Philadelphia Union 3, Sporting Kansas City 1
Two goals from Sergio Santos and another from Jamiro Monteiro in first half send Union to MLS is Back Semifinals
ORLANDO, Fla. (July 30, 2020) – Philadelphia Union squared off against Sporting Kansas City, Thursday night, in a MLS Is Back Tournament Quarterfinal match presented by Audi, coming away with a 3-1 victory and moving on to the semifinals. The Union offense exploded in the first half, finding the back of the net three times in the space of just 15 minutes. Jamiro Monteiro opened the scoring in the 24th minute and Sergio Santos scored twice is quick succession in the 26th and 39th minute. Kansas City’s Alan Pulido would get his team on the board just before halftime, but it would not be enough with Philadelphia holding on to its first half advantage and moving on to the next round. The Union returns to action on Wednesday, August 5 at 8:00 P.M. in a MLS is Back Semifinal matchup against the winner of Portland Timbers and NYCFC’s quarterfinal match.
Philadelphia Union 3 – Sporting Kansas City 1
Disney Wide World of Sports Complex (Orlando, Fla.)
Thursday, July 30, 2020
Referee: Ramy Touchan
Assistant Referees: Michael Barwegen, Jeremy Kieso
Fourth Official: Allen Chapman
VAR: Robert Sibiga
Assistant VAR: Logan Brown
Weather: 82 degrees and cloudy
GOALS/ASSISTS:
PHI – Jamiro Monteiro (Alejandro Bedoya, Sergio Santos) 24’
PHI – Sergio Santos 26’
PHI – Sergio Santos (Brenden Aaronson) 39’
SKC – Alan Pulido (Johnny Russell) 45’+1’
DISCIPLINARY SUMMARY:
PHI – Jose Martinez (caution) 25’
PHI – Jack Elliott (caution) 53’
SKC – Gerso (caution) 71’
LINEUP:
Philadelphia Union: Andre Blake; Raymon Gaddis, Jack Elliott, Mark McKenzie, Kai Wagner; Alejandro Bedoya, Jose Martinez, Jamiro Monteiro (Anthony Fontana, 86’), Brenden Aaronson (Matt Real 86’); Kacper Przybylko (Andrew Wooten, 70’), Sergio Santos (Ilsinho, 53’)
Substitutes not used: Joe Bendik, Aurelien Collin, Jakob Glesnes, Olivier Mbaizo, Matej Oravec, Jack de Vries, Cole Turner, Michee Ngalina
Sporting Kansas City: Tim Melia; Graham Smith, Roberto Puncec, Graham Zusi, Luis Martins (Amadou Dia, 45’); Ilie Sanchez (Felipe Hernandez, 64’), Johnny Russell, Roger Espinoza (Cameron Duke, 84’), Gianluca Busio (Gadi Kinda, 45’), Daniel Salloi (Greso, 64’); Alan Pulido
Substitutes not used: Richard Sanchez, Winston Reid, Matt Besler, Jaylin Lindsey, Wan Kuzain, Eric Hurtado, Tyler Freeman
TEAM NOTES:
- Goalkeeper Andre Blake’s MVP-level play continued against Kansas City. He made six saves on the night, his sixth game with five or more saves in a match. Blake leads MLS with 27 regular-season saves and MLS is Back with 27 saves.
- Sergio Santos’ hot streak continued tonight with two more goals in the match. His two goals in the first half is one off the all-time mark of three in a half. He also becomes the sixth player in Union history to score two goals in the first half of a match, the last being Fafa Picault in 2017. Santos has now scored four goals and registered two assists across all competitions in 2020.
- Philadelphia has now scored in six straight matches. The most recent streak of six or more goals came between May 25, 2019 and July 7, 2020 with the Union scoring in eight-straight matches.
- The Union scored three goals in the first half of tonight’s match, two off of the all-time record of five. The most recent three-goal first half performance came last season against DC United (8/24/19) in an almost identical match, with Kacper Przybylko, Brenden Aaronson and Ilsinho all scoring in the first half, a 3-1 win.
The Union returns to action on Wednesday, August 5 at 8:00 P.M. in a MLS is Back Semifinal matchup against the winner of Portland Timbers and NYCFC’s quarterfinal match.
