UNION (4-2-3-1) 

Blake 

Rosenberry-Elliott-Trusty-Real 

Medunjanin-Bedoya 

Picault-Dockal-Accam 

Sapong 

Bench: McCarthy, Gaddis, McKenzie, Creavalle, Burke, Fontana, Ilsinho

San Jose Earthquakes (4-4-2) 

Tarbell 

Lima-Quintana-Cummings-Qwiberg 

Eriksson-Godoy-Jungwirth-Qazaishvili 

Wondolowski-Hoesen 

Bench: Bersano, Affolter, Salinas, Hyka, Alashe, Thompson, Amarikwa

- No surprise given the performances of Fabian Herbers the last three games that Fafa Picault returns from suspension and zooms straight into the starting lineup. Jim Curtin talked a lot this week about the Union’s desire to get Picault’s vertical and horizontal field stretching onto the field. Without any game action in the last month, he might be a little short on sharpness and game-fitness, but he’ll be a spark that hopefully ignites the technical powder kegs that are the scuffling Borek Dockal and David Accam.

- The Delco Destroyer backline gets its first chance to play in front of home fans, with Matt Real granted another start at left back next to Auston Trusty. The Drexel Hill native Real faired alright in last week’s 3-0 loss in Colorado, and a game on home turf should afford him the chance to get forward more and show what he can do on that natural left foot that Curtin so prizes. A little chemistry between Real and Accam on the left flank wouldn’t go underappreciated either.

- No surprises tactically from the Earthquakes, a team that has finally made a change in its fourth game, a little tweak at left back with Joel Qwiberg in for former Union man Shea Salinas. The Quakes generated plenty of chances in last week’s 2-1 loss to New York City FC but couldn’t only solve a stellar Sean Johnson once in net. The big key here is how to handle Valeri Qazaishvili, Georgian code name Vako. With Danny Hoesen and Chris Wondolowski occupying the center backs and the lack of a true holding midfielder, how the Union’s defense communicates and hands off the in-cutting runs of Vako from the wing will be vital to quell his threat. Vako did score against the Union last year at Avaya Stadium.

Putting the shortcomings of the 2017 Union into context,
it's a complex task. (DFM/Mikey Reeves)

Often the conversation surrounding the Philadelphia Union, particularly among members of the media contingent striving to make sense of the how and why of another playoff-free season, devolves into a declaration of, ‘they’re just not good enough.’

The standings can tell you that, for sure, but that’s unsatisfactory for the scientific part of my brain. And particularly given the last week, where the Union have squandered four points in stoppage time to resolve the mystery of if there’s a last gasp of intrigue remaining, the questions seem more salient.

So if I may, I’ll offer two explanations, one qualitative, one quantitative.

The “too much effort” explanation

This issue reared its ugly head way back in April when Portland came to town: The talent gulf between the Union and most opponents is vast. In terms of pure talent to start the season, I would’ve pegged the Union between eight- and 10th-best in the Eastern Conference. After the summer shopping, and the Union’s lack thereof, drop them a spot or two.

When you’re always at a collective disadvantage, you’re always playing catchup. Since John Hackworth was in charge, the prevailing mantra has always been that the Union can play with anyone. And that’s true, though in a parity-driven league, every MLS team is designed to be able to compete with anyone.

But when you expound so much effort trying to work back to level talent terms, you get these coin-flip games. The Union spend so much energy trying to stay within a goal of Montreal two weeks ago, then a pin prick pops the balloon and the release is a 3-0 loss. They work so hard against San Jose, then the late penalty kick deflates them. The talent gulf deprives them of ever starting at a position of power, which magnifies mistakes and lumps pressure on a young core.

Manager Jim Curtin is correct in saying that the Toronto loss last week is one of the few times they’ve been outclassed. But the Union are so often edged by small margins in a system of discreet point yields that it’s unsustainable over the span of a season. It doesn’t matter that their performance in San Jose was objectively worthy of two points; they get one or three, and the late mistake decided that.

That entails an inescapable conclusion that Curtin now owns but that has been obvious since March.

“I think we do recognize that a difference maker is something we need to add and increase,” Curtin said Wednesday in his off-week press conference. “We have a good group that creates enough chances in most games. We have to finish chances and do a good job of preventing them at the end of games.”

That game of catchup in the squad – of important depth ballast without that big over-the-top player – is mirrored in the way the results happen.

“Just not good enough” in numbers
Read more »

Keegan Rosenberry, left, seen against Portland's
Marco Farfan in a game in April, hasn't started
an MLS game in more than four months.
(DFM/Mikey Reeves)

CHESTER >> A season ago, Keegan Rosenberry never saw the bench for the Philadelphia Union, making MLS history in the process.

