KANSAS CITY—The Philadelphia Union keep impressing and surprising as their unreal push after the World Cup break continues. After an abysmal first 16 minutes that saw them concede three goals, the Union came out in the second half with renewed energy and belief, scoring three goals and getting a Sporting Kansas City own goal within a span of about ten minutes to take the 4-3 lead—one that they would not relinquish. Though they were facing a team in dead last, it was still a road match and against a squad playing with more belief after they defeated LAFC the previous week.

Coach Ryan Richter made no changes in his starting lineup from the previous match, with Andre Blake in net and a back line of Kai Wagner, Nate Harriel, Neil Pierre, and Frankie Westfield. Jovan Lukic and Danley Jean Jean Jacques were paired at defensive midfield, while Indiana Vassilev and Cavan Sullivan held down attacking mid. Bruno Damiani and Milan Iloski once again were the striker duo.

While the Union started the match bringing some pressure in SKC’s end, it was the home team that got on the board first courtesy of their club record signing, André Luiz. He was able to beat Lukic and Harriel and blast it past Blake to make it 1-0 in SKC’s favor in the 5th minute. Luiz followed that up five minutes later with another goal in the 10th minute.

The Union pushed back, carving out a few dangerous chances in front of the SKC goal. But just as momentum seemed to shift, Luiz burst forward on a threatening run, only for Harriel to intervene at the last moment and knock the ball out for a corner. SKC punished that small opening, converting the ensuing set piece with a header from Wyatt Meyer in the 16th minute to stretch the lead to 3–0.

Blake saved it from becoming 4-0 in the 29th minute when he made a big save on Calvin Harris’s shot. Several minutes later, Blake made another save, punching the ball out, and Luiz was giving the Union fits down their left side.

Frustrations were clearly mounting as Luiz went down perhaps a little too easily after a collision with Wagner, with the latter saying something as he walked past. A kerfuffle then broke out with Justin Reynolds and Wagner having words, with Vassilev and Damiani getting in the middle of it to push Reynolds away.

SKC seemed content to let the Union have possession and try to catch them on the counter, especially on the Union’s left side. By halftime, the Union had had 57 percent possession and five shots, but were unable to break through despite a couple decent chances.

Another coming together happened on the field right after the halftime whistle blew as Jesús Bueno, who was on the bench, was having words with SKC players, as was Wagner. Bueno received a yellow card as a result. The teams were clearly fired up, and perhaps SKC had poked the bear a little bit as the teams were heading to the locker room.

Richter made one halftime substitution, replacing Vassilev with Quinn Sullivan. Quinn wasted no time making an impact, ripping a shot from distance that forced a save by Stefan Cleveland. The team had better energy to start, and what followed was nothing short of extraordinary.

In the 64th minute, Cavan fed a ball to Westfield, who shot from the corner of the box, with Damiani deflecting the ball in to get the Union on the board and give them renewed belief. Initially credited to Westfield, the goal was changed to Damiani shortly after. With the assist, his 12th, Cavan now has the record for most assists in a single season by a teenager, and eight straight matches with a goal contribution. The Union also have the longest streak in MLS history of a teenager having a goal or assist at 12 matches.

Smelling blood in the water, the Union did not waste any time as they scored just two minutes later. Quinn threaded a fantastic ball to Danley, who crossed the ball in front of goal to Cavan, who finished it into the back of the net for his 19th goal contribution of the season.

Clearly fired up, the Union were not done. Just two minutes later, Iloski found the equalizer after some quality work by Quinn to get him the ball, then battling defenders and to keep upright, Iloski smashed the ball home, making it 3-3 in the 68th minute.

With it all even, the tide had definitely turned in the Union’s favor. Wagner sent a fantastic ball into the box, where Pierre leapt up and headed the ball down. SKC’s Zorhan Bassong then knocked the ball in for an own goal, giving the Union the 4-3 lead in the 73rd minute in an unreal turn of events.

Richter made more changes in the 82nd minute, bringing on the veteran leadership of Alejandro Bedoya, who replaced Cavan. Ezekiel Alladoh subbed on for Iloski, and Bueno replaced Lukic. The final substitution came in the 89th minute as Agustin Anello subbed on for Damiani.

With six minutes of stoppage time to get through, the Union, especially Alladoh, kept trying to keep the ball in the corner to kill off some time. A scary moment came when there was a collision between Blake and Pierre that appeared to put Blake’s knee into Pierre’s midsection, leaving the defender down for a couple minutes, but he was able to continue. The Union were able to ride it out and get all three points, which moved them into 6th place in the Eastern Conference and extend their MLS unbeaten streak to 11 matches.

“Yeah, crazy game, and and a tale two halves,” Richter shared after the match. “Of course, we didn’t start the game in the way that looked anything like the team that I’ve watched over the past few months. But the mentality of this group is outrageous, and what would have been easy to quit at halftime, you know, with on the road, long travel, down 3-0, guys going away with the national team after the game, the way that the guys responded in the second half was was fantastic, and I’m proud of them.

“So, congrats to them for showing again the way that they’re believing in each other right now, and what is possible with this group is fun to be a part of. It’s fun to watch, and we have to keep going the right way. And we got a reminder tonight that we are not perfect, and when we’re not at our best, any team in this league can beat us.”

It was indeed a wake up call that the Union needed after two 5-0 wins in a row. The adversity was something they needed to face, and they battled back with a belief that was not there in the first half of the season.

One had to wonder what was said at halftime when they were down 3-0, because they came out renewed. Richter shared, “Maybe I’m messed up, but I truly believed that we could score three goals in the second half. I truly believed that at halftime, if we play the way that we want to play, the energy and intensity that we’re normally playing with, that we can score three goals in the second half, and I think that they believe that as well. So just to refocus, come out, don’t give up on the game. You know, forget about what’s after this. Let’s go try to make something out of this game, and then they get four goals out of it in nine minutes, I think it was. Now that is incredible. That’s incredible mentality to be able to come back and win this game.”

That mentality, which Richter has to be credited in helping foster since he has taken over, is the type that can keep carrying the Union during this monster of a second half, and they will certainly need it in their next match when multiple key players depart for international duty and will miss Orlando on Saturday, September 26. If this Union squad has shown anything, it is resilience and that Philly grit.

Main article photo credit: Philadelphia Union