Chester—Coming off a defeat last Saturday in Fort Lauderdale, the Philadelphia Union return to the friendly confines of Subaru Park for another Eastern Conference showdown with Orlando City FC on Saturday night.
While there will be fireworks on display post-match for the fans, the Union should expect some during Saturday’s match as well. Since October 2022, when the Union won 5-1 in Chester, matchups between these two sides have featured no fewer than three goals in their last six meetings.
And while Union won 4-2 in Orlando back on February 22, speaking to the media Thursday, Philadelphia Union head coach Bradley Carnell acknowledged the challenge of facing an opponent again so soon.
“Usually, you face teams on match day one and match day 18, not match day seven. We saw them a little over a month ago. What has changed? What can change? They have their way, we have our way. I think it’s clear—pretty much everybody knows exactly what we’re trying to do. I think it’s going to be the matchups on the day that make the difference.”
Carnell added: “We can acknowledge and see what happened and how the game went in Orlando, but I think they come here with a lot of spirit and energy. Playing away from home on the West Coast is never easy, and they got the result in the fashion that they did. I’m sure they’re going to be energetic, and it’s going to be a tough opponent.”
Since their opening-night defeat against Philadelphia, Orlando City has won three of its last five matches, including two straight against D.C. United and the LA Galaxy. Orlando also leads Major League Soccer with 15 goals in six matches. While they have conceded 12 goals, Carnell knows there is talent on Oscar Pareja’s side.
“Individually, they’re very good. We just have to exploit moments in the game. We have a game plan and hope that comes to fruition.”
Orlando City boasts plenty of talent. Players such as Luis Muriel (3 goals/3 assists), Duncan McGuire (10 goals in 2024)—who missed the first match but is back with the club—Martin Ojeda (4 goals/3 assists) Marco Pašalić (4 goals/1 assist) and Eduard Atuesta all present challenges for Carnell and company defensively
Philadelphia Union center back Olwethu Makhanya echoed that sentiment Wednesday after training.
“The movements they make, the way they switch positions a lot—it’s very hard to stay on your man. You’re staying with this guy, then he just switches out of nowhere, and that makes it a bit challenging. So you have to always check him and be on your toes all the time.”
Makhanya played the full 90 minutes in the Union’s first match against Orlando, starting for Ian Glavinovich, who was working his way back to full fitness. For the South African defender, making his first MLS appearance was a valuable learning experience.
“I would say what I’ve taken away is that you have to be strong mentally. Especially when you’re not playing at home, the fans aren’t going to be on your side. So if you’re not strong mentally, you might not be able to play well.”
On the defensive side, Philadelphia Union left back Kai Wagner may not be available Saturday. Wagner, who leads MLS with five assists this season, missed last Saturday’s match with what Carnell described as an oblique injury. He is questionable for this weekend.
Should Wagner be unable to play, expect Nathan Harriel and Frankie Westfield to take over the right and left back duties against Orlando. Both players were training in the portion of Wednesday’s session open to the media, so if Wagner cannot go, expect either of them for fill that role.
As an additional note, should Westfield start, he will reach his maximum allowable appearances under his Off-Roster Homegrown contract. Per MLS rules this season:
“Off-Roster Homegrown Players are ineligible for MLS League Season competition except as short-term call-ups. Off-Roster Homegrown Players may appear as short-term call-ups in up to six MLS League Season matches per season.”
If Wagner remains out beyond this week, expect Westfield to be added to the supplemental roster moving forward.
In other news, Tai Baribo was named MLS Player of the Month for February/March 2025. Baribo becomes the third different Union player to earn Player of the Month honors and the first since Jack McInerney won back-to-back awards in 2013.
“Yeah, I think it’s fantastic!” Carnell exclaimed when asked about the honor for Baribo. “I mean you know he’s got the earn up of the call up for his national team as well and you know he didn’t get the minutes he wanted there, but he’s shown it through the five games that, yeah, he’s on a good run. He works tirelessly for the team, he commits everything both sides of the ball and it’s good to see him get the service. So for me it’s a whole team effort that rewards players, and Tai has been on the end of a bunch of those moments.”
Baribo played in the last match but was held scoreless against Inter Miami after returning from international duty with the Israel national team. He will be a focal point for the Union on Saturday as the club looks to bounce back.
Despite the challenge ahead, Makhanya believes the team is ready.
“I feel like we’re prepared. I mean, we already know what they like. So yeah, I think everyone’s ready.”
The match is scheduled for Saturday, April 5, at 7:30 p.m. If you can’t make it to Chester, the game will be live on Apple TV as part of the MLS Season Pass.
Main photo courtesy of the Philadelphia Union.
Jillian Almoney contributed to this article.
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