The Union brass gathered Thursday for the unveiling of the Power Training Complex,
an expensive asset that isn't unlike their expenditure on Alejandro Bedoya.

Alejandro Bedoya sat about 20 feet from the man who signs his checks Thursday afternoon, as Jay Sugarman stepped to the clear Plexiglass podium.

The Philadelphia Union Chairman proceeded to discuss the rationale surrounding the building that brought the Union front office, ownership, players and a few hundred others to Chester, extolling the virtues of the Power Home Remodeling Training Complex.

The terms that Sugarman selected so carefully could’ve applied as much to the new multi-million-dollar facility as it did to the newly-minted million-dollar midfielder, the first in club history.

Both were sizeable investments, massive on the scale of the Union’s history and substantial even by an MLS-wide lens. Both present risks. But both only made sense within a framework, the “well-articulated, cogently put together” strategy that new sporting director Earnie Stewart has assembled, to use Sugarman’s words.

After the presentation with Power Home Remodeling execs and members of the Union ownership, Sugarman elaborated on the process that landed Bedoya in Philadelphia, an ordeal that dragged from last summer when it appeared imminent prior to French club FC Nantes wanting to hang on to the midfielder, and was resuscitated successfully this season.

Instrumental to the process is the evolving relationship between Sugarman and Stewart, hired as the point person for soccer matters last December.

“I think with Earnie, we have a great, open relationship,” Sugarman told reporters. “I said, ‘look, are you telling me this is going to lead to a championship? Is this the player you’re going to build around?’ And he said, ‘yes,’ and I said, ‘go do it.’”

The Bedoya transfer saga was protracted over multiple transfer windows. By this summer, at the risk of losing the opportunity a second time, Sugarman pulled the trigger. The increased gravitas of Stewart helped swing the pendulum.

“I think last year, we were at this point and there was seller’s remorse,” Sugarman said. “It just didn’t happen. I think given how clear the plan is this year going forward of what we want and what we need, the pieces just seem to fall into place. It was expensive, there’s no question. We had a lot of conversations about, how do you manage the MLS budget, and I think the conclusion continued to be, is this going to lead us to the place we want to get to? If this is the right player, then go get it done. We stopped quibbling about $50,000, $100,000, $200,000 and said, ‘this is the right player, go get it done.’” Read more »

The Union bid farewell to Homegrown player Zach Pfeffer
after five seasons Friday in a deal with Colorado. (Times File)

An era ended Friday for the Philadelphia Union.

It wasn’t directly related to coaches or management or anything like that.

What ended Friday was the age of affixing outsized significance to the on-field actions of Zach Pfeffer on his narrow shoulders.

A bunch of other switches flipped with the trade of the 21-year-old midfielder to Colorado as the player to be named in the deal that landed the Union the No. 2 pick in Thursday’s SuperDraft and defender Joshua Yaro.

Pfeffer’s departure marks a clear end of what we can call the Nowak/Hackworth era of Homegrown signings, Pfeffer joining fellow honorees Jimmy McLaughlin and Cristhian Hernandez in the hallowed ranks of former Union members in a campaign that has been an unabashed failure. Pfeffer’s trade kicks out the crutch that often buckled under the weight of the Nick Sakiewicz regime that trumpeted commitment to Homegrown players out of one side of its mouth and whose only recourse was to point to Pfeffer in a desperate act of HG tokenism. (“See, we’re committed to Homegrowns. Look how Zach Pfeffer almost played last week.”)
Read more »

Court documents revealed this week show the depth of dysfunction
behind the scenes during Peter Nowak's tenure with the Union.
(Times File)

For those residing in the peculiar Venn diagram overlap of “people who follow the Philadelphia Union” and “people with a high tolerance for digging through legalese,” this last day has been a whirlwind. Jonathan Tannenwald at Philly.com Tuesday night obtained many of the relevant documents relating to the long-standing lawsuit between Peter Nowak and related entities for wrongful termination from the Philadelphia Union, and more documents were made public Wednesday. You can find a tidy listing of the highlights divulged by Tannenwald’s tweets here at the Brotherly Game, and it's worth picking through his timeline for gems.

All the documents are available at Philly Soccer Page, and I’d expect plenty more reaction there in the coming days. If nothing else, Steve Holroyd’s guide behind the curtain of arbitration proceedings such as these is extremely helpful.

In the over 700 pages of disclosures, there is plenty of new information, lurid details and downright concerning glances at the inner workings of the early Union franchise. Among the very important documentation is Nowak’s contract, liked at PSP as Exhibit A. (All of these links will be pdfs, so browsers beware). The most pertinent are the two parts of Exhibit C, which is the Union’s post-hearing brief. Tab 1 is more detailed; Tab 2 is more condensed. Nowak’s post-hearing brief is available in Exhibit D.

Exhibit G is arbitrator Margaret Brogan’s interim decision, followed by her final award in Exhibit L, which finds decisively in the Union’s favor and orders Nowak to pay nearly a half-million dollars in legal fees.

