Photo courtesy of Marjorie Elzey
The Philadelphia Union continued their good run of form coming out of the World Cup break, winning their second straight game and lifting themselves off the bottom of the standings. Let’s get into the ratings.
Player Ratings:
GK Andre Blake – 6
Not much to do for Blake, who made just one simple save on the night.
LB Kai Wagner – 7
Another solid game for Wagner in his second match back in the squad. Wagner showed the hard-nosed defending and great left foot that have made him a Union legend.
CB Nathan Harriel – 7
A solid game from Harriel, who made a number of stout defensive challenges, most notably a sliding block in the box on a dangerous Seattle counter in the 18th minute.
CB Niel Pierre – 7
Pierre looked composed defensively and solid in possession in his first MLS start. So far, Pierre has been exactly what Union fans were hoping for after returning from his successful loan in Denmark.
RB Frankie Westfield – 7.5
Notched a brilliant game-winning assist, his fifth of the season, while contributing defensively with eight duels won. Earned his first of what could be many MLS Team of the Matchday honors.
DM Danley Jean Jacques – 6.5
A typically all-action performance from Danley, who has come out of his World Cup experience in fine form.
DM Jovan Lukic – 6
A couple of nice challenges for Lukic to keep Seattle contained in midfield, but also had a bad giveaway in the box in the 69th minute.
AM Indiana Vassilev – 6
A typical Vassilev performance, ran hard and kept things ticking down the left.
AM Cavan Sullivan – 6.5
While not quite as dominant as he was on Wednesday night, Sullivan still found a few moments of magic, including a brilliant interception and through-ball on Iloski’s (allegedly) offside goal in the second half.
FWD Bruno Damiani – 5.5
Did well to flick a difficult header towards goal in the 22nd minute, but otherwise, Damiani’s struggles to get involved in the attack continued.
FWD Milan Iloski – 7.5
Very clever finish on his goal, as we have come to expect from Iloski. After a bit of a slow start, Iloski now has nine goals on the season, including goals in each of his last five games.
Substitutes:
(65’) FWD Ezekiel Alladoh – 6
One of Alladoh’s better performances off the bench, most memorably when he repeatedly showed his strength to hold the ball in the corner in the last minutes as the Union looked to close out the game.
(65’) AM Quinn Sullivan – 6
Had a few chances, but showed some rust, particularly on his chance in the 93rd minute, where his touch took him too wide
(80’) Jesús Bueno – N/A
(89’) Alejandro Bedoya – N/A
Geiger Counter
REF Tim Ford – 6
I might have liked some World Cup offsides technology on the Iloski goal that got called off, but that’s certainly not Ford’s fault.
Player of the Match – Frankie Westfield
Westfield provided a great assist and contributed to the clean sheet. With Westfield and Wagner on either side of the defense, the Union might have the best attacking fullback pair in the league.
What’s Next…
The Philadelphia Union host Atlanta United on Saturday, August 1 (7:30 p.m. ET / Apple TV).
Glad to see Westfield getting recognition for a beautifully played ball Saturday night, not to mention a solid defensive effort.
5.5 is wayyyyy too high for Damiani. He only affects play in a negative way.
Good scores all around except for Damian. I’d say a 4.5 . He’s just not a positive on the offensive side of the ball. I may be missing his effectiveness because I want goals from our forwards. But I just don’t see it
Seattle came in with a plan to mark out Cavan, but it only somewhat worked. Cav still found space and tried stuff. And once Quinn came on, their plan fell apart. Teams cannot double both of them simultaneously. In the stands when Iloski put the second in the net, I didn’t even stand up to cheer — it was obviously offside from my vantage. BUT watching the replay on video later I was much less sure.