Photo courtesy of Kevin Barrett / Philly Soccer Page

The Philadelphia Union are officially rolling.

On a rainy Saturday night at Subaru Park, the Union dismantled Orlando City for the better part of an hour, racing to a 4-0 lead before eventually settling for a 4-2 victory. Philadelphia outshot Orlando 12-2 in the first half, dominated the midfield, and repeatedly sliced through the Lions on the counter. Milan Iloski scored a hat trick. Indiana Vassilev had a goal and two assists. And the Union did it while missing five starters to international duty.

The only real complaint is that a game this thoroughly dominated somehow ended 4-2. Philadelphia took its foot off the gas, conceded twice in the final 15 minutes, and once again showed that this team appears considerably more comfortable attacking a game than sitting back and trying to kill one off.

Still, six consecutive wins are six consecutive wins. The Union are now unbeaten in a franchise-record 12 straight matches and suddenly look nothing like the team that spent the first half of the season circling the drain.

Player Ratings

GK Andrew Rick — 5

For roughly 75 minutes, Rick could have brought a book. Orlando generated almost nothing and the Union completely controlled the match in front of him. Then Orlando scored twice late. Neither goal was entirely his fault, particularly Ivan Angulo’s strike off the short free kick, but conceding two goals in a match where the opponent created so little prevents a higher grade. A mostly quiet night that became unnecessarily uncomfortable.

RB Ben Bender — 6

Another solid performance from Bender in a position that is not naturally his. He defended intelligently, kept things relatively simple in possession, and gave the Union exactly what they needed from a makeshift right back. He was not nearly as influential going forward as he was against Columbus, but he did not need to be. At this point, Bender’s versatility has become genuinely valuable.

CB Nathan Harriel — 7

Wore the captain’s armband and looked comfortable in the middle of the back line. Harriel was aggressive stepping forward, dealt well with Orlando’s attackers for most of the night, and contributed to the second goal by helping spring Vassilev and Iloski on the counter. Philadelphia was missing regular starters, and Harriel looked like the veteran presence the situation required. The two late goals knock everyone on the back line down a little, but this was a strong performance.

CB Japhet Sery Larsen — 6

Very good for most of the match and then responsible for the foul that led directly to Orlando’s first goal. That moment encapsulated the frustrating portion of the final half hour: with the game already won, Philadelphia started making unnecessary mistakes. Sery Larsen was otherwise physical, composed, and helped limit Orlando to almost nothing during the portion of the match that mattered. But the needless foul gave Orlando life when there was absolutely no reason to do so.

LB Kai Wagner — 7

A typically professional Wagner performance. He was involved immediately, putting a dangerous ball onto Damiani’s head inside the first minute, and continued giving Philadelphia an outlet down the left. Defensively sound, composed in possession, and rarely caught out. He did not dominate the stat sheet, but he did not need to. Another reminder of how much calmer the Union look with Wagner organizing that side of the field.

DM Jovan Lukić — 7

One of the biggest reasons the Union dominated the middle of the field. Lukić was physical, disruptive, and helped Philadelphia turn Orlando turnovers into immediate attacking opportunities. He also picked up the secondary assist on Iloski’s third goal. This was not a flashy performance, but it was exactly the kind of match the Union need from Lukić: win the midfield, move the ball quickly, and let the attacking players do the damage.

DM Jesús Bueno — 7

Excellent. Bueno stepped into the lineup and looked like he belonged there. His pass to Vassilev for the third goal was perfectly weighted, and he consistently helped Philadelphia move the ball forward rather than simply recycling possession. More importantly, the Union did not appear to lose anything in midfield despite the international absences. That says a lot about Bueno’s performance.

AM Quinn Sullivan — 6

Active throughout the night and constantly looking to push Philadelphia forward. Sullivan’s movement caused problems and he found himself one-on-one with Crépeau in the second half with a chance to make it 5-0. He has to finish that opportunity. He also picked up a yellow card shortly thereafter. Still, Sullivan helped stretch Orlando and contributed to a midfield that completely overwhelmed the Lions for long stretches.