There are many points of granular interest. But I want to pinpoint something else that is inherent in the text and that still has real ramifications for the Union. To be sure, Nowak’s influence has waned. The number of players exposed to his brand of management number in the single digits, and the hiring of a real sporting director in Earnie Stewart is further hope for the maturation of the Union as an organization in the club’s second half-decade. Beyond the headline-catching salacious details – and yes, it’s taken me this long to type the word “spanking” – the ramifications of the disclosures echo much farther down the line, which imbues the past with greater significance.

First, the files The crux of the determination for Nowak’s dismissal and the subsequent reason why Brogan found that not to have constituted wrongful termination lies in the opening months of 2012. Nowak was fired June 13, 2012, and the timeline of events leading up to that are a bender of disconcerting behavior.

Here’s the rough timeline, as alleged in Exhibit C , Tab 2, from the Union’s perspective, many of the details of which Nowak was only made aware of after his firing:
Read more »

News broke Monday morning that the Philadelphia Union landed Earnie Stewart as its technical director. First and foremost, it's a move that was widely hailed within American soccer circles, including many pundits who've found precious little in the past to be excited about in Philadelphia. This one is particularly pertinent:

Earnie Stewart is a franchise-altering hire for the Phila Union. I went to see him at AZ Alkmaar almost 4 years ago https://t.co/PQTGIbDeuX

— LeanderAlphabet (@LeanderAlphabet) October 26, 2015

Jay Sugarman held a conference call Monday, and lots of information was divulged in the 30 minutes he addressed the media. Some highlights:

- Sugarman was effusive in his praise of Stewart's work ethic and vision, in a lot of the areas that the Union have emphasized. Sugarman stopped short of deeming Stewart the perfect candidate, but when you consider the criteria listed by Sugarman last November and again Oct. 2 in the wake of Nick Sakiewicz's firing, Stewart fits the bill pretty comprehensively.

"I think I feel pretty strongly we needed a real firm direction, just in terms of our playing philosophy and how we’re going to go about building a competitive edge in MLS. What I saw at AZ is they really had a strong track record of finding players that fit their team system, and we’re counting on him to do the same here. I think we have obviously room to elevate the quality of our scouting and our recruiting and our player development across the board, and on each of those, what he’s been able to do, what he’s been doing, is a really good fit with how we want to approach the world. He’s a guy that’s very focused on development. He has a real sense of that. We're looking for players who not only think the system can make better but can also make the players around him better and a philosophical way of playing very quickly. As we went through a number of individual cases, it was very clear to me that he had a strong sense of how to find real players to fit his system, and that’s guided a lot of his thinking, and that’s kind of what we’ve been looking for. ...

"One of our key criteria, we wanted someone who really wanted to be here. Earnie is I think as far back as 2012 has said that one of his goals in life was to come back and have an impact in the U.S. Soccer stage, to really come back and do something special for the country that he played for and clearly has deep feelings or and wanted to help us succeed but also help U.S. soccer continue to grow. So that was really important to me. I wanted someone who took that commitment seriously, who was willing to make a long-term commitment to the Union but also see their place in helping to grow the entire sport in the U.S. I look back at his playing record, you look back at how he went about developing himself as a young player and that kind of intense work ethic, he told a lot of stories about going out after practices on his own with Brian Carroll in D.C, and going out after practices and working on their own to make themselves better players. That’s the kind of mentality we think not only do we need at the Union and want at the Union but is part of the maturity process that the entire U.S. Soccer program is going through. Earnie is a great figurehead for that, and we’re delighted that he can come to the Union to make that impact."

- Sugarman didn't say how Stewart's name came up as a candidate. He said that Jim Curtin and Richie Graham were among the many parties involved in the search. Stewart's name didn't come up through MLS headquarters, though Sugarman did say the team contacted MLS when vetting Stewart.
Read more »

Of all the parties and portions of Pennsylvania – Philadelphia, Chester, Reading, Allentown – named Wednesday in Bethlehem, one was noticeably prevalent in declaration but physically absent.

The elephant under the tent for the Union’s launch of a Lehigh Valley USL side in 2016 was the Harrisburg City Islanders, the Union’s (soon-to-be former) developmental partner.

For about as long as the Philadelphia Union have played soccer, they’ve been affiliated with Harrisburg. That arrangement has offered countless Union player the chance for rehab or maintenance matches in USL through the years. Per Union CEO and Operating Partner Nick Sakiewicz, the Union’s link to Harrisburg “was a lot of the impetus for the two leagues aligning,” prior to the 2013 season to allow greater player movement and enhance USL’s utility as a reserve league.

Whether or not the Union had any pull in the original connection between America’s first and third divisions, that paradigm is on the way out the door, chased by what began in 2014 with L.A. Galaxy starting the “Galaxy II” side as a reservoir for young talent, offering them regular games and providing relief from the senior roster as the minor-league side did the dirty work of blood-letting.