This season, he’s hardly seen the field, in a case of drastic extremes for the second-year pro.

Rosenberry finally return to action in last Saturday’s 2-2 draw with the San Jose Earthquakes, his first MLS minutes since May 17. He hasn’t started in more than four months, dating to April 14.

The departure from how Rosenberry began his career is stark: He started each of his first 41 MLS games (including the Union’s playoff ouster in Toronto last fall), the first rookie to play every minute of a 34-game season. From those lofty heights, he’s logged a scant 72 minutes in four months, all in substitute appearances, the last a 16-minute cameo when left back Giliano Wijnaldum picked up an ankle knock. Rosenberry started two U.S. Open Cup matches in that span.

“It’s been fine,” Rosenberry said Tuesday. “For me, it’s just about trying to continue to train hard and stay focused and try to be motivated and help the team in whatever I can do to push the guys in front of me that are playing day in and day out.”

Rosenberry, who finished second in Rookie of the Year balloting, clearly hit a wall late last season. The logic went that a stint to rest and watch from the bench would be beneficial.

But fate has intervened in the plan for a short-term refresher. The Union were winless in Rosenberry’s last 14 starts, and his benching coincided with an uptick in form that rescued hope for 2017. Along the way, Ray Gaddis provided a valuable veteran presence, not relinquishing his spot.

So the MLS All-Star has watched and waited … and hoped to learn.

“It’s not easy,” said Rosenberry, repeating that phrase on several occasions. “It’s the last place you want to be and trying to learn about the game and trying to get better. At the same time, like I said about the frustration in training and not getting selected, it’s the same way when you’re watching the game: You try to use it to your advantage in any way you can. If that’s watching players on other teams in terms of matchups and what you might see, but at the same time, it’s a different perspective and you try to use that to your best benefit.”

Rosenberry was thrown into a difficult position Saturday and didn’t exactly impress. It was on his side of the field that Josh Yaro felled Shea Salinas in the 90th minute for a PK that denied the Union a badly needed three points.


Rosenberry is one of many players who could’ve done better on the sequence, and manager Jim Curtin acknowledges mitigating factors – like the switch of Gaddis from right to left back and the late addition of Marcus Epps for a tiring Chris Pontius on the wing.

“Keegan went into the game, had some decent moments,” Curtin said. “On the penalty kick, didn’t do great to help with Marcus, but again it was a bit of a chain reaction of events. … We had a breakdown on that side, but it was difficult.”

While he may not be polishing his skills in games, Rosenberry has been forced to burnish his mental approach. Beyond platitudes about being a better practice player, you could imagine the temptation to take selection for granted last year when Rosenberry was an automatic selection.
Read more »

Fafa Picault and the Union need to keep their eye
on the ball when it comes to getting results
away from home. (DFM/Mikey Reeves)

The complexity of the Philadelphia Union often leads to questions asked at cross purposes. The inquiry of if the Union will make the playoffs is a different query than if they can qualify for the postseason.

For a season that is so drastically divergent between home and away, it seems fitting that its overriding logic should endure such a clean fracture.

Now that the questions have been sorted, let’s attend to the answers?

Can the Union make the playoffs? Yes, Jim Curtin is correct in saying that a path exists. His team has been excellent at home, winning seven of eight and holding serve to maintain a place in a crowded playoff hunt, the latest installment a 3-1 controlling of Western Conference elite FC Dallas. In those eight games, the Union have conceded just four total goals, only two of which have come with 22 players on the field.

That hasn’t translated into road results, for reasons that beguile the Union. And should that trend change – or in the mind of Curtin and others, simply normalize, since the Union are probably more talented than a 1-7-3 away mark indicates – then they could make headway.

Now the next question, will the Union make the playoffs? That’s notably thornier. And it probably would require the Union in the final 12 games of the season nearly matching their win total from the first 22 games (seven). Not impossible, but I wouldn't advise running to Vegas to place bets on it.

But in the first week of August, the path to the playoffs exist, and it’s one in which the Union are endowed with the power to craft their journey.

Curtin mentioned the 12-game mini-season that awaited them starting Saturday. Here goes:

Six home games: Dallas (a win), Montreal, Atlanta, Chicago, Seattle, Orlando City

Six away games: San Jose, Toronto, Minnesota, Red Bull, Atlanta, Chicago

That’s a daunting path, but not an impossible one. Let me explain. Read more »

Saturday's draw for Alejandro Bedoya, right, and the Union
to Joao Pedro's L.A. Galaxy makes it 16 straight games without a win
for the club. (AP)

I made an attempt in Monday’s paper to hit whatever passes as positives with regard to the moribund 2017 Union season, and the dredging left me slightly spent. So in the constant drive for content and the absence of any positives on the team side, figured I’d steer into the skid as it grabs headlines on both sides of the Atlantic.

