Chester – It was a cold and damp night in Chester as the Philadelphia Union kicked off against the Pittsburgh Riverhounds in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup’s Round of 16, looking to advance past this stage for the first time since 2018.
After a hard fought 90 minutes that saw the home side come out victorious, Philadelphia Union head coach Bradley Carnell shared his thoughts on the match:
“We knew from the last time out against Indy that these games are no walkovers. And we wanted to set ourselves a challenge to make sure in this stretch that we’re in to to get the job done in 90. And I think, you know, there was a real professionalism about the way we went about the game. You know, happy to see four different goal scorers on the goal scoring sheet here. Got a couple of guys some different looks and some different runs. So, all in all, a good performance, and got the job done.”
The Union lineup featured several rotations. Both Sullivan brothers were in the starting eleven, along with Jesús Bueno. The Sullivans became the second duo of brothers to start a U.S. Open Cup match in club history. On the back line, Olivier Mbaizo, Jakob Glesnes, Frankie Westfield, and Olwethu Makhanya anchored the defense. Bruno Damiani was the lone striker up top, while Andrew Rick got the start in goal.
Speaking post match about playing with his younger brother Cavan, Quinn Sullivan shared his thoughts:
“It was great to play with him. Obviously, it’s been a goal of ours to get some some solid minutes together. Obviously, we played here and there, but to get however long I played- 80 some minutes, was awesome. And I thought we had some nice moments together. Obviously, the goal was a highlight. Hopefully more to come.”
Philadelphia got to work early, attacking the Riverhounds’ right side and applying pressure, though they were unable to break through the defense. On the flip side, the Union’s back line held strong, preventing the visitors from penetrating in the early stages.
The first major chance for Carnell’s side came in the 13th minute. A shot in the box was deflected by a Pittsburgh defender, and referee Natalie Simon ruled it a handball, awarding a penalty to the Union. Bruno Damiani, the Uruguayan striker, stepped up and buried the shot to give the Union a 1-0 lead.
Philadelphia nearly gave one back later in the half when goalkeeper Andrew Rick mishandled a back pass. The ball nearly rolled into the net but Rick recovered just in time to keep it out.
As the half progressed, Pittsburgh began to find their footing, registering two shots to Philadelphia’s one. However, just before halftime, Quinn Sullivan found Indiana Vassilev running in behind the center backs. Vassilev got a fortunate bounce, and though Pittsburgh goalkeeper Eric Dick got a hand to the shot, it trickled into the net to put the Union up 2-0 at the break.
“It was massive,” Carnell said about getting the goal before half. “And we get the third as well to go 3-0 up. And yeah, we knew when they made changes, we wanted to bring our guys on as well, just to get some fresh legs on there and just to rotate a little bit more. And Garcia rips one in the in the top corner. So we knew about him coming into the game. And we know he’s dangerous on set pieces when he draws inside. I’m asking myself questions. Could we have got the message out there, you know, force him outside, keep him wide?”
Pittsburgh made one substitution at halftime, bringing on Perrin Barnes for Luke Biasi. The Union opened the second half aggressively, with Jesús Bueno and others pressing for a third goal. Their persistence paid off in the 55th minute when Bruno Damiani sparked a counterattack and found Danley Jean Jacques, who slotted home the finish to extend the lead to 3-0.
Pittsburgh responded in the 62nd minute. Jorge Garcia, who had just entered the match, unleashed a screamer from distance that flew past the outstretched Andrew Rick to make it 3-1.
Philadelphia’s next wave of substitutions included Jovan Lukic, Mikael Uhre, and new signing Ben Bender. The Union continued pressing for a fourth goal. In his Union debut, Bender played 24 minutes and created one chance on the evening. Carnell overall was positive on his new midfielder’s performance on the evening.
“Yeah, good- we spent, I would say the better part of an hour today, before anyone arrived… we went through stylistically, but the schedules have been so jam packed, and Ben arrived. We’ve been getting up to speed fitness levels on the field, and sort of like trying to get him coaching by the principals on the field. Today was the first time that we could actually sit him down and go through stylistically what we do. So we went through all our philosophy slides and everything video wise, to show what the sort of job profile is in the striker role as well as in those 10’s role that we put him in tonight. And I thought he had a good couple of clean touches in there. He secured possession a few times. And, you know, he’s still looking to gain fitness and strength as well. So we played a different intensity at different [times] and he knows that he needs to get a little bit stronger and a little bit more sturdy within our style of play.”
In the 74th minute, Nathan Harriel came on for Frankie Westfield. Moments later, Harriel showed his danger in the box on a corner kick, but Eric Dick made the save.
Quinn Sullivan exited for Jeremy Rafanello in the final substitution of the night. The Union finally got their fourth goal when Jovan Lukic showed great composure in the box and beat Dick to make it 4-1 Philadelphia in the 87th minute, putting the exclamation point on match for the home side.
As the final whistle blew on a wet evening at Subaru Park, the Philadelphia Union advanced to the Quarterfinals in the U.S. Open Cup for the first time since 2018, defeating the Pittsburgh Riverhounds 4-1.
This will mark Philadelphia’s 6th appearance in the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open Cup in club history (2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, and 2025). The win also keeps the Philadelphia Union unbeaten in their last 8 matches in all competitions.
The Union return to MLS play this Saturday, hosting Inter Miami at 7:30 p.m. on Apple TV as part of the MLS Season Pass, and Quinn Sullivan knows that his side will be ready for the challenge:
“We can’t predict any of the outside noise, but the team’s in a good run. We’re working together. There’s a fluidity to the team and togetherness, for sure. And hopefully that’s what we bring. Hopefully that’s what we bring on on Saturday- I know the team’s gonna be up for it. And, you know, it’s our home, it’s our home fortress.”
Main Article Photo Courtesy of the Philadelphia Union
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