Union Display Strengths and Some Weaknesses in Hard-Fought MLS Is Back Tournament
The Union’s dreams of the lifting the MLS is Back Tournament trophy were squashed on Wednesday night when the Portland Timbers defeated them in the semifinals, 2-1.
The game was full of back and forth action but Philadelphia did not play up to par and came within inches of forcing penalties.
We also wanna say a HUGE thank you to our coaching & tech staff, our players, our content creators, & our communications team.
— PhilaUnion (@PhilaUnion) August 6, 2020
Everything you’ve seen over the last few weeks has been because of their tireless work.
Philly-we can’t wait to get back to you & keep this fight goin’ pic.twitter.com/8WnCGq8kmF
The U had some chances here and there but they earned a golden opportunity to level the game when defender Sébastian Blanco fouled midfielder Jamiro Monteiro in the box for a spot-kick. Unfortunately in the 45’+1’, forward Sergio Santos failed to convert and blasted his shot over the bar.
Philadelphia went home empty-handed but they certainly went down with a strong fight. All throughout the tournament they displayed their toughness and dominated on the defensive end. Although their run abruptly ended on the 5th, it’s safe to say that fans and media alike were proud of how the Boys in Blue performed in Orlando.
Fans were able to see the major growth and improvement from Homegrown star Brenden Aaronson all tournament long as he executed a sublime through-ball to Santos for his one-time finish and the team’s third goal against SKC. Another exciting prospect was being able to observe the grittiness and toughness displayed by midfielder José “El Brujo” Martinez.
Without the offensive prowess and defensive superiority between these two, the Union could have easily been packing their bags much earlier than this past Wednesday.
Positives
As for the positives, Andre Blake was the Union’s standout star and proved to be the best goalkeeper in the tournament. In the three group stage games, he recorded 16 saves and only allowed 2 goals. He played phenomenally well in the match against NYC with a huge shutout to start the tournament off in a positive way. Aside from the semifinal match, Blake allowed no more than one goal throughout every four games in Orlando. He notched a total of 27 saves in the MLS is Back Tournament and picked up right where he left off before the season was postponed in March.
The defense and backline as a unit played commendably well and some of their best soccer in each defender’s respective tenure with the Boys in Blue. One player in particular who absolutely dominated game in and out was center back Mark McKenzie. He was always there to shut down opposing attacks and clear the ball in tight spaces, oftentimes in the box. Other than the semifinal game and poor defending on set pieces, the young backline stood tall and provided to be a bright spot and assert their dominance against some top teams in the league.
Regardless of the fact that he did not start in the team’s first group stage match against New York City FC, and he only logged 280 minutes, Santos was outstanding in the tournament. People will point to his missed penalty on Wednesday and fault him for that, but nonetheless, he took advantage of his opportunities in the knockout round by scoring the game-winner against New England and two huge goals versus Sporting KC. It was so refreshing to witness a Union striker finally play up to his strengths and fulfill his duties while leading the charge in Philadelphia’s attack.
Negatives
After recording 518 minutes played and starting in every single game in the tournament, striker Kacper Przybylko was extremely disappointing in the tournament. He only scored one goal in five games and was practically in no-man’s land on the pitch, oftentimes too far behind the attack and never in the box to finish home crosses. Going back to the first game against NYCFC, he just looked slow and lethargic and barely put himself in good positions to score. Prior to the last game, manager Jim Curtin spoke highly of the “Friendly Ghost” and opted to start him, but fans only saw the same poor play that he displayed all tournament long.
Despite the solid play from the backline throughout the majority of the tournament, the team’s set-piece defending was extremely poor in their first and last games. Poor marking led to countless scoring chances for both New York and Portland. Luckily against NYCFC, they failed to convert their chances with abysmal finishing, and Blake was able to bail them out.
As for Wednesday’s game, that was not the case and the Timbers punished them on both their goals and sent Philly packing. Left-back Kai Wagner was at fault for both goals as he lost his man on each occasion and this ultimately led to the heartbreaking loss.
From a fan and media aspect, I am definitely proud of how the Boys in Blue performed in Orlando when keeping in mind everything currently going on around the country and the player’s mental well-being since they were not able to see their families for almost a month.
It must have taken a lot of sacrifices and commitment to stay focused, but Philadelphia was able to play admirably well and earn seven crucial points in the group stage matches. The U represented the City of Brotherly Love to the best of their ability and truly embodied the “Fight for Philly” mentality.
Big shoutout to everyone in the MLS who made this tournament possible and commissioner Don Garber for putting together a successfully run tournament. This would not have been possible if not for the tireless efforts and work put in behind the scenes from countless employees in Orlando and all of the health care workers in Florida.
As a final message to MLS, thank you for safely bringing back soccer.
Featured Image: Jared Martinez, Matt Stith & Devin L'Amoreaux
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