CHESTER, Pa. — It didn’t look like there was an excessively large celebration in the Philadelphia Union locker room after Saturday’s 2-0 win over New York City FC. No loud cheers. No dancing. The most banter, perhaps, revolved around which players dressed old-school for “90s Night” at the stadium.
For captain Alejandro Bedoya, decked out in ’90s-style ripped jeans and ribbing Keegan Rosenberry for not going the same, there’s a simple reason for that. The Union, although in the mist of what could be a season-defining surge, aren’t doing anything they didn’t know they were already capable of — even when those outside the club may have had their doubts.
Advertisement
“We’re good in confidence but we’ve always been,” Bedoya told The Athletic. “I’ve said it before, there’s just small margins in this league. Even in this game, I think New York City had two, three great chances in the first half. If they put those away, it’s a different game. … I think we’re looking good but we’ve kept the same style of play. We just gotta keep going.”
The Philly players and coaches may be trying to stay grounded and give off an everything-is-normal-here vibe. But the truth is, for a historically dormant franchise, the Union are in the midst of one of the most impactful stretches in recent history. Consider that, in the span of 11 days, the team:
- Advanced to its third U.S. Open Cup final in five years with a 3-0 dismantling of the Chicago Fire
- Hired a new sporting director in Ernst Tanner who has a good pedigree in both youth academies and the international transfer market
- Broke a late deadlock to pick up a signature road win and leapfrog a rival in the Eastern Conference standings
- Earned a statement win against a top three team in MLS that’s led by one of the league’s premier star attractions, David Villa
It’s the final accomplishment that might be the most meaningful as the Union had, until Saturday, been unable to get over the hump of beating star-studded squads, consistently falling short against the likes of Atlanta United, LAFC and the LA Galaxy. In fact, setting aside their Open Cup win over the Red Bulls, the Union had only beaten two teams currently above the playoff line: the Montreal Impact and Real Salt Lake, neither of which are a particularly frightening opponent.
“Haris [Medunjanin] was saying right before we went out of the tunnel, ‘Let’s see us against a top team. We have to win one of these games against the top clubs,’” Union head coach Jim Curtin said. “We have played good against them. We played pretty well against Atlanta and played pretty well against Toronto FC. Now, we finally push over that hump and get a clean sheet against, I think, one of the better teams in the Eastern Conference, if not the league. So I could not be prouder of the guys.”
Even though the wins didn’t follow, Curtin stressed that he’s always made sure his players went for it, no matter the opponent. They showed that again on Saturday, at a raucous Talen Energy Stadium, by playing some crisp, beautiful soccer at times, stringing together several one-touch passes and keeping NYCFC back on their heels. They were rewarded for those efforts in the second half when Cory Burke scored his sixth goal in his sixth MLS start (the Union are a whopping 6-0-0 in those games) and Ilsinho returned from an injury to deliver some magic in a way only he can.
Pure. Class.
Illsinho makes it 2-0 for the @PhilaUnion! #PHIvNYC https://t.co/abOsjJvLB5
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) August 19, 2018
“We are going to be brave and we are going to go for it,” Curtin said. “I do not want to have a group, and the fans do not want to have a group, and the players do not respond well, to putting 10 guys around the ball and letting New York come dictate things on our home field. … Overall, I think you get rewarded when your team is brave.”
Advertisement
The Union’s “brave” style of play, combined with their three-game winning streak across all competitions, has certainly gotten the attention of some national pundits, who are starting to wonder what the ceiling is for a team currently in fifth place in the Eastern Conference standings but climbing fast.
Do the players feel that buzz? Do they think it’s warranted?
“I think it might appear that way, to people looking on,” Rosenberry said. “We realize the quality we have. What was frustrating for some of the year was that we couldn’t push that into a result on the field. We see it in training every day and the small-sided games we play and the little things we do in practice. But whenever it comes into fruition in the game, it’s always more enjoyable for us.”
Rosenberry was particularly proud of the shutout (the first time NYCFC was held scoreless since May 5), which was a major step for the Union’s young backline, which recently swapped center backs with Jack Elliott filling in for the injured Mark McKenzie. That it came against the league’s second-highest scoring team, in front of a huge visitors’ supporting section, made it even sweeter.
“It felt like a playoff game a little bit,” said Rosenberry, who got really heated in the final minutes when NYCFC’s Ronald Matarrita was shown a red card for a serious foul against Ilsinho. “The more environments like that we can put ourselves in, I think, is going to help us down the road.”
Union were better prepared, better on the ball, better off the ball, more mature & better coached today. Just better in every facet of the game than a good NYCFC team. #PHIvNYC
— Matthew Doyle (@MattDoyle76) August 19, 2018
“I think we’ve put in a lot of good performances over the year,” Rosenberry added. “We’re finally getting the results to prove it. … Sometimes, the Open Cup can be a little bit of a burden for teams, having those extra games and putting out those lineups. But for us, I think, we used it and gained momentum from it and started winning because of it.”
Advertisement
So what happens now that the Union are fresh off three straight wins, all of which you can make a case for being one of the biggest of the season?
They’ve certainly put themselves in position to have the best season in the club’s nine-year history if they can win the Open Cup and qualify for the playoffs. But considering the Open Cup final vs. Houston is on the road in the Texas heat, and there are dangerous teams charging behind them (including red-hot D.C. United and defending champs Toronto) to unseat them from playoff position, plenty of hardened Philly fans can certainly envision a scenario in which neither of those things happen.
Curtin knows it too.
“We have some momentum now,” the Union coach said. “We still have not accomplished anything yet.”
(Top photo: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports)