104 days after the two sides faced off in the Eastern Conference Final, Philadelphia Union battles New York City FC on Saturday, March 19th. Kick off from Yankee Stadium is set for 1 p.m. ET with coverage on 6abc, PhiladelphiaUnion.com as well as FOX The Gambler and the iHeart Radio App.
The Union enter the heavyweight battle off to the best start in club history with seven points through the first three weeks of 2022. The Boys in Blue are coming off a 2-0 home victory over the San Jose Earthquakes led by Cory Burke’s 20th career goal in league player and then Daniel Gazdag’s Panenka from the penalty spot. Jim Curtin’s side continued its stingy defense, limiting the Quakes to just one shot on goal  that saw the team collect its first clean sheet of the season.
NYCFC and Philadelphia Union faced off four times last season with regular season play ending deadlocked at 1-1-1 before a gritty performance by the Union in the Conference Final that was missing countless starters came up just short.
The defending MLS Cup Champions enter the weekend in a similar spot to the 2020 Union as the one of the last remaining sides participating in Concacaf Champions League play after securing their spot in the semifinals. NYCFC’s fight for that slot seemed secured after leading 5-2 on aggregate just over a half hour remaining but then Guatamalean side Comunicaciones roared back to tie it up at 5-5. NYCFC held on and advanced to the semis.
With the focus on CCL, NYCFC has start its league campaign slowly with four points through the first three weeks. NYCFC opened its season with a 1-0 loss to the Galaxy and followed it up with a scoreless draw against Vancouver. The scoring boots woke up at Yankee Stadium last weekend with a 4-1 thumping of CF Montreal with four different scorers. Playing in the Bronx has been helpful for NYCFC with 11 wins in their last 15 home contests.
