Union, Red Bulls Preview

The Union face the New York Red Bulls today at 12:30 at PPL Park. The Red Bulls have come off of three straight wins and are red hot, while the Union have lost their last three games. These are two different teams coming into today's match, but either team can win these three points. Even though the Red Bulls have won their last three games, this will be their third game in eight days. The Union can capitalize on New York's tired legs and receive a much needed win. The other huge factor in today's game is the crowd. PPL Park is known for their fans, but they will be an exceptional factor today in what has become one of the biggest rivalries in the MLS, not to mention the humongous rivalry that Philadelphia sports teams already have with New York teams.

Union fall to Portland in season opener

The Timbers had a strong home record in 2011 of 9-5-3, and they showed again how hard it is to win in a sellout crowd at Jeld Wen Field. The first half was mostly dominated by the Timbers and their offensive attack. MacMath had to make a leaping save in the eight minute. He also ran out of his box in the 21st minute to get the ball from a charging Kris Boyd. The Union eventually captured some offense in the later part of the first half, but the chemistry was off with this new team. There were times where players passed when they should have taken the shot and taking shots when a pass would have been the better decision. The scoreboard finally changed in the 51st minute on a free kick from new arrival Gabriel Gomez.

But the lead was short lived.  The Timbers came back in the 54th minute from Jack Jewsbury's indirect kick, which Andrew Baptiste headed in for the equalizer. The ball bounced in front of MacMath once and then squeaked under his arms and into the back of the net. The Timbers were not done yet, in the 66th minute the Timbers offense was back. Khalif Alhassan sent a ball into the box, where Kris Boyd headed it into the far side of the net, a tough shot for any keeper to make. The Jewsbury Alhassan combination made another appearance in the 76th minute. Jewsbury, around 35 yards out, passed to Alhassan at the top and to the side of the box. Alhassan took it and ran, entering the box and then chipping MacMath from just outside of the six. The final whistle sounded in the 94th minute with the final score Portland three, Union one.

Even though the score indicated that MacMath played a poor game, he actually showed moments of brilliance. MacMath also had to face 17 shots on net, and seven corner kicks while making four saves. That's 12 more shots than the Union had, six more corner kicks, and the Union had 14 fouls compared to Portland’s eight.

Timbers vs. Union Preview

The MLS season is back and the Union take on the Portland Timbers in their first match of the season tonight at 9:30 on ESPN2. A lot has happened to the Union's roster since their departure from the postseason last year. Sebastian LeToux is on Vancouver, Justin Mapp is in Montreal, Paunovic is no longer playing, and the young Zac MacMath is the new starting Keeper. In replace of some of these players are Panamanian midfielder Gabriel Gomez, Costa Rican forward Josue Martinez, and defenseman Porfirio Lopez. These players bring in a lot of speed and talent that will help the Union's offense pick up where it left off. But they are going to have a tough task tonight in Portland.
Tonights forcast for portland is in the low 40's to high 30's with constant showers, making the turf and the ball slippery. Portland had a strong home record last year, 9-5-3, which helped them make a postseason push. The last time the Union played at Jeld Wen Field they lost 1-0, and when the Timbers came to PPL Park the game finished in a draw. Portland has also made offseason aquisitions by picking up Scottish forward Kris Boyd. Kris played with the Rangers in the Scottish Premier League and scored over 100 goals from 2006-2010. The Timbers also have a strong fan base who will give the Union no help in tonights match. Danny Mawanga even said that Portland is his least favorite stadium to play in, in an interview on Comcast Sportsnet.
The Key for tonights match, and for the season, is to step up. Peter Nowak has made a lot of changes in the offseason, and let fan favorites leave, the best way to make the Philadelphia fans forget about the departures is to score and win, and become the new fan favorites.

Le Toux's birthday

Happy Birthday Sebastian Le Toux, the number one goal scorer for the Philadelphia Union. My favorite Le Toux moment is his hat trick, and the union's only three goals in my first ever professional soccer game and the  Union's first ever win, over DC United back in 2010. Post your favorite Le Toux moments.

