With a rotated squad to start the match, Philadelphia Union extended its unbeaten streak to seven straight with a 1-0 road victory over Atlanta United FC on Saturday night.
Head Coach Bradley Carnell made five changes to the starting line up, turning to fresh legs in the midst of a busy May schedule. After a first half stalemate that saw key saves on both ends of the pitch, the second half saw the Union turn to their loaded reserves to nab the road result. Forward Tai Baribo entered at halftime and extended his MLS Golden Boot lead with the game's only goal, coverting his first PK as a member of the Boys in Blue at the hour mark to complete the regular season sweep over the Eastern Conference side.
Homegrown goalkeeper Andrew Rick was called upon to make three crucial saves in the contest, with reaction saves in each half to push the Union's into the top spot of the Eastern Conference through 14 matches.
Philadelphia Union continues their busy May slate of matches back at Subaru Park for a Keystone State clash with the Pittsburgh Riverhounds in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Wednesday evening. Kick off for the Round of 16 match is set for 7:30PM ET with tickets available for purchase by clicking here.
How The Match Unfolded
Saturday’s match marked Philadelphia Union’s fifth game so far this month, and after using the same lineup for back to back matches, Head Coach Bradley Carnell altered both his starting lineup and formation. He opted for five in the back, resting Jakob Glesnes for the first time this season and instead using Nate Harriel, Kai Wagner, and Olwethu Makhanya as centerbacks. Carnell shifted Jovan Lukic from his typical midfield spot to right wingback, opposite Frankie Westfield on the left.
Alejandro Bedoya and Jesus Bueno earned a start in the midfield, while the front three was comprised of Chris Donovan, Mikael Uhre, and Bruno Damiani.
With Andre Blake still missing due to injury, Andrew Rick started in goal for a fourth straight match, and Oliver Semmle backed him up on the bench. Alongside he and Glesnes, the bench featured Danley Jean Jacques, Jeremy Rafanello, Cavan Sullivan, Quinn Sullivan, Indiana Vassilev, Tai Baribo, and Ben Bender, who made his first appearance on the matchday roster since singing with the team just over a week ago.
3', Damiani nearly opens the scoring | Capitalizing on a pass into the box from Kai Wagner, Bruno Damiani turned and took a powerful first shot of the match, but Atlanta keeper Brad Guzan got a hand on it for the stop.
17', Massive save from Andrew Rick | On the other end of the pitch, the hosts were denied a scoring chance of their own. A Nate Harriel headed clearance landed in the path of Pedro Amador, who booted it toward the net but was stopped by a diving deflection from Andrew Rick.
20', Atlanta sub | Atlanta United Head Coach Ronny Deila made his first change of the night when Brooks Lennon went down with an injury, sending on Saba Lobzhanidze to replace him.
45', Scoreless at the break | Philadelphia Union finished the first half finished with seven shots to Atlanta United's five, but the neither team found the back of the net. Head Coach Bradley Carnell made one change during the half as momentum grew for the homeside, having his squad shift from the back five to the Union's more traditional 4-2-2-2 with Westfield and Wagner as outside backs and Lukic paired up alongside Bueno as holding midfielders.
Halftime subs | Carnell's first personnel change of the match came at halftime with the manager exchanging Chris Donovan for MLS Golden Boot leader Tai Baribo.
59', PK goal for Philly! | Atlanta United's Abrams was shown a yellow and penalty when commited a handball while sliding to cover for Brad Guzan who was left Mikael Uhre with an open net. After review from the referree, the call was ruled in favor of Philly, marking the team's first in-game PK opportunity since the departure of typical taker Daniel Gazdag. In his absence, Tai Baribo was selected to take the shot from the spot, placing it perfectly for a 1-0 lead for his team.
60', Union add reinforcements | With a newly found advantage, Carnell added fuel to the fire, sending Quinn Sullivan and Danley Jean Jacques into the mix with a third of the match remaining. The duo took over in the middle of the pitch after strong matches from Damiani and Bedoya.
71', Rick comes up big again | With the homeside needing a goal, Atlanta United committed numbers into the attack. Saba Lobjanidze received a quick pass from Miguel Almirón for a shot inside the 18 which forced a quick save from the homegrown keeper.
90+', Atlanta's final push | With numerous stoppages due to a VAR review and medical assistance, nine minutes of added time saw plenty of time for Atlanta United to try and equalize. After the Union nearly doubled their lead with a chance from Frankie Westfield, Rick was called upon once more with a point-blank save to deny a game-tying goal Derrick Williams.