There’s ambiguity in the numbers that bothered me that I needed to get to the bottom of: I tweeted two weeks ago about the Union’s historical standing in the annals of MLS winless streak history. Those numbers weren’t cut and dry since I remained unsure if they factored in playoff games officially, since teams on historic winless streaks shouldn’t be making the playoffs, as I understand that concept. But the Union broke the mold with their slide last year somehow not precluding playoff positioning.

That led to a deeper dive to add texture and context to the teams the Union are chasing (read: praying to avoid). I was unsurprised – and you may be, too – to find a strong correlation between lengthy winless streaks and both missing the playoffs and low finishes in the standings. (You know, correlation vs. causation but in this case, just no.) By necessity this season, the Union have clung to the notion that they’re just one win away from a sea change in results like an ideological lifesaver. The truth is that there’s very, very little historical context to back that assertion, though the Union are bucking other trends.

Here’s the list of the eight most barren streaks in MLS history, annotated by the seasonal breakdown of those games and the team’s record in the streak. You’ll note that each winless gamut has bridged seasons.

Colorado Rapids, 18 games (July 30, 2014-April 4, 2015 – 14 to end season, 4 to start), 0-13-5
Real Salt Lake, 18 games (Aug. 10, 2005-May 6, 2006 – 12 to end season, 6 to start), 0-16-2
San Jose, 16 games (Aug. 8, 2014-March 7, 2015 – 15 to end season, 1 to start), 0-9-7
UNION, 16 games (Sept. 3, 2016-present – 7 to end season, 1 playoff game, 8 to start), 0-10-6
Chivas USA, 15 games (Aug. 12, 2012-March 2, 2013 – 14 to end season, 1 to start), 0-11-4
D.C. United, 15 games (Aug. 10, 2013-March 29, 2014 – 12 to end season, 3 to start), 0-11-4
Real Salt Lake, 15 games (Sept. 23, 2006-June 17, 2007 – 4 to end season, 11 to start), 0-6-9
Toronto FC, 15 games (July 28, 2012-March 2, 2013 – 14 to end season, 1 to start), 0-11-4

Quick accounting note: For weeks, I’ve excluded the Union’s playoff loss from the streak or added it with a caveat, unsure if the other streaks were just regular-season matches while similarly ignoring playoff contests. Since the Union are the only member of this ignominious octet with a playoff loss, I’m factoring it in now.

In a class of their own
Read more »

For being atop the Eastern Conference standings, it’s a relatively sedate week around Talen Energy Stadium, with just a few odds and ends to wrap up from manager Jim Curtin’s weekly press conference Wednesday.

First, let Curtin take you down memory lane with his recollections of Earthquakes striker Chris Wondolowski from their days in the defunct MLS Reserve League.

Jim Curtin presents, Tales from the Reserve League, starring @ChrisWondo pic.twitter.com/XgDW6U5V2g

— Matthew De George (@sportsdoctormd) April 27, 2016

With Fabinho suspended this week,
Union manager Jim Curtin will likely turn to Ray Gaddis
at left back. (AP)

To no one’s surprise, Curtin likely will turn to Ray Gaddis Saturday against San Jose (4 p.m., 6ABC) to replace Fabinho, who is suspended for yellow-card accumulation. I spoke to Gaddis Tuesday, and much of what he said was echoed by his manager a day later:

“I thought it was good for Ray to get the 45 minutes. I thought he did very well in that. He’s a guy who’s a great professional. He’s been itching to go. A little injury went against him early in the season and Keegan (Rosenberry) was in good form, so as challenging as that is for a pro, I’m very happy with how Ray’s handled it. He has his opportunity now. He’s not a guy that I get too nervous about because I know how good of a competitor he is, how good of a player he is and he’ll be up of the challenge to slot in this week.”

The other injury is Ken Tribbett, who trained fully Wednesday as he recovers from an ankle knock. Curtin has options regardless of Tribbett’s fitness, thanks to the strong play of Josh Yaro:

“Both are playing very well. Ken is, in his own words, not 100 percent yet, but at the same time, he looks pretty darn good in training. Josh is playing good as well. I’ll let Dom (Kinnear) have to think at least what we’re going to do.”

