Picard ruled offside after another threatening Crew attack.
Philadelphia struggled to create meaningful chances for much of the opening half. Damiani’s first real involvement came in the 24th minute when he won a foul in midfield. Shortly after, Iloski appeared to beat the Columbus back line before sending a cross into the box, but the Crew defense recovered to concede only a corner. Sullivan delivered the ensuing set piece and Harriel headed the ball across goal, though Columbus eventually cleared the danger.
The match quickly turned physical. Iloski was forced into a tactical yellow card after stopping Diego Rossi from breaking in on goal. Rudy Camacho later picked up a booking in the 30th minute after a foul following another Columbus corner. Steven Moreira and Harriel were involved in a heated challenge in the 34th minute that left the Columbus defender shaken up, though Harriel was awarded the free kick.
Philly nearly found a breakthrough from the resulting set piece as a Union header deflected off Dániel Gazdag out for a corner. The Union briefly threatened off the ensuing delivery, with Bender nearly scoring from distance after Columbus failed to fully clear the ball.
The officiating became a growing storyline late in the half. Sékou Bangoura somehow escaped without a card after a dangerous sliding tackle in the 42nd minute, drawing loud protests from the Union supporters. Moments later, Makhanya was shown a yellow card for a hard challenge on Rossi, a decision that only added to the frustration inside Subaru Park given the earlier non-call.
As halftime arrived, Patrick Schulte had rarely been tested while Columbus consistently looked the more composed and dangerous side. The Union, meanwhile, appeared disconnected in possession and vulnerable defensively in another frustrating first-half performance.
Second Half
Carnell looked for a spark at the start of the second half, bringing on Agustín Anello for a limping Lukić as the Union searched for a way back into the match.
Philadelphia opened the half with one of its better stretches of possession, holding the ball for nearly 90 seconds before Harriel eventually sent a harmless cross into the arms of Schulte. Moments later, Iloski delivered a dangerous free kick into the box, but no Union player attacked the service, leaving the foeward visibly frustrated as he threw his arms into the air in disgust.
The Union finally tested Schulte in the 57th minute when Cavan Sullivan unleashed a shot from roughly 30 yards out, forcing the Columbus goalkeeper into his first real save of the night. Shortly after, Schulte was forced far off his line to clear another dangerous ball. Iloski went to take the resulting throw and slammed the ball down in frustration with no teammate available for an outlet.
Physical play and questionable officiating continued to define the night. In the 61st minute, Bangoura leveled Sullivan with what looked like a clothesline challenge and once again escaped punishment, prompting animated complaints from Carnell toward the fourth official.
Carnell made another attacking change in the 65th minute, replacing Damiani with Ezekiel Alladoh. Columbus answered with a double substitution of its own a minute later as Mohamed Farsi made way for Andrés Herrera while André Gomes was replaced by Dylan Chambost.
The Union’s persistence finally paid off in the 70th minute. Bender delivered a quality ball that found Anello in space, and the substitute quickly squared it across goal for Iloski, who calmly finished to level the match at 1-1.
Philadelphia nearly grabbed a second just two minutes later as Sullivan tried to pick out another dangerous pass inside the penalty area, but the Crew defense recovered in time to clear. From there, the game opened up into an end-to-end battle with both sides pushing for a winner.
Columbus made more attacking substitutions in the 80th minute, introducing Taha Habroune and Amar Sejdić while removing Gazdag and Bangoura. The Crew continued to pressure late, earning consecutive corner kicks in the 83rd and 84th minutes after the Union narrowly avoided conceding a handball inside the box.
At the other end, Bender nearly created a dramatic winner after combining with Sullivan on a dangerous attack that forced Schulte into another strong save. The resulting corners ultimately came to nothing as the Columbus defense held firm.
Another controversy of the night came in the 88th minute when Danley appeared to be taken down inside the penalty area with no foul given. Columbus immediately countered the other direction, and Herrera nearly stole all three points when he snuck behind the defense, but toe-poked his shot just wide of the far post.
Deep into stoppage time, the Union earned one final opportunity after Iloski was fouled just outside the penalty area following excellent hold-up play from Alladoh. Sullivan stepped up to take the free kick from roughly 19 yards out in the 94th minute, but his effort went directly into the arms of Schulte.
Moments later, the final whistle blew on a frustrating 1-1 draw, with the Union showing far more fight in the second half but ultimately left to wonder what might have been after another uneven performance and several controversial non-calls.
Three Takeaways
PSP’s Three Points
- A Tale of Two Halves: The Union looked a different team for the final 30 minutes. Where were they for the first 60 minutes?
- It is time to bench Bruno Damiani: I would rather see Alladoh and Anello get more starting time.
- Lackluster: Why does it seem that only Sullivan and Iloski (amongst the starters) brought it throughout the second half?
Lineups
Philadelphia Union (4-2-2-2):
André Blake, Ben Bender, Olwethu Makhanya, Geiner Martinez, Nathan Harriel, Danley Jean Jacques, Jovan Lukić (Agustin Anello 46′), Indiana Vassilev, Cavan Sullivan, Milan Iloski, Bruno Damiani (Ezekiel Alladoh 65′).
Substitutes not used: Andrew Rick, Finn Sundstrom, Olivier Mbaizo, Philippe Ndinga, Alejandro Bedoya, Jeremy Rafanello, Stas Korzeniowski.
Columbus Crew (4-4-2):
Patrick Schulte, Steven Moreira, Sean Zawadzki, Rudy Camacho, Mohamed Farsi (Andrés Herrera 66′), Max Arfsten, Sékou Bangoura (Amar Sejdić 80′), Andre Gomes (Dylan Chambost 67′), Hugo Picard, Dániel Gazdag (Taha Habroune 80′), Diego Rossi
Substitutes not used: Nicholas Hagen, César Ruvalcaba, Evgen Cheberko, Owen Presthus, Nariman Akhundzada
Scoring Summary:
COL – Hugo Picard 10′
PHI – Milan Iloski (Agustin Anello) 70′
Disciplinary Summary:
PHI – Ben Bender (caution) 9’
PHI – Milan Iloski (caution) 26’ COL – Rudy Camacho (caution) 30’
PHI – Olwethu Makhanya (caution) 45 + 1′
Pretty much the worst first half at home I can remember. Although the score wasn’t as bad as last year’s game against LA, the team played horribly throughout and looked like they had no idea of the concept of completing a pass. They looked more like a U-8 team than professionals. I realize that they don’t play a possession game but 31.5% in the first half means you are not operating as a team. While they were a little better in the second half, it was still pretty obvious as to why they have the worst record in the league. 3 goals in 6 homes is just not going to get it done, even if they have only given up 6 in the same stretch.