The Union are the ninth team – behind L.A., Portland, Seattle, Real Salt Lake, Vancouver, Montreal, Toronto and New York Red Bulls – to field its own USL squad. Per USL CEO and Managing Partner Alec Papadakis, the majority of MLS clubs could operate full affiliates by next year.

“We have at present eight MLS teams,” he said during the press conference. “Today will be nine. We expect two more to join us for the 2016 season.”

(Papadakis declined to clarify later whether the two new teams are MLS-affiliated or not. Orlando City has announced its intention to form a Central Florida team. Dallas had toyed with the notion of a “two” franchise. Houston’s unveiled Rio Grande Valley FC doesn’t count, more in line with the older, Harrisburg-Union paradigm.) Read more »

A few inches of spring snow was apparently too much for the Philadelphia Union to handle Friday.

The Union announced Friday afternoon that that evening’s game with FC Dallas would be postponed a day due to the ongoing winter weather advisory in Chester.

The game will be rescheduled for Saturday at 4 p.m. It will be broadcast on Univision Deportes Network and streamed online. The Friday match had been scheduled for national UniMas coverage. No local broadcast will be available.

A club release cited “dangerous traffic conditions” as a primary concern with 2-4 inches of frozen precipitation expected. The Union had weathered eight inches of snow two days before the opener at PPL Park two weeks ago.

“We had every intention to play our match as originally scheduled, but the current weather conditions will challenge the safety of our fans, players, and staff, and they always will be our first priority,” Union CEO and Operating Partner Nick Sakiewicz said in a club statement. “With a sunny day in the high 50’s forecasted for tomorrow, we look forward to welcoming everyone to a magnificent setting at PPL Park.”

It’s the second time in Union history that a game has been moved due to snow. Their trip to Colorado in March 2013 was moved back a day due to over a foot of snow in the Rockies.

MLS and the MLS Players Union avoided a strike Thursday night by striking a new collective bargaining agreement. The basic facets of the deal provide for a limited form a free agency and increases in both minimum salary and the salary cap, while MLS has confirmed the pact to be a five-year deal. There's much more to be disclosed about the deal, and there are early signs of discord among the players.

Thursday night, the Union released the following statements on the deal:
 

CEO and Operating Partner Nick Sakiewicz: “We are very happy for our great fans and had confidence in the strength of the relationship between MLS players and our ownership that a positive outcome in the CBA negotiations would occur and it has. We applaud the leadership of both Commissioner (Don) Garber and the Labor Committee members as well as the MLSPU for coming to a timely resolution in a professional and respectful manner. Well done and now its game on!”

Head coach Jim Curtin: “All of our preparation and focus this offseason has been to get three points on March 7 and we’re all excited to know there’s an agreement for the season to go on as scheduled. We’re counting it down just like all of our great fans and we can’t wait to see everyone at PPL Park on Saturday.”

Union Player Representative Brian Carroll: “Danny (Cruz) and I are proud of the work that was accomplished today by the Major League Soccer Players Union. We are extremely thankful for the fans continued support throughout this entire process. We look forward to a successful season and the growth of soccer in this country.”

Here's what MLS commissioner Don Garber had to say:

“We are pleased to finalize the framework for a new Collective Bargaining Agreement with our players. We now enter our 20th season with enormous momentum with our new television partnerships, dynamic star players from the US, Canada and abroad, and two new expansion teams in New York City and Orlando that will debut in front of more than 60,000 fans on Sunday in the Citrus Bowl. This agreement will provide a platform for our players, ownership and management to work together to help build Major League Soccer into one of the great soccer leagues in the world.”

There were plenty of question marks going into last Friday’s press conference featuring Philadelphia Union majority owner Jay Sugarman, ones that went beyond the not-so-mysterious unveiling of Rene Meulensteen as joining the organization in some capacity.

What stole the headlines, though, was the first media address by Sugarman.

Understandably, a fair amount of myth and misunderstanding has grown around Sugarman. When his only image before the fans is comprised of appearances like this, that’s easy to see. It also doesn’t help that most of the information about Sugarman has come via ownership partner Nick Sakiewicz, who has his own issues of image within the Union fanbase (and MLS at large). Absent concrete statements from the man himself – and with three straight playoff-free seasons of time to let the imagination wander – the perception of Sugarman has had a tendency to slant toward the negative.

Sugarman, though, isn’t an absentee owner. He’s been at the heart of spending for the club in recent years, including infrastructure investments like the Union academy and the practice facility. He’s been visible and accessible, even if he didn’t want to talk on the record. Much of that distance is likely the product of two factors: 1) The fact that he lives and works in New York and isn’t as local as he’d like to be to comment on certain day-to-day issues; and 2) The realization that he is not a soccer lifer, which means he’s willing to defer to the expertise of Sakiewicz – who is no longer (or never was, depending on your philosophical bent) involved in soccer operations – on such matters.

The impression Sugarman gave at Friday’s press conference wasn’t in line with the reclusive, uncaring image that is sometimes portrayed of him. He was plenty candid, even if using pre-scripted notes to make sure he got his major talking points across. He threw in the joke of, “see you in five years,” at the end of the presser. And he was even willing to get a little sassy in answering a question from yours truly (20:50 mark).

