Philadelphia Union goes for the regular season sweep on Saturday night against Chicago Fire FC. Don't miss the action with MLS Season Pass on the Apple TV app.
The Union roll into the Windy City for the final leg of their road trip that has seen 17 players on the pitch during the 5,371 mile journey. The trip started against the Eastern Conference leading FC Cincinnati where Head Coach Jim Curtin turned to a rotated squad and new formation to force the Ohio attack that preferred to play between the heart of the pitch out on the flanks. The approach was successful however the result wasn't with a cut inside forcing goalkeeper Andre Blake off his line and a point to the penalty spot which resulted in the game's lone goal.
Sitting lower in the league standings than anyone would expect, the Union are coming off one of their biggest results in club history as they booked their spot into the Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League Semifinals via a 2-2 draw at Liga MX's Atlas FC. Forward Julian Carranza provided the offense with goals in each half coupled with long stretched of the Union in their defensive third.
With momentum behind them, the Union now have their eyes on raising up the league table in hopes of getting their first road win in league play. The Boys in Blue are looking for the regular season sweep having squared off against the Fire during matchday 3. Falling directly between the Union's CCL Round of 16 matches against Alianza FC, Philly was in for a battle and emerged with a 1-0 victory via Joaquin Torres' 89th minute blast from outside the box the found its way in. It wasn't at all a beautiful match with chilly temperatures and wind blowing off the Delaware forcing passes on the ground to be the way forward. While Torres' moment capped off the night, what had Union fans on the edge of their seats was Andre Blake who recovered to net to make a remarkable save then exit the match with an adductor injury. The three-time MLS Goalkeeper of the Year is back and now is hungry to get back to the winning ways.
The first half of Chicago Fire FC’s 2022 season was rough. In the latter 17 matches, however, they were 6-7-4 and not so much on the struggle bus as floating about on the good ship Inconsistency. There were pairs of 2-0 losses quickly followed by more demoralizing 3-2 losses. When the attack — second worst in the league — finally found its way out of first gear, the defense suffered.
This isn’t too surprising given how Chicago built its roster. There are some stars in their 30s who get worn down by the epic travel MLS teams take on compared to European leagues. There were — they’ve been sold for eye-popping fees now — budding young superstars in Gaga Slonina and Jhon Duran who have a ‘greatness’ switch but hadn’t learned how to keep it on for a full season. And there was an attack that underperformed its Expected Goals by 5.3 goals, according to AmericanSoccerAnalysis.com.
This year, they have a young core in front of veteran goalkeeper Spencer Richey but an experienced front line that will look to accelerate Homegrown talent Brian Gutierrez’s development on the wing. In 2022, as goes Xherdan Shaqiri, so go the Fire. If the Swiss playmaker was the best player on the field for both teams, Chicago has a shot in every match. If he’s not, they are going to win scrappy, or not at all.
In 2023 with the addition of Kei Kamara the veteran has provided a consistent scoring presence the MLS founding member as been looking for with Shaqiri unable to return to the field since his 76 minute stint at Subaru Park on March 11. Kamara is coming off a brace that sealed the Fire first home win of the 2023 season last weekend, a 2-1 victory over previously-undefeated Minnesota United FC, at Soldier Field. That first-half brace increased Kamara's career tally of MLS regular-season goals to 142, remaining third on the league's all-time scoring list and moving just three behind Landon Donovan (145). Buoyed by those strong performances, Chicago comes into the matchup against the Union riding a four-match unbeaten streak.
The Union and Fire face off for the second and final time in the regular season on Saturday night, don't miss the action with MLS Season Pass on the Apple TV app!
