Chester, Pa. – After managing just one win in their last five matches, the Philadelphia Union picked up three points Saturday night behind goals from Quinn Sullivan, Danley Jean Jacques and Tai Baribo, defeating Atlanta United 3-0 on a windy evening at Subaru Park.
“We had to commit to exactly what we wanted to do against a really talented Atlanta team,” said Philadelphia Union head coach Bradley Carnell in his post-match press conference. “(Atlanta has) some real weapons and danger and threats in all areas of the field, and to limit them and mitigate them the way we did… for sure they got some chances later on, we managed to stay disciplined, aggressive, and we kind of made the game what we wanted it to be. We put it in a scrap when we needed to, and we made it pretty when we needed to. I really enjoyed the performance tonight, and really proud of the guys.”
Andre Blake Returns
There were a few changes from last Saturday’s starting XI. Mikael Uhre and Bruno Damiani made their second start as a pairing up top this season — their first since the match against St. Louis City — with Union leading scorer Tai Baribo starting on the bench.
As for the decision to start Baribo on the bench, Carnell said it was more of a tactical choice based on what the Union wanted to do.
“If you’re leading the way you lead, and then you commit to the way we commit. And, create the chances we did the turnovers we did, you know, I think it was the decision, and he gets his goal regardless. I said to Tai after the game, you got your goal. And that’s important, right? The striker wants a goal, and we have three very good strikers and two positions, usually, to compete for the way we play. So, you know, we wanted to be a little bit more intentional with our balls behind, with directions, more verticality to put them under. I think the stats show that we put them in a scrappy game.”
Andre Blake also returned in goal after missing the NYCFC game. Carnell had said earlier in the week that the Union goalkeeper would be a game-time decision.
Another notable change saw Frankie Westfield make his seventh start of the season, while Nathan Harriel moved to the center back position in place of Olwethu Makhanya.
Creating Opportunities in the First Half
The match opened with both teams feeling each other out in the first 20 minutes. The Union, like at other times this season, found themselves in dangerous positions but struggled to finish their chances. Case in point: Within those first 20 minutes, the Union had three solid opportunities inside the box but couldn’t capitalize.
The first chance saw Uhre receive a ball inside the 18, but an extra touch allowed the defender to block his shot. The next came from a pass by Damiani to Uhre, but a poor touch spoiled the attempt.
In the 26th minute, the Union had a sequence of chances inside the box, but a flurry of misfires and hesitation left them without a quality shot. Still, they stuck with it, battling for position. Eventually, Quinn Sullivan settled the ball at the top of the box and ripped a shot past Atlanta goalkeeper Brad Guzan to give the Union a 1-0 lead in the 27th minute.
“Really happy for Quinny. There’s been a lot of pressure building on him trying to perform and you know, in terms of stepping up to the standard, and he’s done that. And I’ve told him the whole week, just do you. You continue to be you, and you’ll be just fine. So I’m happy he could cap it off today with a goal.” More on Sullivan later.
Philadelphia kept the pressure on, creating another chance shortly after, but Uhre missed again — his fourth big opportunity of the night.
However, while Uhre was not finding the back of the net, Carnell complimented the forward on his play and how it set the tone for what they wanted from him and the rest of the squad.
“The first 45 minutes, we set the platform for the rest of the game. You know, in that he held up the play. He brought others into the game. He was great. There were three big, big actions in the first half. One hits the cross ball with his left foot. So three big actions, and he could have contributed with a goal as well. So, you know, I’m really happy. And like I say, we have to believe in each other, whether we start, whether we don’t start, it’s my job to keep the the harmony within the group.”
In fact, in the first half alone, despite completing only 95 passes, the Union generated nine shots, with just two on target. While they were clearly more dangerous than Atlanta, they still lacked the finishing touch.