A few moments ago, I noticed that Union majority owner Jay Sugarman was watching the game in front of the tunnel: pic.twitter.com/aRWKCfkGu4
— Jonathan Tannenwald (@thegoalkeeper) May 10, 2014

Afterward, Sugarman was accommodating to one-on-one interviews with smaller groups of reporters, which painted a more candid picture. For one, Sugarman hasn’t been uninvolved in the Union over the last five years, even if he wants to be more active in the future. He comes across as a pensive, thoughtful student of the game, one who owns a team of relatively meager finances that requires an edge to compete. He’s a businessman who has realized that on-field profits aren’t turned overnight, leading him to use the novelty of the business as a cushion to meticulously seek information about the marketplace he’s venturing into before making sweeping statements about it. He’s sought that advantage, not just through emphasizing academy talent but by some pretty interesting advanced analytics tinkering.
Read more »

Rene Meulensteen, seen here with Fulham last year,
is happy to be working with the Union. (AP)

It’s possible that Friday could be looked at as a seminal moment for the Philadelphia Union, a watershed day in which their structures and hierarchy begins to take the shape required by the rigors of the new MLS (2.0 or 3.0 or whatever.0).

Announcements of such gravity –the contracting of Rene Meulensteen as a consultant, the formal declaration that a sporting director will be sought and the first public comments made by majority owner Jay Sugarman – provided plenty of food for thought and a lot of information to sift through.

So let’s distill it into a few important points from today’s press conference.

1. Jay Sugarman is not a silent owner.

It’s easy to have thought differently given his muted public presence, which fostered the notion among some fans that Sugarman was just the money and little else. There’s no doubt the enormity of investment that he’s put into this club, but his involvement (which I’m going to explore in a little more detail later) doesn’t entail writing checks and then ignoring how the funds are spent. Through co-owner Richie Graham, he’s had a hand in the creation of the Union Academy. Sugarman is an enormously successful businessman, and he got that way by identifying talent and allowing those people to do their jobs. And now, being less than satisfied by how those jobs have been done, he’s stepping in to put into practice his time learning about the team, the league and the American sports market.

2. Nick Sakiewicz is no longer involved in football operations.

In the assignment of duties Friday, one of the first was that Sakiewicz “and his team will focus on building the business and have the resources to compete as our league gets stronger and stronger,” according to Sugarman. Implicit in that statement, which Sugarman repeated later in the press conference, is that Sakiewicz will have limited to no hand in soccer operational decisions moving forward. That follows with Sakiewicz’s public statements of late (and depending on your perspective, has been the paradigm all along), and it dispels any misinformation to the contrary in concrete terms.

3. Rene Meulensteen is a temporary remedy.
Read more »

It’s been a busy week for the Philadelphia Union, and that’s just the club’s participation in the rumor mill.

Rumors have been swirling particularly swiftly this week over the possible appointment of a new coach full-time. First, there was this report by Soccerly.com’s Kevin Kinkead about a possibly imminent hire:

I'm hearing more rumblings that Rene Meulensteen will be the next head coach in Philadelphia. @MLSTransfers @UnionRumors

— Kevin Kinkead (@KevinKCBS3) September 9, 2014

Then there was Union CEO and Operating Partner Nick Sakiewicz quickly distancing himself from those reports to ESPN’s Jeff Carlisle, adding the name of Rene Meulensteen to the list of potential replacements on the record for the first time:

Sakiewicz confirms Meulensteen candidacy, but says "no decision has been made" about next Union manager: http://t.co/1mEkaGZaCf #DOOP #mls

— Jeff Carlisle (@JeffreyCarlisle) September 10, 2014

(It should be noted that Meulenesteen’s visit(s) to PPL Park had been reported prior to Sakiewicz’s confirmation. This would also be a good time to point out my column on the matter, as published last week.)

The topic obviously came up in interim manager Jim Curtin’s weekly press conference on two occasions Thursday. Read more »

Jim Curtin, alongside Nick Sakiewicz, took the podium for the first time as the Union manager Thursday morning and patiently addressed a number of topics for the better part of an hour. This is hardly the whole thing, but allowed me to post a few of the highlights. (Note: There are plenty of less-than-relevant asides in here that, for the sake of brevity and sanity, I didn't transcribe. I've tried to preserve the context here as best possible.

