CHESTER, Pa. — Looking to find their first MLS points of the season, the Philadelphia Union hosted Chicago Fire on a pleasant early spring day on the banks of the Delaware River. The result, however, would be anything but pleasant as the Union suffered their fifth straight MLS loss, falling 2-1. While the matches, for the most part, have been tightly contested, fortune has not been on the side of the Boys in Blue.
The promotion for the match was Kids’ Day, so it seemed only fitting that 16-year-old Cavan Sullivan made his first MLS start of the season (and second ever). It was also his first MLS start at home. Additionally, fellow 16-year-old Malik Jakupovic received a short-term call up to appear on the bench for the first time in an MLS match.
Needing a win in the worst way as they entered the match 0-4, head coach Bradley Carnell went with a lineup that saw a few changes, but the starting lineup has been so fluid lately that it was sort of par for the course. With Ezekiel Alladoh and Agustín Anello unavailable, Bruno Damiani and Milan Iloski got the start at forward. Cavan Sullivan and Alejandro Bedoya were at attacking midfield, while Danley Jean Jacques and Jesús Bueno were the defensive mid pairing. The back line had Philippe Ndinga and Frankie Westfield at outside back, and Nathan Harriel and Olwethu Makhanya at center back. Andre Blake rounded out the lineup in goal.
The Union got an early free kick chance in the 2nd minute when Westfield was taken down by a late hit by Dje D’Avilla. Their first shot on target, however, came in the 6th minute from Bueno after some nice buildup by Sullivan and Damiani, but Bueno’s shot was saved by the Fire’s keeper, Chris Brady. The Union continued the pressure with some energetic play around the box, leading to Chicago having to clear the ball out for a Union corner.
Chicago’s Robin Lod was shown the match’s first yellow in the 8th minute after a foul on Danley, which rendered the Haitian down on the ground for a minute, but was ultimately able to get up and continue.
Chicago got a big opportunity on a free kick in the 19th minute that was blasted right on goal for their first shot on target, but into the hands of Blake. The Union responded with an inspired push toward goal, with Westfield delivering a great cross in front of the goal that just missed getting a tap in by Iloski, and was defended out for a corner. The Union were clearly feeling their attack, and kept up the momentum. They got another dangerous free kick when D’Avilla fouled Damiani and was shown a yellow in the 23rd minute, but the attempt was blocked.
Play would come to a halt in the 27th minute when Bueno and Philip Zinckernagel collided and clunked heads, rendering both players down. Bueno was able to get up after some time, but Zinckernagel was down for several minutes. He was able to walk off the field, but Maren Haile-Selassie replaced him in the 31st minute as a concussion substitution.
In a match that seemed to have countless fouls and players down, the Union saw their first yellow when Ndinga was booked for a foul on D’Avilla in the 37th minute.
As seven minutes of stoppage time commenced, Chicago almost found the back of the net, but Harriel came up huge, blocking it out for a corner. Blake made a great save shortly after, but was unable to stop the bullet of a header moments later by Hugo Cuypers. It was an unfortunate turn of events after the Union had what seemed to be a much more creative, energetic first half—albeit without the finishing.
The Union would have the last word in the first half, however, when a Westfield throw-in bounced off Bedoya’s head to Iloski, who lobbed a high header over Brady and in for the equalizer in the waning moments of the first half. It was a great response by the Union to help swing the momentum in their direction before heading to the locker room.
Jovan Lukic was a halftime substitution for the Union, replacing Bueno. The Union did not get to enjoy a level scoreline for long as Chicago’s Jonathan Bamba made it 2-1 in the 58th minute. Carnell went to his bench shortly after, replacing Bedoya with Indiana Vassilev, and making his MLS debut, Malik Jakupovic replaced Sullivan in the 62nd minute. Another substitution came shortly after as Jeremy Rafanello replaced Danley in the 66th minute.
The Union got a dangerous free kick opportunity in the 72nd minute, but it went for naught. Ben Bender was the final substitution, replacing Ndinga in the 76th minute. The Fire almost scored again on a breakaway by Bamba, but Lod’s shot hit the crossbar.