Curtin delved into the decision to lift Fabinho at halftime of last Saturday’s 2-0 win over New York City FC. The Brazilian drew a yellow card in the first half, and twice this season, early yellows have turned red in the first 10 minutes of the second half, putting the Union in a lurch.

Curtin’s staff convinced him of that danger:

“It weighed in the decision. It made it a little easier to make the adjustment with Fabinho getting the yellow card, knowing that he’s going to have to sit the next game, the fact that we’ve given up two red cards in the 50th minute, it all weighs into the decision. There is something to Ray getting that full 45 under his belt so it’s not his first action on the weekend against a really good San Jose team. …
“(The 2-0 lead is) another factor that weighs in. To be honest, I give my staff credit for that, because I was against it. I didn’t want to do it. There was enough voices, my assistants – Oka (Nikolov), Mike (Sorber), BJ (Callaghan) – in talking with all those guys, I thanked them after the game, too, because we’re all in this together.”

Saturday was Curtin’s first chance to interact with NYCFC manager and Arsenal legend Patrick Vieira, who made quite an impression on Curtin:

“I’ve crossed paths with him in the preseason, but the first time I actually met him was before the game, and then after the game as well, we shook hands and had a quick chat. First and foremost, you never know with guys that are literally walking legends of the game, what they’re going to be like. And he was humble, soft-spoken, nice guy. And I did say to him after the game, when I shook his hand, ‘you guys outplayed us today and probably deserved something from the game.’ From that regard, I did see things similar to him.”

Finally, last week we discussed Curtin’s chance to become the Union’s all-time leader in victories in all competitions, which he accomplished Saturday. Any joy over that accolade will wait for another day:

“It doesn’t do anything for me. We’re a team that’s trying to get better. We’re a team that’s trying to get back in the playoffs. I think the regular season is team-based. At the end of the year, we can reflect on individual accolades, whether they be for our staff, for our players when they get rewarded for hopefully some best XI or all-stars or different things like that. But I think the regular season is for team. The postseason, the offseason is for individual recognition or whatever comes along.”

We’ve reached the juncture in the season where it’s time to deploy this little tidbit about the Philadelphia Union.

I think we all can agree – even Jim Curtin acknowledges the possibility, to a degree – that the MLS Cup Playoffs will likely commence for a fourth consecutive season season without the Union, the final nail of many likely being the 1-0 loss Saturday to New England. Officially, the percentage of the Union making the playoffs is listed as 4.0. (The journalist in me who won't allow me to state assertions as facts is the reason for the hedging, so apologies.)

With seven matches (four on the road) remaining, they sit last in the Eastern Conference with 27 points from 27 games. They’re just two points behind Orlando City for the sixth and final playoff spot, but there’s also the struggling Montreal Impact in seventh with four games in hand and a crowd of four teams to hop over to get back into contention. The Union also have to travel to four bona fide playoff contenders (New York Red Bulls, Toronto, New England and San Jose) among their four games, so the likelihood of summoning the form to get back into the playoff picture, especially around the Sept. 30 U.S. Open Cup final date, is remote.

If – and it is still, technically, an “if” – the Union miss the playoffs this season, it would be the fourth straight time that they have failed to qualify for the postseason. Where does that rank in the annals of MLS history?

Well, it’s a thorny proposition to put that into the appropriate context in a league where a minimum of two-thirds of teams made the playoff through its first decade. Eight of 10 teams making the playoffs strips the accolade of much of its prestige while hiding plenty of warts on teams that qualified via numerical necessity. It may not be until we see several seasons of a 20-plus team MLS that we can gauge just how devastating a four-season absence is. Or if, you know, something that rhymes with "go/fell" happens.

Even so, if the Union miss the postseason in 2015, they’d join very, very select company:

Toronto 8 (2007-2014)*
Chivas USA 5 (2010-2014)
Union 4 (2012-2015)*
D.C. United 4 (2008-2011)
San Jose 4 (1997-2000)

(Two of those streaks are active and can continue. But, terrifying as this may be to some in Ontario, Toronto is pegged as a virtual statistical certainty to end its playoff torment, while the Union are extremely likely to perpetuate theirs.)

That isn’t the group you want to be in, not least of which for what happened after the droughts ended. Read more »

About all you needed to know about the Union’s latest uninspired performance, a 1-0 loss at San Jose late Sunday night, won’t make the highlight reels, even for the Earthquakes. As the game went into stoppage time, San Jose sub Steven Lenhart ragged the ball to the corner flag to waste time. He proceeded to earn a corner kick, a second corner, a foul by Brian Carroll, another foul on Carroll, then a throw-in. About two minutes of the Union’s comeback effort was wasted 115 yards from its goal.