Opening statement (yes, it's this long):
First, I’d like to thank Jay Sugarman and Nick Sakiewicz for giving me this opportunity. It’s one I’m very excited about, one I’ll take with great pride, being from this city, it means a lot to me. I’d also like to thank John Hackworth and Rob Vartughian. Those are two guys that were able to give me my chance in the game with this club. Those are two guys that put in a lot of years here and left the club better than when they started. …
To the team, I’d say to put it simply, we’ve had a bunch of very good players have poor first halves of the season. We have 18 games left; that’s the good news. We have 18 games to get this ship right. We have the U.S. Open Cup, which we’re going to take very seriously. This club needs a trophy. There’s only two that you can lift, and that’s one of them, so we’re going to take that very seriously.
The big thing with me, the results haven’t been there this year. We all know that. We only have three wins in 16 games, so the results haven’t been here. But the resources are here to win. I’m confident in my staff that’s being formed right now, it’s getting pieced together, it’s a very strong one, it’s one that I trust. As an assistant coach, I have Mike Sorber, a guy who I respect a great deal, I’ve connected with very quickly, I’ve known from the past, times in Chicago. He’s a guy in a lot of ways who is more qualified as an assistant than anyone in MLS right now. He’s a guy that has World Cup experience. He’s a guy that’s played in a World Cup, so again a guy I’m going to lean on heavily. I also have a bright young technical director who’s very progressive in Chris Albright, a guy that I have a great relationship with. Again, has done everything that you can do in this game, an all-Star, he’s played in a World Cup, He is a guy that I’m going to lean on heavily to make decisions personnel wise, along with Nick….
On to the players, right up the middle, you talk about a Conor Casey who right now is in very good form, scoring four goals in his past two games. He’s a guy that just needed a run of games, and now he’s got that and he’s going to get that with me. He’s a guy I trust. We have a Vincent Nogueira right up the middle again, a guy that every coach in this league wants on his team. He’s special. We have Maurice Edu, who in my mind should be in Brazil right now, but he’s not. Has it been tough for him mentally? Yes it has, but we’re going to get him going the way we know he can be, and he’s a special player, one of the top players in this country and one of the top players in this league. When we talk about the things behind the scenes that are going on with this club, we talk about the resources that we had, the little things that you might not see – again I said the results might not be here, but the resources are. ...
We have the most passionate fans in the league, I believe. I’m a Philly fan as well. ... I know the passion that the fans have, I know the emotions that they have, and I know that the thing that they want is winning. That’s what this is about. We need to win. And we’re going to do it with accountability, accountability from the players on and off the field. That sounds like a simple message. I could sit up here and talk tactics and formations and all that stuff, but at the end of the day, what matters in this town is winning, that’s what I believe.
Read more »

Apologies for being a little delayed in posting this, but I wanted to make sure I went over it a couple of times to iron out a few slightly confusing details. You'll also find a bit of redundancy, which I can't really control. Here you go.

On the decision to fire John Hackworth:
Yeah, it’s tough. It’s always tough when you have a lot of respect for a person. John’s a great guy, first-class, been with us a long time. But I just felt at this point in the season, halfway through, we needed to make a change. We needed to make a change because first and foremost, I don’t know if any of you were at the game on Saturday, but it was an amazing environment, our biggest crowd of the season and we just had the best fans. And our fans deserve better results on the field. Unfortunately for John, he knows that it’s about results and this is a tough, tough business and you’ve got to make tough decisions. But really we have to go out and we’ve got to find a top, top-class manager that’s going to be able to deliver the results that our fans deserved.

On how long the search will take:
I don’t know. I know that the resumes are flooding in from all over the world. There’s a lot of people that love big markets and love to coach in Major League Soccer, so we’re going to be very careful and deliberate. Very strategic. And the most important thing is to find the right guy who can take this group of players, which frankly I still think is pretty good. I mean this is a team that a few games ago beat the defending champion in their home park. So let’s not lose sight of the fact that there’s a pretty good group of players here that need some direction and need some motivation to win a bunch of games in the remaining part of the year. But beyond that, we need a coach that is going to be able to take this team to an MLS championship.

On the timing during the World Cup break:
Well it certainly gives Jim Curtin a little breathing room and a little time to assess the situation and make whatever adjustments he needs to make. Jim’s been with the organization a long time. He knows our culture. He knows what we’re trying to do. He knows our fanbase. He’s a Philly guy. And he’s got sharp teeth. So I imagine he’s going to put together a plan and this time gives him that opportunity to do that.

On an audition for Curtin:
Pretty much every coach is an interim coach, isn’t he? If you really think about it in any sport. Jim knows what he’s getting into. He’s got an advantage over the many résumés that we’re going to look at, the many people we’re going to talk to, and Jim will have a solid kick at the can for this job.
Read more »

For the second time in the club’s history, the Philadelphia Union have announced a coaching change Tuesday, heading in a different direction from John Hackworth’s so-so two years, punctuated by a disastrous first half of the 2014 season. In steps Jim Curtin, who is regarded as having the knowhow for the job even at a young age (34). Given the fact that Hackworth was hired from within two years ago, it’s no surprise that Curtin will get a definite shot at the job and be vetted appropriately. A “serious global search,” in the words of CEO and Operating Partner Nick Sakiewicz, is currently underway for a long-term replacement.

Former Union player Veljko Paunovic, seen here in 2011,
has become a successful coach in the Serbian youth ranks. (AP)

Who that could be is an open question, and there’s no obvious name that jumps off the page. With the downward trajectory of Hackworth’s last four months, the window has long been open for speculation, and some of that preliminary work has been done by my colleagues over at PSP. But let’s float a few names out there.