Frankie Westfield was fouled by Viktor Radojević in the 87th minute, who received a yellow card leading to a free kick just outside the box that blocked. As three minutes of stoppage time was announced, the dread of going 0-5 to start the season was clearly felt by the home crowd and the stadium was half-empty at that point. Despite a last-ditch push, the Union ultimately fell 2-1 at home for their worst start in team history, and the worst start for a defending Supporters’ Shield winner. It was disappointing, to say the least, for the team and the fans.
“Falling short today is really bitter,” Bradley Carnell remarked after the match. “You know, I think we showed a real positive trend and a signal in the second half of the Club America game. Had high hopes, high expectations today, and yeah, thought we had a really positive start. Give one or two moments away, and then all of a sudden, you know, as I think you would understand, the group who’s a little fragile, which is unfortunate to concede the goal where we did and then we fight back. And you can just hear the bubble, the burst of energy from the crowd and everybody. And that was the signal at the half time to try and galvanize the group, to try and galvanize everything.”
Unfortunately, the squad would fail to finish the job in the second half. “We just couldn’t put the pieces of the puzzle together in the second half and fall short on another cross,” Carnell said. “So I’m gutted for the guys. The good news is, we track things in five game blocks, and that’s probably one of the worst five game blocks I’ve ever been a part of. We’re going to use this window now to set the tone, set the rights from the wrongs, and make sure we do our due diligence and get to the bottom of it.”
On what the problems were, Carnell once again noted they needed to get back to the basics and simply improve their fundamentals. “So it’s just about getting the right shape and structure, and everyone’s willing. That’s what I see. I think everyone’s willing and want to do so well, but sometimes sticking to the basics is a really good thing to get you through this.”
Team captains Alejandro Bedoya and Andre Blake, veterans that they are, have been through many good and bad seasons with the Union. Speaking post-game, their frustrations were apparent in not only what they said, but how they said it and their body language.
Bedoya was candid, not only saying the players had to be better, but all involved from the top to bottom. He shared, “As long as I’ve been here, this is the worst rut that we’ve been in the club. So it’s really frustrating, especially when I thought of first half where we kind of played in their end, pretty much the whole half, you know, and to give up just kind of a cheap goal, you know, get unlucky with Chuchu [Bueno], kind of his touch leading him out.
“But just got to be the better defensively, but we got to be better on both sides, both ends of the ball, right? It’s just simply not good enough, simply not good enough from guys that we expect to do better. Quality has to be better. So I think everybody’s got to take a hard look in the mirror, not just players, but I think it’s from top down.”
Bedoya noted how, due to the nature of the playoff system, the Union could turn it around and be in contention. “What I told the group is, this stretch of five games, throw it out the window. MLS is pretty damn forgiving in terms of, we can come back, go on a run, and all we have to do is make the playoffs. So it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.”
“Tough times right now, very, very tough times,” Blake remarked, with the exasperation clearly showing. “And we just have to keep going, you know? We have to find ways, find the motivation wherever. And you know, that’s just the situation right now.”
As a leader of the team and the longest tenured Union player, Blake has been there through many ups and downs. When asked how he can make sure the young players do not get too down on themselves, he related, “It’s difficult. You know, you don’t want to get too down on yourself, but also, like, I think you need to do something different to change this. It can’t just be business as usual, and it’s not going to fix itself, you know. But it gets difficult because you also have to be positive. So we have to figure out a balance. But I know that something needs to change.”
Blake, as the captain of the Jamaican national team, will be leading his squad in their quest to qualify for the World Cup during the upcoming international break—something he said he is looking forward to.
Meanwhile, Bedoya pointed out that the team will be getting a much-needed physical and mental break after the Champions Cup run, and focus solely on league play. With their next match not until Saturday, April 4 at Charlotte, the squad will, as Bedoya said, have time to take a good look at themselves, reset, and hopefully get back on track.
Main article photo courtesy of the Philadelphia Union.
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