Houston — The Philadelphia Union went into Saturday’s match at Shell Energy Stadium against the Houston Dynamo looking to stay atop the league, while Houston was simply trying to get back into the MLS Western Conference playoff race on a humid night in Texas.
Philadelphia struck first on the road thanks to a goal from Alejandro Bedoya, but Houston answered late in first-half stoppage time. A penalty kick from Jack McGlynn brought the match level at 1-1, and that would be the final score, with the Union walking out of Houston with just one point.
After three matches in a week and with five players (Bedoya, Glesnes, Jean-Jacques, Harriel, and Lukic) on yellow card accumulation, Philadelphia Union head coach Bradley Carnell opted for a bit of rotation on the night.
The back line included the aforementioned Nathan Harriel and Jakob Glesnes starting in central defense. The outside backs featured Olivier Mbaizo and Frankie Westfield, making his first start since May 31.
Jesús Bueno, back from injury, started alongside Jovan Lukic. In the attacking midfield role, Jeremy Rafanello made his second start of the season, with Union veteran Alejandro Bedoya starting opposite him.
Up top, Mikael Uhre made his first start since returning from injury, paired with fellow forward Bruno Damiani. It was the duo’s first start together since May, when they played against Atlanta United.
When Union head coach Bradley Carnell was asked if he was satisfied with the performance given the rotation:
“I mean, satisfied, yes, you know. But as terms of rotation, Mikael Uhre DP striker, Chu Chu Bueno, Venezuelan national player. What else do we have? You know, maybe you would say Rafanello he’s the only one who’s limited game time so far. But you know, other than that these are six. MLS pros. And you know, if you had that on a lineup on here other day, you would have said, Okay, that’s a decent lineup for us.”
Probably the biggest surprise was that Andrew Rick got his first start in goal since his last first-team appearance in June against the Chicago Fire, while Andre Blake was the backup goalkeeper on the night. When asked what the thought process was behind the decision:
“We’ve discussed a pathway for for Rick, and we’ve discussed with with Andre, what’s best for management of his knee and and his body. And it’s great to see Andre here as the captain, also supporting the boys from the sidelines, and it just shows that this team is galvanized, that we together and we supportive of each other. And you see at the end of the game rallying on and, you know, getting the guys all excited and on the sidelines for a big play and what have you. So it’s fun being part of this group, and everyone feels a special connection here right now.”
On the night, Rick made two saves on three shots on target from Houston. The homegrown keeper also made a few key stops to keep the Dynamo at bay, though he was bailed out by the post and crossbar a few times as well. Still, it was a solid bounce-back performance for the young Union goalkeeper after giving up three goals in Union II’s 3-3 draw with Chattanooga FC last Sunday.
However, the biggest issue in the 1-1 draw seemed to be the performance of head referee Rosendo Mendoza. Mendoza, who is set to officiate the MLS All-Star Game on July 23, came into the match having refereed 15 MLS games this season, issuing 75 yellow cards. On Saturday night, he handed out 8 yellow cards, 44 fouls (25 to Philadelphia and 19 to Houston), and 1 red card — to say he was busy is an understatement.
This is by no means an attempt to throw the referee under the bus. Great teams find ways to overcome adversity. Could the Union have done more? Probably. Could Houston? Also, yes.
Take, for example, the 45th minute: Duane Holmes, who came on for an injured Emele Pontze, beat Mbaizo and Jeremy Rafanello. Rafanello initially appeared to foul Holmes right outside the penalty area, and a PK was awarded to Houston. You could argue it was a poor defensive sequence by the Union.
But Mendoza went to VAR, checked the play, and overturned the penalty. Houston fans were livid, and Union fans breathed a sigh of relief.
The handball call on Jesús Bueno was unfortunate — more about the handball rule than anything else. His elbow was in an unnatural position. Okay, move on. Houston equalizes.
Where fans of both teams might find common ground is in the 84 stoppages in the match (44 in the first half and 40 in the second) due to fouls.
Philadelphia can also argue about a stoppage-time foul in the box that was initially ruled a potential penalty, which could have given the Union a chance to walk away with all three points.
However, Mendoza went to VAR again and came back stating that Nathan Harriel had fouled a Houston player prior to the initial call — nullifying the penalty kick opportunity.
When asked about the start-and-stop nature of the match, Carnell didn’t hold back his thoughts on the referee’s performance:
“You know when teams play a certain way, it’s on the border and we use our body in certain ways, like, it cannot be a foul every single time. You know it really can’t. And even the penalty call that gets called back on Nate, Nate jumps two seconds earlier, and it’s, it’s a foul, we create the foul, but Nate jumps unopposed, and all of a sudden, some player runs into Nate, and that’s a foul. I mean, wow, I don’t have the answers for that.”
Philadelphia Union left back Kai Wagner, recently named to the MLS All-Star Game for the third time in his career, was similarly candid when asked about the game’s constant interruptions:
“I mean, even sitting on the bench, you know, like, I don’t like a bad game which got stopped all the time. Feel like a lot of stoppages were like way too much today was, like these yellow cards in the first half, even the PK call what got made away from like a clear PK. In my eyes, it’s absolutely ridiculous to call this back in this this happens. It’s not the first time that this stuff happens. I mean, for me, it’s not a clear and obvious error, what he clearly made there and stuff like this. So I mean, the call, call it back for me, no understanding at all.”
At the end of the day, the Union left with a point and are now sitting at 47 points in MLS play, good for third place in the Supporters’ Shield standings, with both Nashville and Cincinnati winning their matches on Saturday. While the old adage says good teams get points on the road, Wagner had a different perspective:
“For me, way too less. For me, absolutely winnable game today. Think we were in the first half, we were not smart enough. We lost a lot of like free balls. We couldn’t connect the balls. I think we had way more space than we anticipated. And I think in the second half, we got a little bit better in the game. Control the game a little bit more. They came a little bit at us. But then I think with like all the substitute would be made when you got the guys in. And I think we had two big chance on like the cross for me too. Like I said, the PK call, which called back for me, ridiculous to call it back, but that’s how it is. So we walk out with a point.”
Carnell, however, sees the long-term picture. The club is playing above preseason expectations. The talent and belief are there — and playing on the road in MLS is never easy.
“We’ve been dominant at home in some big matchups and some important matchups, and we’ve shown a bit of fight after two last game, said Carnell. So when we bounced back with seven points, and now we have a week to rest, guys can go and enjoy their trips at the All Stars and represent the club in in the highest fashion. And, we take a point here away from home, and we’ve got another western conference team next week in Colorado. So you know, overall, the stretch of three games, seven points, you can’t ask for more.”
Philadelphia returns home to Subaru Park next Saturday, July 26 at 7:30 p.m., against Western Conference opponent Colorado Rapids to wrap up the month. If you can’t make it to Chester to see the match live, it will be available on Apple TV+ as part of the MLS Season Pass.
Main article photo credit: Philadelphia Union
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