Jesse Marsch: Like Hackworth, the 40-year-old did a stint as a U.S. national team assistant before a less-than-stellar turn with the Montreal Impact in 2012 in which he went 12-17-7 in the team’s first MLS season. What should’ve been sufficient for a second season in charge led to an ostensibly amicable split with the club that was likely less than amiable. A veteran of over 300 MLS games, Marsch is the solid, MLS-savvy option.

Veljko Paunovic: There was a fair amount of questions when the well-traveled Serbian midfielder ended a three-year retirement to play for the Union in 2011. However that term is regarded, Paunovic has parlayed it into a successful coaching career, piloting the Serbian youth teams since 2012. Having played nearly 300 games in Spain as well as other top European leagues, Paunovic presents a more international option, and he’s about the closest thing to hiring from within beyond Curtin.

Martin Rennie: The options for recycled, recently-fired MLS managers are slim. I would assume Robert Warzycha’s similarities to Peter Nowak (fairly or otherwise) would lessen his chances. Former New England coach Steve Nicol doesn’t seem quite right for the role (plus he’s well entrenched with ESPN), nor does Montreal’s hotheaded Swiss ex-manager Marco Schallibaum. Richie Williams, given his ties to New York during Sakiewicz’s days there, is intriguing and a name that was floated after Nowak’s axing. Rennie is a young manager who was dismissed by Vancouver last year against the popular wishes of the fanbase, and the Scot could invigorate a youthful Union squad.

Cristian Maidana, from his Spartak Moscow days,
could have a big impact on the Union this season,
even if fanfare over his arrivals is subdued. (AP)

In the past, there have been spectacles. There have been press conference, meet-and-greets, jersey presentations, artsy pictures with the players portrayed as towering over the backdrop of PPL Park.

Those gimmicks are what have awaited the designated players of the Philadelphia Union’s past.

Cristian Maidana’s arrival to the club Tuesday was heralded by a press release. All of three paragraphs.

Some of is certainly timing, with the signing of the Argentine midfielder being finalized a mere 18 hours before the club was slated to host the coming together of American soccer’s biggest power players at the 2014 SuperDraft.

But it’s also a testament to the Union’s new direction, one that manager John Hackworth and CEO Nick Sakiewicz touted Thursday at the draft.

Maidana’s deal makes him just the third designated player in the Union’s four-plus years of existence ... the equivalent of what teams in Seattle, New York and Los Angeles call a transfer window. He follows in the underwhelming footsteps of fellow supposedly play-making midfielders Freddy Adu and Kleberson, one move precipitating the other in 2013 and yielding not much more success.

But where Adu’s arrival was the occasion for a stadium press event and Kleberson’s an excuse to bring together the Philadelphia Brazilian community, Maidana’s wasn’t gotten much fanfare. The draft and the Union’s major moves there have overshadowed it, as has the prospect of the Maurice Edu acquisition, a transaction that supersedes Maidana’s in terms of both media attention and potential on-field value. And perhaps there’s also the hope that the divergence in the arrivals of Maidana compared to his DP predecessors also translates into a difference in quality in a Union kit.

There may still be time for all the bells and whistles once Maidana’s visas are finalized and he meets up with the club. But such has been the profile of the Union’s other postseason dealings that Maidana’s capture was relegated to almost an afterthought in discussions Thursday. Read more »

In my sit down with him Wednesday, Nick Sakiewicz made a couple of things painfully clear. First, he and his ownership group were taking nothing for granted in trying to improve the viewing experience of fans at PPL Park. Second, any changes would be made with the soccer experience and the best interest of the fans in mind.

Here's a little more of what the Union CEO and Operating Partner had to say.

On the possibility of seat expansion at PPL Park:
"I think the seat expansion part is a little bit out there in the further timeline. What we’re looking at right now are some entertainment amenities. Suites, we’re virtually out of suites, so we’re looking at a concept there to build out more suites and different types of offerings. We’re looking at things outside the stadium in Toyota Plaza in terms of some hospitality options that are new and different. We’re looking at the section behind the sons of Ben, which is the roof of that building, was footed and designed and beefed up to accommodate either a restaurant or a party deck or something, so we’re exploring that option"

On preserving the river view:
"One thing is for sure that we don’t want to elevate too high on that end because the river, the bridge have become iconic symbols of our brand, so I don’t think they’ll ever be a big wall masking those visuals there. So we’re exploring ideas of maybe a second club in that area, but the seating expansion, the growth of the seating, is off a ways."
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The Union released broadcast details for the 2013 season, and it’s more of the same in terms of the networks, though there are some changes in the broadcast booth.

The Union will continue with 6abc as its official broadcast partner, though it will televise just three games this season. The Comcast networks, CSN and TCN, will air 20 matches while the Live Well Network (I have no idea where on the dial that is and I watch a fair amount of TV) will air the April 6 match against Columbus.

