In a scintillating but low scoring match, Philadelphia Union's U-17s fell 1-0 to Vancouver Whitecaps on Tuesday. The Whitecaps punched one in early before the Union piled on the pressure and were unlucky to come away with points.
The only goal of the match came in the first ten minutes when Philly gave up a penalty after a deep turnover. True to the club's focus on mentality, though, they did not put their heads down but rallied and pressed throughout the latter frame. "We took control of the game in the second half by getting closer to press and using one of the strikers to drop onto their No. 6," head coach Gary Lewis said.
Patrick Bohui, who recently became the youngest player ever to play for Bethlehem Steel FC, created a big chance in the second half when he skipped past Vancouver's right back and centered for standout midfielder Danny Flores, but the goalie came up huge to prevent the goal.
The Whitecaps didn't create a single shot in the second half and the Union will feel confident heading into a matchup with Columbus Crew today after Julian Anderson and Flores looked on top of their games heading into the latter stages of tournament.
Philadelphia faces off with Columbus today at 1:30 p.m. ET. A win will see them remain atop their group and move on to the semi-final of the Premier division.
