Philadelphia Union II return to action on Tuesday as they travel to NKU Soccer Stadium to face FC Cincinnati 2. Union II are coming off their first loss of the season at the hands of Inter Miami II back on May 25 at home. The squad will look to regroup, but will also be missing several key players due to national team call ups. Sal Olivas, CJ Olney, Andrew Rick, and David Vazquez are all part of the US U-19 camp that goes June 2-10 in Marbella, Spain. Additionally, Cavan Sullivan and Jamir Johnson have been called to the US U-17 training camp during that same time frame in Valencia, Spain.
Roster moves
One new face will be joining the squad, however, as Union II announced Monday the signing of goalkeeper Pierce Holbrook out of the Naval Academy. The 6’4″ 22 year old hails from Littleton, Colorado, and was a standout for Navy. From the Union’s press release:
“In 2024, Holbrook earned Second-Team All-Patriot League honors and led the league in saves (75) for the third straight year. He recorded three shutouts and had seven games with five or more saves. Over 54 games at Navy, he finished with 208 saves, 18 shutouts, a .756 save percentage, and a 1.24 GAA. He also helped Navy win the Patriot League title in 2022, earning a spot on the All-Tournament Team. He is also serving as a Marine Corps officer in the Selected Reserves.”
He will immediately be able to join the squad due to Section 557 of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2025 allowing a limited number of cadets or midshipmen who obtain employment in professional sports to serve in the Selected Reserves to fulfill their service obligations.
Coach Ryan Richter was enthusiastic about the signing: “We’re excited to bring in a goalkeeper like Pierce. He’s shown he can perform under pressure and lead from the back. We’re looking forward to helping him grow and take the next step in his career with Union II.”
Also on Monday, it was announced that defender Ramzi Qawasmy and Union II mutually agreed to terminate his contract as he looks to pursue other opportunities. The 25 year old former Union Academy player made two appearances at the Next Pro level and has also been involved with coaching at The SWAG, and will continue to contribute there. It is a no-cost youth soccer program designed to train children in some of the most vulnerable communities.
Looking back at Miami, looking ahead to Cincinnati
Union II were the last undefeated team in MLS Next Pro until May 25 when they fell 1-0 to Inter Miami II. In some ways, it can be looked at as a little release of pressure and a learning experience. Kyle Almoney spoke with Ryan Richter at training last week and asked about any final thoughts about that match after looking at film and data:
“Not our normal quality on the ball, which led us to a couple frustrating things that that came up where I thought if we were a little cleaner, we should have been been able to create a lot more chances. And again, if you look at the stats after the game, it’s like it’s not that bad, you know, so that is okay. But just the feeling overall from the game was that we can play a lot better soccer and I think these guys know that. With their quality and their technical ability, we shouldn’t have as many mistakes as as we did in the game, which led to a lot of frustrating moments. So I’m looking for a response in these next two weeks of training, stay positive and work hard, and raise the level of focus again because we need things drop a little bit. It tends to be a little bit about the drop in focus and that’s something that we can never have.”
Forward Eddy Davis talked about the result as well: “I mean, I’d say that it wasn’t… if you look at just the stats, we outshot them 21 to three, so I feel like the scoreboard doesn’t really reflect the true outcome of the game. I felt like we dominated them for the most part, we just needed to be cleaner with a couple of actions in that game. Could look 3 or 4-0.”
When looking at FC Cincinnati 2 on Tuesday, Richter is confident his team can bounce back and put on a good performance, even with missing players. “We’re confident either way of the team that we put on the field. We have enough good players that it could be it was an opportunity for someone else.”
Indeed, the squad does have some depth and options, including amateur/Academy players and signed players. This could be the match for forward Malik Jakupovic to make his highly anticipated official Union II debut after being signed to his professional contract last week. Also, it will help the squad tremendously if Neil Pierre returns from his knee injury.
Davis reiterated the team’s focus as well, saying “Just bounce back and this doesn’t really affect us. It’s just the first loss of the season, and however many games, so like, we’re not really fazed by it- we know that we have a job to do against Cincinnati, so yeah, we’re focused ahead on that, we’re not harping back on, thinking about the last match.”
Currently, Union II are in 8th place (3-1-4) in the East, but with 2+ games in hand, while FC Cincinnati 2 are in 15th (last). They only have one win on the season (1-6-2), and a -6 goal differential. Just like with Inter Miami II, they cannot let the standings fool them. On how they match up with FC Cincinnati 2 and what stands out about them, Richter said:
“I think we match up really, really well against a back five, back three. We’ve been really organized against teams that play in that shape and I hope that we can do the same in this game. You know, and it’s funny… it used to be, like every team plays back four. Now we play like two games against the back four this year, and now so, as we prepare for that, you know, again, always starts with us against the ball. We need to be organized, and leading guys know their roles and connects to you, then, you know, we find success in all areas of the field, so it’s the same going into this game. We’ll see who they’re missing, and a couple of youth national team guys that’ll be out.”
One player for FC Cincinnati who will be out is former Union Academy player Stefan Chirila, who will be representing Romania. Also missing will be defender Amir Daley who will be playing for Antigua and Barbuda.
Davis, having played against their next opponent many times, remarked, “Yeah, I mean, from last year, I haven’t seen them much this year, but they play pretty much the same as us, so it’s gonna be a very physical match and I’m excited for it. We we have to be up for it, be physical, be fast, be explosive in transition- they love transition, but also, it’ll be a great game, a great match.”
Richter summed up their approach going into the match Tuesday, saying “You know, you can have good games and bad games. Just don’t let the focus or the intensity drop, and that’s what you want to see in in the game against Cincinnati and whether it’s- if we don’t play a good game, that’s possible, you know? You could have bad games, but I don’t wanna see… it’ll be the lead up to the game and then the way that we approach a game full focus, full commitment for the team; team effort to win the game.”
Without the squad’s leading goal scorer in Sal Olivas, this could be a chance for Davis to step up. He led the team in goals in 2024, but only has one goal so far, partly due to the fact that he has battled some injuries early on. He has been great when paired with Markus Anderson, and it would be intriguing to see him with Jakupovic. Davis discussed his season so far, saying, “Yeah, I mean, I’ve had like a lot of ups and downs with an early injuries, still just trying to find my stride. It was good get my goal to get my confidence back up, but yeah, striving to be my best self.”
Union II play FC Cincinnati 2 on Tuesday, June 3 at 7:00 PM on AppleTV/MLS Season Pass. Be sure to follow me on X/Twitter @silly__jilly and our team at @totwag for live updates.
Main article photo credit: Philadelphia Union II
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