Second-Half Push
The second half started with Atlanta pressing more for the equalizer. However, to their credit, Philadelphia maintained pressure. Because of this, they were rewarded in the 50th minute with their second goal when Kai Wagner hustled to force a turnover and slotted a pass to Bruno Damiani. A nice give-and-go with Uhre found a wide-open Danley Jean Jacques, who slotted the shot through the legs of Atlanta goalkeeper Brad Guzan to make it 2-0. This marked Danley’s first Union goal.
Just six minutes later, the Union suffered a setback when Jovan Lukic picked up his second yellow card and was sent off, forcing Philadelphia to play down a man for the rest of the match.
Atlanta began to find some life in the attack with the man advantage, sending dangerous balls into the box and pushing for a goal. But Andre Blake and the rest of the back line were up to the challenge, making several key saves. Combined with some critical clearances, the Union held firm to preserve the clean sheet.
On the night, the back line of Westfield, Glesnes, Harriel and Wagner was solid. Despite allowing a few dangerous chances, Carnell was pleased with their performance and the minutes Olwethu Makhanya provided after the Union went down a man, as the club picked up its fourth clean sheet in nine matches. For goalkeeper Andre Blake, it was his 100th shutout for the Union.
“It’s massive, because you’re never going to be able to shut out a team like Atlanta, right? The chances that, you know, they created, you know. And I think when it’s 11 vs. 11, I think we nullified and mitigated exactly what we were trying to do. And the game plan really worked in the way according to how it unfolded. When they go a man up, they’re going to start creating an overload here and there. And then you need people to make big, big plays, you know. And I think blocking crosses from Lennon, stopping supply of which we couldn’t do the whole night. And then it’s duels in the box and winning your header, and if you don’t, then you need a goalkeeper. So you need a lot of things and a lot of commitment to fall into place for you to keep that clean sheet.”
Particularly notable was the effort by center back Jakob Glesnes, who picked up an early yellow card in the 19th minute and was marking Atlanta United’s leading scorer and big offseason transfer, Emmanuel Latte Lath. While the forward had a few moments, Glesnes and Harriel held him in check for most of the night.
“I think it becomes tricky when you get a yellow card, right? So then you have to mitigate and manage the yellow card. You can’t be as aggressive as you want to. So, you know, I thought the back line and Jakob did exceptionally well when they had to be aggressive, and when they had to track back, and when we had to double down and create a two versus one to protect a little bit. You know, knowing Jakob is on a yellow so I think the collective effort is the headline for me tonight.”
The Union capped off the evening in the 84th minute, when Quinn Sullivan hustled to a loose ball and sent in a cross to find the head of Tai Baribo, who finished with authority for his MLS-leading seventh goal of the season to seal the match. The win marked their second in six matches, which Carnell suggested may have been an unlucky stretch.
“I don’t feel we’ve played bad over the last three games, you know. I think it’s just unfortunate. We’ve played very, very good opposition, and we fall short against Miami and last week. So, you know, that’s just the soccer game. So, you know, we put ourselves in a window to win the game tonight, and we took our chances. And you know, I just think there was an edge there. We’ve played with an edge the last couple of games, and unfortunately, we couldn’t just tighten the screw and get the result. But I’ve been really happy with the boys.”
With the win, the Union end the evening in fifth place in the Eastern Conference, three points behind conference leaders Charlotte and Cincinnati, who both won on the night.
Other Notes from the Night
- With his assist, forward Mikael Uhre reached 50 goal contributions in MLS with the Union, becoming the sixth player in club history to reach the mark.
- Midfielder Alejandro Bedoya made his 250th MLS appearance for the Union, the second-most in club history.
- Defender Kai Wagner earned his 175th MLS start for the Union, becoming the fifth player in club history to reach the mark.
The Philadelphia Union will look to continue their winning ways when they return to Subaru Park next Saturday, April 26, at 4:30 p.m. to face D.C. United for Kids Day in Chester. The match will be broadcast on Apple TV as part of MLS Season Pass.
Main Article Photo Courtesy of the Philadelphia Union
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