Chester – It would seemingly not be a U.S. Open Cup match (that was initially postponed due to rain) without also having the start of the makeup match delayed. Prior to kickoff, warm-ups were pushed back 30 minutes as storms once again caused havoc in the match between the Philadelphia Union and the New York Red Bulls.

In what turned out to be a physical, back-and-forth match, the Philadelphia Union pulled out a late game-winner to win 3-2 after 90 minutes and advanced to the semifinals of the 2025 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.

“Tight game,” said Union head coach Bradley Carnell post match. “I thought we were a little sloppy in certain moments, and especially at the end of the game. And now it’s two games in, in two where we get beat on a cross and sort of a play down the sides of the field. So, you know, things to tighten up. And we learned from these lessons. But we brought Milan [Iloski] in for a reason, and you can see the quality he possesses, whether he plays in the 10 or whether, you know, shifts up a slot into the into the nine. So yeah, the energy in this team is awesome. The togetherness is great. I think you can just see the exactly the way the team digs deep and rallies through tough moments after a two hour delay.”

If there was any doubt that Carnell and company were not going all in for the U.S. Open Cup quarterfinal, it was quickly put to bed once the starting elevens were announced. Andre Blake started in net, which made sense considering Andrew Rick played Monday for Union II. Frankie Westfield returned to the starting lineup along with Jakob Glesnes, Olwethu Makhanya, and Kai Wagner.

In the midfield, Danley Jean Jacques and Jovan Lukic paired together, while Indiana Vassilev started in the attack. Tai Baribo and Bruno Damiani opened the evening’s match as the forward pairing.

After a nearly two-hour weather delay due to storms in the area, the match was finally ready to begin for the fans who waited patiently.

On the two-hour delay, Milan Iloski also shared his thoughts on how the team handled it.

“You really just can’t do anything. It’s just when you’re ready, you’re ready. And so we stay ready in there, but they do an unbelievable job getting us nutrition and we need fluids, things like that, to make sure that are physically ready. And then mentally, we’re engaged we’re locked in and ready to go.”

The Red Bulls struck first in the 8th minute thanks to Wiki Carmona, who put the visitors up 1-0. Carmona’s strike from outside the 18-yard box beat Union goalkeeper Andre Blake, who was backpedaling and caught out of position.

Philadelphia responded five minutes later to level the match at one thanks to a wonderful free kick delivery from Kai Wagner. His ball found Indiana Vassilev, who flicked it on to a wide-open Tai Baribo inside the 18. Baribo controlled the ball and drove it into the net in the 13th minute. It was his first career U.S. Open Cup goal.

Things then became chippy as both teams grew into the match, making head referee Joshua Encarnación’s job much more difficult. Both outside backs, Kyle Duncan and Raheem Edwards, received yellow cards. Duncan was eventually subbed off for Dylan Nealis after a hard foul on Danley Jean Jacques nearly earned him a second yellow.

For most of the first half, the visitors dominated the midfield, limiting Philadelphia’s chances to progress forward. In particular, Lukic and Jean Jacques struggled with the Red Bulls’ pressure. The Union as a whole looked a step too slow, often getting beaten to opportunities.

Milan Iloski came on for Vassilev at halftime. Both teams had only one shot each during the first half, which was otherwise uneventful outside of the two goals.

As for the swap, Carnell revealed post-match that Vassilev had suffered a concussion, allowing the club to use a concussion substitution. While Carnell did not comment further, it appears his starting midfielder could miss Saturday’s match.

Philadelphia had the first real opportunity in the second half when Iloski was fouled just outside the 18 by Carmona, setting up a free kick. Quinn Sullivan lined up to take it, but his shot lacked curl and went wide of the far post.

Emil Forsberg and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting entered in the 64th minute as Sandro Schwarz looked to his impact players. Choupo-Moting made his mark in the 71st minute, beating Jakob Glesnes and timing a perfect one-timer that beat Andre Blake to put the visitors up 2-1.

“I mean, it’s part of the game,” said Olwethu Makhanya. “You just have to be strong and play the game as it comes that’s you. So if they are going to be physical, you’re going to be physical, too.”

To their credit, the Union responded moments later after being the aggressors for much of the second half. Tai Baribo spun after receiving a pass and found a wide-open Iloski running in from the flank to one-time a strike, leveling the match at 2-2 in the 75th minute.

In his fifth U.S. Open Cup appearance, Iloski scored his fifth goal and his first as a member of the Union.

“I saw us break out of that pressure, and as soon as Tai turned, then I knew, that I had to go,” said IIoski on the goal. “I think it was whoever the weak side striker was it was Mikael. Yeah, then I knew if this the right back we with him, that there’d be space, so, I just filled that gap and it was a great ball by Tai, and it made my job a lot easier.”

Nathan Harriel and Jesus Bueno subbed in for Philadelphia in the 77th minute for Westfield and Lukic. Kai Wagner created a wonderful chance in the 86th minute, but his cross to Mikael Uhre could not be finished, as the shot was blocked.

Philadelphia finally broke through in the 89th minute thanks to Olwethu Makhanya, who controlled a bouncing ball in the box and flicked it past AJ Marcucci to put the Union up 3-2. Carnell then went to the bench one last time, bringing on Alejandro Bedoya and Cavan Sullivan to close down the match.

With all the bodies in the box, Makhanya was asked if he thought about one-timing the shot and what led to him flicking it to the far post.

“I thought of like, finishing first time. And it looked like a lot time in space, so I decided to take a touch and then just hit it far post.”

That goal was Makhanya’s first U.S. Open Cup goal and the eventual match-winner.

“You can see he’s technical,” said Carnell. “He’s a technical center back. And sometimes we sit on the edge of our seats because he’s brave. And we love that about all the way to. And even in that moment, he sees exactly that corner, and Stroud tries to recover on the on the goal line, and Nate does a good job come back in play, because he could have been offside. So he, he comes back in the game. So, yeah, we’ve learned a lot over the last week with set pieces and VAR and stuff like that. So we spoken a little bit about it, and hopefully the those little lessons are bearing fruit.”

After the goal, Marcucci went down with a non-contact injury in the goal area and had to be helped off the field. Carlos Coronel came in to close out the match for the Red Bulls.

Philadelphia used the final eight minutes of stoppage time to control possession and see out the match, securing their spot in the 2025 U.S. Open Cup semifinals for the fifth time in club history.

They will now face Nashville SC on the road on September 16, with a chance to reach their fourth U.S. Open Cup final. That match will be against either Austin FC or Minnesota United.

For now, Carnell and company will rest and enjoy Wednesday night’s victory before preparing for a rematch against the Red Bulls in Harrison, NJ on Saturday. It’s a quick turnaround, but Carnell said his team is ready for the transition back to league play.

“We have to check now and do inventory,” said Carnell. “Who can go and what’s going on. So yeah, we have a bunch of guys that didn’t make the roster. We’ll get them on a training session tomorrow. Everyone dug deep here. Everyone played a role. We’ll get some of those guys who played limited minutes in on a training session as well, and then it’s just about recovery. And then we’ll see Friday before we head out to New York.”

With the win, Philadelphia extended their unbeaten streak against the New York Red Bulls to 16 straight matches in all competitions. They will look to add to that streak again on Saturday.

If you cannot make it up to Sports Illustrated Stadium on Saturday, the match will be available on Apple TV+ starting at 7:30 PM as part of MLS Season Pass.

Main Article Photo Courtesy of the Philadelphia Union