There have been some substitutions as far as who’ll do the broadcasting, though. Revered play-by-play man JP Dellacamera returns, but his new color commentary partner will be former Union forward Alejandro Moreno. Moreno, who scored 52 goals in 272 MLS matches over 11 years, will replace Bob Rigby. The Venezuelan striker spent the 2010 season in Philadelphia, with which he scored two goals and seven assists.

“We are very excited about our expanding team of broadcast professionals and looking forward to what will be a new look and format to Union broadcasts,” Union CEO Nick Sakiewicz said. “We've listened to our viewers and have worked very hard in the offseason to provide the best possible viewing experience for Union fans.”

The studio pre- and post-game shows will be hosted by Tony Limazri, who will be joined by former Philadelphia Kixx goalkeeper Peter Pappas. Union Academy Director Iain Munro will make guest appearances on both.

The hit TV shot “State of the Union” will continue to air bi-weekly on Friday nights.

The Union’s event Friday provided all the warm and fuzzy feelings you’d expect from a reunion of this type around the holidays. But stripped of its pomp and ceremony, the Union’s move to reacquire all-time leading scorer Sebastien Le Toux makes sense on the pitch as well.

Le Toux will be 29 when he takes the field for the Union’s opener next season, certainly qualifying as a veteran. But as Le Toux pointed out in the face of questions referring to him as a “mentor” and a “veteran”, “I’m not old.” Just two years ago, he was an all-star and considered to be an elite striker in MLS.

Indeed, it would appear that there is plenty of football left in Le Toux’s boots, and he presents and intriguing fit for this otherwise young Union squad. So often last season, manager John Hackworth’s formation oscillated somewhere between a 4-3-3 and a 4-5-1. Depending on who you ask, the likes of Freddy Adu, Michael Farfan and Gabriel Gomez were at various times referred to as “forwards”; Le Toux is of a completely different ilk in what he brings to the table. It allows Hackworth to adopt a more tradition 4-4-2, which seems to be more to his liking.

The particulars are unclear for now. Hackworth is certain that Le Toux will be used as a forward, not the midfield role that he often fell into last year in his various stops.

In Jack McInerney, who matured greatly last year en route to eight MLS goals, Le Toux has an ideal strike partner. While Le Toux brings much more to the table that just a traditional center forward’s ability to hold up play and be a target man, he also has that ability, allowing someone like McInerney or the speedy Antione Hoppenot to run off of.

“He’s a very young player. I think all the things he did this year made him stronger and I’m very happy for his success,” Le Toux said of McInerney. “… I’m looking forward to playing with him because I’m sure he’s very hungry to do well, and it’s what the team needs to be successful.”

“We know that Jack and Sebastien have already played together for two years,” Hackworth said. “They’ve already developed that rapport. I think Jack has developed separately, and if there was one lesson in that whole thing is that Jack got to become our main goalscorer last year. But now I think we have the opportunity to really take this team forward. … Knowing Sebastien like I do, I feel confident that we can fit him into a system that complements the guys we already have.”

Whoever it turns out that Le Toux is paired with, his ability to stretch the field vertically with his speed and superior vision will be an instant addition, a commodity the Union tried in vain to find last season (cough, Jorge Perlaza, cough). It’s something Hackworth and CEO Nick Sakiewicz each pointed to as one of the glaring voids left by his departure.

Perhaps more so than the tactical implications, it’s fair to see this move as the franchise stepping even further away from the past regime. The gratitude expressed by Sakiewicz toward Hackworth and assistant coach Rob Vartughian in the “collaborative” move to get Le Toux illustrated how the process by which personnel moves are made “feels much more like a team.” The fact that the subject of the move is Le Toux, someone who vowed never to play for the Union under again as long as Peter Nowak was in charge, only underscores the point. (Incidentally, the ability of Le Toux et al. to reference Nowak without referencing his name in the press conference was fun to watch.)

“I’m just very excited. I just know that it’s a different mentality, it’s a different coaching staff and a different approach to the game I’m sure,” Le Toux said. “I know John a little bit. We worked together, but he did not lots of, I would say maybe, power of what he was trying to do here when he was an assistant. I know that, and I respect John for that because he always looked out for the team.”
(Photo by ERIC HARTLINE)

(Times file)

The Union underwent a little course correction Thursday, when they traded with New York to acquire the guy they never should have traded away in January.

It took stopovers in Vancouver and New York, but Sebastien Le Toux is back in Philly. The Union sent Josue Martinez and allocation money to the Red Bulls in exchange for Le Toux, the club's all-time leading scorer.

Le Toux never wanted to leave the Union. He was on the wrong side of contract negotiations, with ex-Union coach Peter Nowak convincing the shot-callers in the front office to invest in cheaper, yet riskier options at striker before meeting Le Toux's contract demands. So the Union sent Le Toux to Vancouver, and Le Toux told the Daily Times hours after the January trade went official, that he would never again play for Nowak, a man for whom he had such little respect that he refused to shake his hand when the Whitecaps played the Union.