AM Indiana Vassilev — 9

Outstanding.

Vassilev assisted Iloski’s second goal, scored Philadelphia’s third immediately after halftime, and then assisted Iloski again four minutes later to make it 4-0. One goal and two assists in a game the Union controlled almost from beginning to end. More than the statistics, Vassilev consistently made the correct decision in transition and punished Orlando whenever space appeared.

On almost any other night, he is Player of the Match.

FWD Bruno Damiani — 6

No goal, but this was a much more useful Damiani performance than several we have seen this year. He occupied the center backs, provided a target when Philadelphia went direct, and his movement helped create space for Iloski and Vassilev to attack. He nearly opened the scoring in the first minute before being called offside.

Still: strikers gotta strike. The Union scored four goals and Damiani was not involved in any of them on the scoresheet. The hold-up play was good and his contribution to the attack was real, but eventually the No. 9 has to start putting the ball in the net.

FWD Milan Iloski — 10

What else can you give him?

Iloski won the penalty and converted it himself. Eight minutes later, he took Vassilev’s pass, cut inside, and scored again. Then, six minutes after halftime, he completed the hat trick with an absolutely clinical finish from outside the box. Three goals in 51 minutes. His second hat trick of the season. Sixteen league goals.

There is no longer any debate about who the Union’s most dangerous attacking player is. Iloski can score running behind a defense, cutting inside, from distance, or from the penalty spot. More importantly, he plays like he expects to score every time he gets the ball near the penalty area.

For a team that desperately needed someone to become its offensive focal point this season, Iloski has done exactly that.

Substitutes

(78′) AM Agustín Anello — 6

Entered with the match effectively over and brought his usual directness. Anello continued trying to attack rather than simply run out the clock, which is probably the right instinct for a team that has repeatedly looked uncomfortable when becoming too conservative. Did not have enough time to make a major impact.

(78′) MF Alejandro Bedoya — 5

Brought on to help see out a 4-0 lead. The Union then conceded twice. That obviously is not all on Bedoya, but the final portion of the match was far less controlled than it should have been. Provided some veteran stability, but Philadelphia never really regained the dominance it had shown earlier.

(85′) FWD Ezekiel Alladoh — 6

Immediately got himself into dangerous positions and had two opportunities to add a fifth goal, forcing Crépeau into saves on both. That is exactly what you want from a forward entering against a tired defense. The finishing could have been better, but Alladoh did more in a few minutes than many late-game substitutes manage in twice the time.

(85′) AM Jeremy Rafanello — N/A

Not enough time to fairly evaluate.

(90′) DF Jordan Griffin — N/A

Not enough time to fairly evaluate.

Geiger Counter

REF Sergii Demianchuk — 6

A generally competent performance in a match that had a few potentially difficult decisions. He correctly awarded the penalty after Atuesta brought Iloski down in the box and resisted calls for an Orlando penalty during an earlier first-half sequence. The match became increasingly physical, with five Orlando players and two Union players eventually booked, but Demianchuk never lost control of it.

No major complaints, which is usually about the highest praise a referee should want.

Player of the Match — Milan Iloski

Three goals. There really is no other choice.

Vassilev was excellent and, with a goal and two assists, would have been the obvious Player of the Match on almost any other night. But Iloski won and converted the penalty that opened the scoring, produced an excellent individual finish eight minutes later, and completed his hat trick shortly after halftime.

Sixteen goals now. Two hat tricks. And a Union attack that suddenly looks capable of scoring against anyone.

At some point this stopped being a hot streak. Milan Iloski is simply having an outstanding season.

What’s Next

The Union will host Real Salt Lake on Saturday, October 14th at Subaru Park (7:30 p.m. ET / Apple TV).