That image perfectly encapsulates the Union’s night. Even when they went up a man thanks to Rafael Baca’s red card in the 57th minute (the 11th shown to a Union opponent this season), they showed little fight and even less purpose until later. The problems, in list form:

- The Union have one goal in the last 374 minutes. They haven’t scored in 220 minutes. John Hackworth can play his cards close to the vest all he wants on his attack, but there are problems. Big ones.

- The Union are creating chances, though. The issue is the lack of quality finishing. They forced four saves from John Busch, only Carroll’s late drive forcing him to a tough action. Sebastien Le Toux scuffed a shot and made an open chance into an easy roller on goal. Jack McInerney, his confidence no longer in the same time zone as he, missed a couple of chances. And Sheanon Williams and Keon Daniel hit posts. In the effort department, it was too little, too late. Read more »

We're less than a half-hour removed from kickoff at PPL Park, and here are some observations on the Union's lineup tonight against the San Jose Earthquakes:

Califf's in, Carroll's out. Centerback and captain Danny Califf returns to the pitch for the Union after missing two matches with a hamstring tweak. Ironically, that's the same ailment keeping Brian Carroll out. The defensive midfielder is missing his first match of the season.

Where's Porfirio Lopez? The Union invested a lot of energy and money in securing Lopez to bolster a backline weak spot, on the left side. What does it say about Lopez if the Union value the play of rookie Ray Gaddis and the fitness of veteran Chris Albright over him?

What's up, Kai? The Union welcomed German import Kai Herdling Thursday, 10 days after signing the forward/midfielder to a contract. He's in the starting XI. Let's see what he brings to the offense.

Homegrown kids. Cristhian Hernandez, who has played all of 18 minutes this season, and Zach Pfeffer, who hasn't played at all, are subs on the gameday roster. I'm not saying you have to play the kids, but if you show them a commitment, you better get them minutes at some point. Otherwise, what good is it for their progress?

ON THE WEB: Check out my feature, in Saturday's Delco Times, on goalkeeper Zac MacMath. The second-year pro hasn't permitted a goal in 332 minutes, a franchise record.

It's official: Peter Nowak, fined $5,000, will be suspended for Saturday's match against visiting San Jose.

But here's the kicker: He'll miss the next match, too.

It took five days, but Major League Soccer's disciplinary committee finally ruled on Nowak, who stepped out of the coach's box and onto the pitch last Saturday --- a league-wide no-no --- while breaking up a scrum during the Union's 1-0 win at Chivas USA. Nowak was sent off in the 86th minute and, until 6 p.m. today, had awaited what he termed "a verdict" from MLS.

The verdict is in, and the Union will be without their coach Saturday against the Western Conference-leading Earthquakes. He also will be forced to take in next weekend's match at Seattle from a club-level suite, rather than on the sideline.

Additionally, the Union were hit with a $5,000 fine, while Chivas USA incurred a $2,500 fine.

Wednesday, players and coaches alike made it sound as though losing Nowak for one match won't be that big of a deal.

Said assistant coach Rob Vartughian: “Nothing changes. We’ve all been around each other for a number of years. Our preparation for this game will be no different than how we’ve approached anything else. Do you have a voice on the sideline with Peter? No, you don’t. But at the point the game starts, it’s up to the players. There are certain things you can do to adjust, and we’ll have to do those. It’s not like Peter’s not here this week. He’s still very much the voice.”

(Times staff photo / ERIC HARTLINE)

There's a guy coming to town this weekend who has eight goals in seven games.

San Jose brings more to PPL Park Saturday than the Western Conference's best record. The Earthquakes also feature Chris Wondolowski, one of MLS' most consistent strikers and its leading scorer this season.

Here's what a few from the Union have to say about Wondo, and how they can maintain their 332-minute scoreless streak:

“He makes a lot of little situations,” said goalkeeper Zac MacMath. “Fortunately I was able to play against him when I was with the U-23s in California in January, to see a little of him there. … He's very good, gets his shots off and makes the most of his chances.”

“You have to be aware of where he is in the box at all times,” Union defender Sheanon Williams said.. “He likes to lull you to sleep and then pop up in a different spot and he finishes extremely well, especially with his head. … It's important to find a mark. That'll be really important for us. We can't just let him drift. We have to be on him at all times.”

“Chris has been consistent for years,” said Union boss Peter Nowak. “For us it'll be a challenge. They are a handful.”

My guess is Wondolowski tallies, but the Union prevail, 2-1. How do you think the Union will do against Wondo?

(Photo: Associated Press)