It appears he won't have to, with Union manager John Hackworth and CEO Nick Sakiewicz pulling the strings to bring back Le Toux.

Le Toux told me in July, after his trade from Vancouver to New York, that he hadn't ruled out the notion of playing for the Union in 2013. After all, he would be out of contract by then, and to a degree would have the cards in his hands. (I'm still trying to figure out some of the details of Le Toux's new contract. If I find them, I'll pass them along.)

The Union's vision at the time of the trade of Le Toux was simplistic: Bring in less-expensive options at striker in place of the 28-year-old with 25 goals in two seasons for the Union. It didn't work. They went from a playoff team to a doddering non-contender. Guys like Martinez, Gabriel Gomez and Lio Pajoy are gone. And back is the constant -- Le Toux.

Le Toux and the Union will hold a 10 a.m. press conference Friday. It's a presser that, to Union fans, will probably feel long overdue.

(PhiladelphiaUnion.com)

Here's a glimpse into the life of John Hackworth: 

When he found out Thursday that his interim tag had been lifted, and that he had been named the Union's full-time team manager ... he went right back to work.

“For the last three hours I had my phone off and I just decided to turn it back on," Hackworth told me late Thursday night. "It’s awful nice to have so many people say congrats. But look, we’ve got a game Saturday (against New England) and I’ve been watching video to get prepared for that.”

Here's the rest of my interview with Hackworth, who was named the second Union manager in franchise history.

On how it went down

“I got a phone call from Nick (Sakiewicz) this afternoon and it was at that point that I found out. I just felt very thankful and relieved. I’m not going to lie and say it wasn’t a bit of a trying time. It was great news. Nick had shown a ton of faith and confidence in me the whole time. I had been operating like I’d have this job. Some of this was a nice announcement, but it doesn’t change anything in how I’ve approached this job.”

On whether the new title adds pressure

 “I don’t think of it like that at all. I’ve been coaching for so long and in so many pressure situations and I do what I do, I believe in what I believe and I believe in the guys I coach. Our situation is going to change a little because we’re not in the playoff situation, and that’ll change the dynamic in that I’ll play some guys who haven’t been playing. I’m not going to change my mentality on how to prepare a team, or tactics or anything like that. We have a good group of players and I’ve been doing everything possible to bring a lot of that fundamental stuff that we’ve been trying to do since Day 1.”

On whether the new title affects how he’ll approach the offseason

“First and foremost, I try to be very organized. I try to plan in this league. It’s so important to manage so many aspects of the job – not just the players in the locker room and how you train and the starting 11, but how you manage salary cap, allocation money and the moves you make. It’s extremely difficult if you don’t give yourself leverage. That’s a real important aspect. It takes a lot of homework and ultimately some good selections.”

On whether the new title allows him to appreciate his accomplishments

“I’m very proud of what this group has accomplished. I go back to I’m a coach and it’s what we do. Honestly, people can say what they want about the differences between me and Peter, but there’s some things that Peter did that I’m still doing and some things I’ve gone with my ideas and methods. Looking at the big picture, this is the kind of work that I’ve spent most of my adult like working on to get better at every day. When you’re a coach, it’s not like you have time to stop and smell the roses or pat yourself on the back., you get in trouble doing that. The game is funny, it’s cruel, it’s rewarding. The highs and lows are there and you have to stay even-keel through it.”

On how he got to this point

“I always try to listen to the people I really trust and use a thoughtful approach to evaluating because once you get emotional about it, you don’t make the best decisions. I just stay even-keel and use time to make good evaluations and trust in people on my staff.”

On what the title means to him

“You have to live it. For me, it’s never easy but it’s also what I totally live for. I can’t imagine any other way because it’s what I do and it’s what I love. I love what I do. I’m extremely humbled by the fact that I get to wake up every single morning and coach a sport I’m passionate about. I don’t have to push myself out of bed. I go to work because it’s something I love. It’s fantastic. I’m very fortunate to have had more successes than pitfalls in my career, and I hope to continue that trend."

(PhiladelphiaUnion.com)

The Union announced Thursday they've removed the interim tag from John Hackworth's title and made him their team manager.

Hackworth took over in June, following the dismissal of Peter Nowak.

Hackworth has directed the Union to a 5-6-2 record, with 17 goals in 13 games. Nowak led the Union to a 2-7-2 mark, with 8 goals in 11 games.

Said Union CEO Nick Sakiewicz, on the timing of removing the interim tag after a deflating 2-1 loss to Columbus: "It was just waking up this morning and a very lousy feeling about last night and how we dominated the game. John really created what that product was yesterday and we need more of it to get better. He’s the guy to do it. 

"He’s got a great plan. He presented a plan to me yesterday. We had a planning meeting for next year before the game, on how to make the team more effective and the development of the younger guys. Not that I wasn’t going to take the interim tag away, but that plan was impressive. I said to myself, ‘Why wait? Do it. Let’s go.'"

For more on Hackworth, pick up Friday's Daily Times.