Bridgeview, Ill. — If Philadelphia Union head coach Bradley Carnell had gone into Saturday’s match looking for a response from his squad as they looked to close out their first-round matchup against Chicago on the road, one might think he got exactly what he was looking for.

Capitalizing on two mistakes from goalkeeper Jeffery Gal and a brace from Tai Baribo, Philadelphia advanced to the next round of the MLS Cup Playoffs, knocking out the Chicago Fire 3-0 on the road Saturday evening.

“Very impressive for the guys to see the moment and to execute the way they did, to set up the tempo of the game in the right way,” said Bradley Carnell when talking about the match. “And then it was about game management. Really proud of the guys. Really happy to get to the next round.”

There were a few surprises when both sides announced their starting elevens and benches ahead of kickoff Saturday evening.

For Philadelphia, Frankie Westfield got the start, which was no surprise. However, with Indiana Vassilev on the bench, Westfield started in the double ten position alongside Milan IIoski on the evening.

“He rolled up as a 10 with the ball, and then sometimes even as far forward as a second striker,” said Carnell when talking about Westfield’s role in the midfield. “So it wasn’t really with the ball that way. It was more against the ball. How Bamba floats in between the lines and causes problems for Danley and Lukic. So that was like a third six just rolling in a little bit deeper time.”

Another surprise was the omission of forward Mikael Uhre from the roster. Carnell later stated that Uhre, who had been dealing with some knee issues and trained all week, was just not 100 percent ahead of the match, so the team decided to hold him out.

Chicago saw the return of midfielder Philip Zinckernagel to the starting lineup after missing last Sunday’s match due to an injury he suffered in warmups. However, the big news for them was the omission of goalkeeper Chris Brady, who was listed as questionable heading into the match.

Gregg Berhalter turned to backup Jeff Gal instead. Gal had made seven appearances prior to Saturday’s match, with only one clean sheet while allowing nine goals this year.

Philadelphia wasted no time testing Gal and getting on the board, as pressure from Tai Baribo forced the forward to steal the ball from the Chicago goalkeeper’s feet as he looked upfield. Baribo didn’t miss his opportunity to capitalize on the mistake, striking it home to put Philadelphia up one in the 8th minute of play.

Baribo’s hot start wasn’t done either, as he capitalized on another opportunity just eight minutes later. This time, thanks to Kai Wagner’s wonderful delivery into the box off a cross, Baribo drove the ball off his head past Gal into the net, putting Philadelphia up two only 16 minutes into the match.

For Tai, it was his first brace for the Union since May 24, when he scored two goals at home against Inter Miami in a 3-3 draw.

Chicago found themselves with an opportunity to draw the match within one in the 30th minute of the first half. Off a corner from Philip Zinckernagel, Jovan Lukic fouled Jack Elliott in the box, leading referee Jon Freeman to award the Fire a penalty kick opportunity.

Brian Gutierrez of Chicago elected to take the attempt, and while the young midfielder perhaps could have had a better take, credit to Andre Blake for stepping up, diving to his left to make the save, and keeping the lead at two while maintaining momentum in the Union’s favor.

Philadelphia used that moment to capitalize on another mistake from Jeff Gal only minutes later. The goalkeeper’s attempt to clear the ball out of the back ran into the press from the road team. This time it was Milan IIoski who caused the disruption, as Gal’s clearance deflected into a charging Bruno Damiani, who one-timed it into an empty net to give Philadelphia a three-goal lead heading into the break.

“There’s momentum and swings and sways of a game that determine the outcome,” Carnell commented on the moment. “And if we concede a goal there, then we’re under pressure even at two to one, right? So, and in the last game, we scored a goal five minutes later, we’re two zero up when they scored a goal five minutes later, it was two, two. So these five minute little increments of the momentum and sway of the game are vitally important.”

Chicago thought they caught a break early in the second half when a ball played back by Danley Jean Jacques to Andre Blake for a clearance deflected off Brian Gutierrez and into the back of the net. However, referee Jon Freeman ruled that the ball deflected off Gutierrez’s arm and disallowed the goal.

Philadelphia spent the rest of the second half locking down defensively and doing their best to see the match out—most importantly, keeping a clean sheet.

Chicago had their moments here and there, but for the most part, Philadelphia shut down any opportunities to get a goal back. As the second half went on, frustration built among the players and fans, leading to two stoppages due to fan chants and drinks being thrown onto the field. Chicago’s head coach and players asked the fans on two separate occasions to stop, but the frustration had already boiled over.

“I just thought we took our moments really well and almost swayed the dominoes onto our side a little bit,” Carnell mentioned when asked about the emotions in this match,”and that way it was a little bit easier to control the emotional state of the game and credit to the guys with the way we play. Not to give any silly things away.”

Chicago had another opportunity in the 94th minute, as Jack Elliott rocketed a shot that forced Andre Blake to make an amazing save to keep the sheet clean and see the match out as Philadelphia closed the match and moved on to the next round of the MLS Cup Playoffs.

While the 3-0 road win was impressive in itself, Philadelphia has allowed only two goals from open play over their last six matches — something Carnell was very pleased with.

“Hunger, desire, maturity over the course of the season,” Carnell praised about his team’s defensive work. “The guys seem to be galvanizing in a really good way, positive energy, everyone at this point of the season, understanding roles, responsibilities as they should do by now and and now, there’s no hard feelings if I’m not playing.”

Philadelphia will now head to the MLS Cup Eastern Conference semifinals for the fifth time in club history, as they await the winner of the NYCFC–Charlotte FC series currently tied at one, with the deciding match set for this coming Friday in Charlotte, North Carolina.

That semifinal match has yet to be scheduled but will be played the weekend of November 22–23 at Subaru Park. For Carnell, the break is welcome, giving his squad time to rest and prepare for the final playoff push.

“I see this unity within the group right now, and it’s not quite, you can’t quite put your finger on it, but it’s a special feeling. And when this special feeling is all around Chester, roaming around with the fans and the team and the staff, the whole front office, when you feel this momentum and and support, it almost becomes, yeah, not an autopilot, but something that we can really enjoy for the rest of the season now.”

Main Article Photo Courtesy of the Philadelphia Union