Match Report: New York City FC 2 – 3 Philadelphia Union

Photo courtesy of Philadelphia Union

The Philadelphia Union returned to MLS action tonight with a trip to Yankee Stadium to face New York City FC in an Eastern Conference matchup. Philadelphia entered the night riding a three-game MLS winning streak since the World Cup break, including a dramatic 3-2 comeback victory over Atlanta United in its last league match. NYCFC has been in good form as well, going unbeaten in its three MLS matches since the break, setting up an important matchup between two teams looking to carry their momentum into the stretch run of the season.

Interim head coach Ryan Richter turned to a familiar 4-2-2-2, with André Blake in goal behind a back line of Kai Wagner, Neil Pierre, Nathan Harriel and Frankie Westfield. Danley Jean Jacques and Jovan Lukić anchored the center of the midfield, with Cavan Sullivan and Indiana Vassilev providing the attacking threat out wide. Up top, Milan Iloski joined Bruno Damiani as the Union looked to keep their winning streak alive and come away from the Bronx with three points.

Despite a lackluster first half, the Union came back from a 2-goal deficit for the second consecutive MLS match to prevail 3-2.

How The Match Unfolded

First Half

The Union could hardly have gotten off to a worse start at Yankee Stadium, finding themselves behind just four minutes into the match. NYCFC took a deserved 1-0 lead after Peirre committed a clear foul in the box. Bénie Traoré stepped up and converted to give the hosts the advantage as Blake was left flatfooted and looking as the shot bounced in off the post. The early goal allowed NYCFC to dictate much of the opening stretch, while the Union struggled to find space in the attacking third. Harriel picked up Philadelphia’s first yellow card in the 16th minute, adding to what was already a frustrating opening period for the visitors.

Philadelphia eventually began to grow into the match and found a little more possession, but clear chances remained difficult to come by. The Union did have a golden opportunity in the 22nd minute when Iloski split the NYCFC defense and went in alone on Matt Freese. With the former Union goalkeeper coming off his line and making himself big, Iloski tried to chip him but sent his effort wide of the goal. Three minutes later, Iloski had another excellent chance, but mishit a volley from Vassilev and sent it just wide of the right post.

NYCFC continued to look like the more dangerous side, particularly when it was able to break into space. The Union managed six first-half shots but only six touches inside the NYCFC penalty area. At the other end, New York finished the half with 12 shots and 15 touches in the Union box. Lukić was shown a yellow card in the 44th minute, joining Harriel in the referee’s book.

Just when it appeared the Union would make it to halftime trailing by only a goal, things got worse. NYCFC was awarded its second penalty of the night in stoppage time, and Luighi converted in the second minute of first-half injury time to make it 2-0. The late goal put an exclamation point on a difficult opening 45 minutes for Philadelphia and left the Union with a significant hole to climb out of in the second half.

The numbers reflected NYCFC’s advantage. New York held 54% of the possession, outshot the Union 12-6 and generated 1.93 expected goals compared with Philadelphia’s 0.40. The Union were not completely without opportunities, but they lacked the final pass and quality in front of goal needed to seriously test former Union goalkeeper Freese. After conceding twice from the penalty spot and creating little sustained danger of their own, Philadelphia headed into the locker room trailing 2-0 and needing a much sharper second-half performance to get anything out of the night.

Second Half

Whatever was said in the Union locker room at halftime clearly worked, as Philadelphia came out looking like a completely different team. Just three minutes after the restart, Danley pulled the Union back into the match, cutting NYCFC’s lead to 2-1 in the 48th minute. The goal immediately changed the complexion of the game, with Philadelphia playing with far more urgency and beginning to put sustained pressure on the NYCFC defense.

The Union continued to push forward, and Ryan Richter turned to his bench in the 62nd minute, bringing Jesús Bueno on for Jovan Lukić. NYCFC responded with a pair of changes five minutes later, introducing Talles Magno and Malachi Jones for Luighi and Traoré. But it was Philadelphia that struck next. In the 69th minute, Cavan Sullivan unselfishly found Damiani, who finished to erase the two-goal halftime deficit and bring the Union level at 2-2.

Richter then brought Quinn Sullivan on for Indiana Vassilev in the 70th minute, and the move paid off almost immediately. Six minutes later, Quinn Sullivan set up Damiani for his second goal of the night, completing a remarkable turnaround and giving Philadelphia a 3-2 lead. After spending the first half struggling to create quality chances, the Union had scored three times in less than half an hour to turn the match completely on its head.

With the lead in hand, Philadelphia turned its attention to seeing out the result. Alejandro Bedoya replaced Cavan Sullivan in the 80th minute as the Union looked to add some veteran experience for the closing stretch. Wagner was shown a yellow card in the 86th minute, while NYCFC’s Malachi Jones went into the book in the 90th as New York desperately searched for an equalizer. The Union held firm through the closing minutes, completing an impressive comeback after entering halftime down 2-0.

The final numbers reflected just how dramatically the match changed after halftime. Philadelphia finished with 17 shots and 2.39 expected goals after managing only six shots and 0.40 xG in the opening 45 minutes. The Union also pulled nearly even in possession and finished level with NYCFC at 23 touches in the opposition penalty area. Most importantly, three second-half goals—from Danley and a Damiani brace—turned what looked like a miserable night at Yankee Stadium into a memorable 3-2 Union victory.

Three Takeaways

PSP’s Three Points

A Tale of Two Halves (Again): The Union must stop digging themselves into holes. A poor first half was followed by a statistically dominant second half.
Has Damiani broken out of his rut?: Two goals, both set up nicely by the Sullivan brothers. Honestly, I’m not sure Damiani scores either four months ago. Let’s hope this continues.
Blake and PKs: Why was Blake flatfooted and left looking on both penalty kicks?

Lineups

Philadelphia Union (4-2-2-2):

André Blake, Kai Wagner, Nathan Harriel, Neil Pierre, Francis Westfield, Danley Jean Jacques, Jovan Lukić (Jesús Bueno 62′), Indiana Vassilev (Quinn Sullivan 70′), Cavan Sullivan (Alejandro Bedoya 80′), Milan Iloski, Bruno Damiani

Substitutes not used: Andrew Rick, Ben Bender, Japhet Sery Larsen, Jeremy Rafanello, Agustín Anello, Ezekiel Alladoh

NYCFC (4-3-3):

Matt Freese, Tayvon Gray, Maxwell Murray (Mitja Ileničm Raul 78′), James Sands, Nico Cavallo, Keaton Parks (Kevin O’Toole 60′), Jonathan Shore (Máximo Carrizo 60′), Andrés Perea, Agustín Ojeda, Luighi (Talles Magno 67′), Bénie Traoré (Malachi Jones 67′)

Substitutes not used: Tomás Romero, El Hadji Samb, Kevin Pierre,

Scoring Summary:
NYCFC – Bénie Traoré 4′ (Pen)
NYCFC – Luighi 45’+2′ (Pen) PHI – Danley (C. Sullivan) 48′ PHI – Damiani (C. Sullivan) 69′ PHI – Damiani (Q. Sullivan) 76′

Disciplinary Summary: PHI – Harriel (caution) 16′
NYCFC – Luighi (caution) 43′ PHI – Lukić (caution) 44′ PHI – Iloski (caution) 50′ NYCFC – Gray (caution) 79′ PHI – Wagner (caution) 86′ NYCFC – Jones (caution) 90′