CHESTER, Pa. — After another heartbreaking result on Wednesday evening in Orlando, the Philadelphia Union return home to Subaru Park on Saturday night desperately searching for answers as they prepare to face the struggling Columbus Crew in their final home match before the FIFA World Cup break.

Despite flashes of attacking promise in the 4-3 loss to Orlando City SC, Philadelphia remains at the bottom of Major League Soccer entering the weekend, still searching for its first home victory of the 2026 campaign while hoping its young core and new attacking pieces can finally turn performances into points.

Following the 4-3 loss in Orlando and the results across the league on Wednesday night, Philadelphia now finds itself still at the bottom of the league in 30th place, trailing Sporting Kansas City by two points.

And while Wednesday saw Milan Iloski, Cavan Sullivan, and Ben Bender all contribute to only the second time this year that the Union have scored more than three goals in a league contest, two players who have yet to find themselves on the scoresheet are Ezekiel Alladoh and Bruno Damiani.

While the two have combined for a total of 1,466 minutes without a goal, Philadelphia Union head coach Bradley Carnell pointed out during his press conference what he is seeing the players, especially Bruno, doing well despite the lack of goals.

“I mean, we never have to judge the work rate and the work ethic and the character of these guys… you know, Bruno and [Ezekiel] and Milan, and they’re trying, right,” said Carnell. “So, and running to the near post is actually, you know, I think Brian White, how many does he score a year at the near post, you know?

“So, offering himself [Damiani] and then we knew it’s a back line that’s going to drop. When we put them under pressure in the box, which does open up the cutbacks then, you know, credit to him. He makes that run, the back line drops and then all of a sudden, you know, Milan’s ready for the tap in.”

Their opponent on Saturday evening, the Columbus Crew, defeated Philadelphia back on April 26 in Columbus, Ohio, 2-0 following two defensive lapses from the Union back line.

Since that time, the Crew have not been able to manage a point, having lost their next three matches while conceding three goals in each of those contests. They currently find themselves in 13th place in the MLS Eastern Conference with 12 points.

So, if there is ever a time for Carnell and company to get their first home win of the season — and for Alladoh and Damiani to score while Philadelphia picks up the points it has been searching for — Saturday evening might prove to be quite the opportunity to do so.

That said, there have been similar situations already this year that have not proven fruitful, so time will tell.

It will be Unity – Soccer for All Night, presented by Penn Medicine at Subaru Park, as part of one of the club’s annual theme nights. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. and will again be the final match for the club in Chester until after the World Cup break.

If you cannot make it out to the match, it will be available on Apple TV.

In other Union news, on Friday the Haitian Football Federation announced its full squad for the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup. Among the players announced was Philadelphia Union midfielder Danley Jean-Jacques as Haiti participates in only its second World Cup and for the first time since 1974.

In their first appearance in West Germany, Les Grenadiers faced Poland, Italy, and Argentina in the group stage, losing all three matches while conceding 14 goals and scoring only two before bowing out in the group stage.

Sébastien Migné, Haiti’s national team head coach, is probably hoping his squad’s second appearance fares better.

In Group C, Jean-Jacques and his teammates will face the likes of Brazil, Morocco, and Scotland in group play, with their schedule as follows:

June 13 – Scotland in Foxborough, Massachusetts
June 19 – Brazil in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
June 24 – Morocco in Atlanta, Georgia

For Philadelphia Union fans, the Brazil match will be of particular interest as it will serve as a homecoming for Danley during the tournament.

Should Jean-Jacques and Haiti impress during the tournament, could he be on the move back to Europe during the summer transfer window? Again, time will tell.

Main article photo courtesy of the Philadelphia Union.