Union vs. Dynamo

October 30th at 5 PM, it's 45 degrees out and I wouldn't want to be anywhere but Chester, PA to see the Union's first ever playoff game. The Union have come a long way since their inagural season last year, when they finished in the bottom three of the league, now they're in the top three in the east. There was an electricity through out the stadium moments before the first kick, but Houston took some of that away early in the game. Houston took an early lead from a header by Andre Hainault in the 5th minute from around eight yards out, set up by Brad Davis' indirect kick. But Philadelphia did not take long to strike back. Two minutes later Sebastian Le Toux scored the equalizer from a beautiful cross by Michael Farfan straight to the left foot of the French man. But Houston's offense was persistent and eventually took the lead in the 30th minute with a through ball from Brian Ching to Calen Carr who slipped past the defense and took a shot that passed an advancing Mondragon. Carr scored the final goal of the match but the intensity was far from over. Houston came out more aggressive than the Union, and controlled the ball in the first half, the second half was a different story. Peter Nowak put changed his lineup to be more offensive by putting Miglioranzi up at midfield and then eventually subbing him out for Jack McInerney. The Union got the crowd back into the game by staying on the attack. Sebatian Le Toux nearly tied the game with a free kick in the 54th minute just outside the box, but was eventually kicked out after a scrum. But on video replay there is a blatant hand ball on Houston, Le Toux said after the game that it was an obvious hand ball and should have been a penalty shot. The rest of the match went a lot like Le Toux's free kick, the Union coming very close to tying the game but just missing the net, and the referee's making more than questionable calls. I do have to give some credit to Houston's defense, who the Union couldn't place many balls past their tall defenders, and their Keeper who had to make some miraculous saves. It's a lame excuse to blame the referee's not making calls for a loss, but the referee's had a direct impact on Sunday's game. The problem was that they were so inconsistent, someone who falls down in a contest for the ball gets a whistle and a possible card, while there were muggings in the box which went uncalled. Another thing that the referee's failed to call was a dive. Late in the game there was a collision and a Houston player goes down. He stays down for a while and the referee blows the whistle to get him off the field, which took around 30-50 seconds. Once the player was on the sideline, he is up and ready to get back in the game. This is one of the main reasons why Americans are resistant to watching soccer, the MLS should find a way to discipline players who fake injuries to waste time. The NFL fined a player a substantial amount of money in the beginning of the season for faking an injury to stop the clock, the MLS and FIFA should create a policy to stop these "floppers." It would definitely get more American fans, and more fans world wide. But at the end of the day the Union are down one goal in this aggregate playoff and need to win by two goals in Houston on Thursday. In order for the Union to advance to the next round is simple, score! The defense for the Union has been solid all season, for the most part, if they keep the momentum and lineup they had in the second half of Sunday's game then they've got a good shot at winning. The Union usually come alive late in the game, and especially when they are fighting from behind. They just need to treat the next 90 minutes like the last 30 minutes of a regular season game.

Winning

After a long and brutal two win less months, the Union pulled off a must win against the first place Crew. Philadelphia's defense came up big in the game, the Crew have a great offense with Andres Mendoza who has the third most goals scored in the MLS at ten. The Union hit the ground running at the start of the first half, applying pressure and getting shots on net. The struggle to find a goal ended early when Roger Torres sent in a beautiful ball in for an open Le Toux. Le Toux sent a shot that slipped past William Hesmer, Columbus' keeper, in the 32nd minute. Which was all the Union needed to break their win less streak. There were other chances for the Union to extend their lead. In the 42nd minute Le Toux had the ball down on the Crew's end-line, passed it to the young Zach Pfeffer who ripped a shot as he turned toward the goal but was covered up by Hesmer, the Union's best chance at making it a 2-0 game. Columbus battled back, especially late in the game in stoppage time. But Philadelphia's defense held up and Zac Macmath staid strong in the box and was able to pick up his first MLS win. A huge win for the Union, and a great game for Le Toux, showing that he is back to being the offensive power he was last season. The Union are now only two points behind Columbus, and one point behind Kansas City, who happen to be the Union's next opponent tomorrow night in Kansas Cities brand new stadium. A tough road test with playoff implications on the line.

Union vs. Timbers Pregame

The Union pulled off a great comeback against the Revolution on Wednesday, they showed resilience by scoring three goals in the second half to tie the game 4-4. The Portland Timbers will not give up as easily. Portland is fighting for a playoff spot and one of the teams in the way is the Philadelphia Union. The Timbers have a lot of young talent and are coming off of a two game win streak, and a 17 day rest. While the Union haven't won a game in their last seven contests. In order for the Union to come away with a win, and to get back into the top two spots in the east, there defense needs to step up. The first and third goal scored by New England were uncontested headers, both set up by Chris Tierney. Giving rookie keeper Zac Macmath very little help. This was done by one of the worst teams in the league, so what is the playoff contending team going to do to Philadelphia. However, there is a ray of sunshine for the Union. Sebastian Le Toux scored two goals last game, and Freddy Adu got his first goal in the MLS since 2007. This leads me to believe that we might be seeing the Le Toux from last year, who led the team in goals. I would also like to see Peter Nowak start Adu and Mwanga, and keep them in for the full 90 minutes, they looked very in sync against the Revolution. If the Union can get an early lead I think they've got a good shot at winning, the Timbers are 1-8-3 on the road and if the Union can get on the board first that might break their backs. But, with putting Mwanga in the first half the defense will have to be strong. Macmath isn't the greatest keeper in the world but even Mondragon would have had a tough time saving some of those goals.