CHESTER, Pa. — On Wednesday, the Philadelphia Union will return to action following the conclusion of the 2026 FIFA World Cup as they take on Red Bull New York in a showdown between two MLS Eastern Conference rivals at Subaru Park. It will be their first match since a 6-4 defeat to Inter Miami on Sunday, May 24.
“It’s been really needed, you know. Mentally, it was really rough,” said Nathan Harriel when asked about the benefit the World Cup break. “You know, we disappointed the fans, the club, the city itself. The first half of the season isn’t what we represent as a club, and we we never want to go back that way again. And none of the fans deserve it. But it’s nice now to be able to start fresh in a way with this nice break that we had, so yeah, we’re always looking forward to getting back to playing at home against Red Bull on Wednesday.”
Wednesday will also mark the first time interim head coach Ryan Richter will coach an MLS regular season match for the Philadelphia Union.
“Yeah, it’s one that I’m very grateful for,” Richter said when asked about the opportunity presented to him. “One that I’ve worked for a long time for as a part of this club. I’m grateful for the mentors that I’ve had in my almost nine years working here. I’m grateful for the people that have pushed me, and mostly all the players from every level, the ones that I’ve worked with over this time.”
Richter started coaching in the Philadelphia Union Academy in 2018 following a seven-year professional playing career. He worked his way up to becoming part of Jim Curtin’s staff and most recently served as the head coach of Philadelphia Union II, leading the club to its second consecutive MLS NEXT Pro Eastern Conference Final in 2025.
In fact, this match will feature both head coaches from that contest, in which Red Bull New York II ultimately defeated Richter’s side 2-1 en route to winning the 2025 MLS NEXT Pro Cup. Following that season, Red Bull promoted then-head coach Michael Bradley to the first-team role.
However, when asked about that, Richter said it’s more about the match up than the coaches.
“It’s a game against Red Bull,” he said. “And that means a lot for our club. That means a lot for the rivalry, and they’re doing some really good things this year.”
Bradley’s squad has been solid to this point. Through 15 matches, the club sits fifth in the Eastern Conference with a 6-5-4 record, including three road victories in eight matches, good for 22 points on the season.
Leading the way is 18-year-old homegrown forward Julian Hall, who has emerged from the club’s academy and leads the team with nine goals and four assists. Another homegrown player, midfielder Adri Mehmeti, has contributed one goal and four assists this season.
Along with those homegrown players, Bradley has also bolstered the squad with several key additions during the winter transfer window. The club added Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty from CF Montréal, Cade Caldwell on loan from Chivas de Guadalajara, Ethan Horvath from Cardiff City, Justin Che from Brøndby, and Jorge Ruvalcaba from Pumas, who ranks second on the team with seven goals this season.
“They’re really aggressive in their counter pressing,” Richter mentioned when asked. “They’re really aggressive in the way they press from organized shape, when they press negative passes. So for us, if we’re loose with the ball and and we’re giving turnovers in the midfield, unforced errors, then we can really be punished.”
“But at the same time, we can take advantage of some of these things if we’re organized defensively and the middle’s closed, and there’s no easy way for them to combine through. If we play the first pass deeper in transition and look to attack the space behind their back line, I think it’s one that we can find a lot of success with.”
Philadelphia has the upper hand in this rivalry with 12 home wins in league play, including a 2-0 victory last July in which Indiana Vassilev and Bruno Damiani each scored. However, as the first 15 matches of this season have shown, results have been difficult to come by at Subaru Park.
Richter, however, has seen growth during the World Cup break and hopes the team’s leadership will help turn the season around.
“Yeah, we came in, and the first message was not about the tactics, the way that we want to attack, the way that we want. Then the first message was: What culture do we want? How do we train? And how do we play in a competitive way? And what is our mentality and mindset? And how do we implement standards every day that hold us to that?”
“It’s really important, you know,” said Nathan Harriel. “I think last year was the first time in my career that I’ve lost away at Red Bull, and that’s something that we don’t do. So to be able to come back and play against an opponent like that, the first getting back to set the tone of second half season. To win at home in front of our home fans is extremely important, and that’s the focus right now, is just getting a win against Red Bull.”
As of Tuesday evening, the Union had no one listed as injured in the MLS Player Status report, though Richter had said Neil Pierre was managing a knock. Speaking of which, Pierre has been confirmed to be back from his loan at Lyngby, which means he may feature in the lineup. The even bigger news of late was the return of Kai Wagner from Birmingham, who could be available for selection. On top of that, Quinn Sullivan is also ready to rejoin the squad after his knee injury sidelined him since late last season. All of them strengthen the lineup considerably. Olwethu Makhanya, however, has not rejoined the squad from being away for the World Cup.
It should be a great showdown on Wednesday night at Subaru Park. If you are unable to be there in person, you can catch it streaming on AppleTV at 7:30 PM.
Main article photo courtesy of the Philadelphia Union.
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