The Philadelphia Union claimed three points against New England Revolution on Saturday night, snapping a tough stretch with a much-needed shutout on the road. After the match, Curtin met with the media, recapping the dominant result up north.
Dangerous duo
A first half score from Julian Carranza and a second half brace from Daniel Gazdag lifted the Union to their 3-0 victory. The attacking tandem put on a performance that made history, as the pair became the first in league history to score in the same match 16 times. When asked about the milestone, Curtin expressed how important his front three has been to the team’s success.
“When we get those guys going in that front three, they're really tough to handle,” Curtin said.
“Julian scores a big goal for us and it's not an easy one because that cross gets on him quick. Obviously, it's a great ball from Jack, but not an easy header. Then Dani has a way of going invisible in the box where people just lose track of him in there and he did a good job finishing off a couple plays,” Curtin said.
With the 2024 Euros approaching, Gazdag has been making his case for an expanded role on a squad that’ll kick off their campaign in group stage play against Switzerland mid-june.
“Statistically, Dani’s having a heck of a year, and I’m really happy and proud of him. I think he knows he's got a big competition coming up for Hungary in the Euros and he wants to show his coach that he wants to be a part of that starting lineup for a great Hungary team,” Curtin said.
“So proud of Dani. Happy for him for continuing to hit the back of the net. Julian as well – we’re lucky to have them here in Philly.”
Leon Flach’s return
While the pair of Designated Players stole the show with their attack, boosting their team-leading totals to nine for the Hungarian and six for the Argentine, Curtin gave props to a newly-returned defensive midfielder in Leon Flach.
“I'll single out Leon Flach as a guy who's been out for almost 7-9 months and really came in and made a big impact on the outside of midfield and also as the six tonight,” Curtin said.
Flach’s presence gave McGlynn and Sullivan a chance for rest on the bench to start the match at the end of a busy week, and it paid off in dividends as both came on and impressed in second half play while the German shut down one of New England’s strongest threats for a clean sheet.
“McGlynn and Quinny have been amazing for us all year, and we gave them a little bit of a chance to recover. We knew they'd come into the game and still make a big impact, but we use Leon on that side,” Curtin said.
“The plan was to use him on the left side of the diamond because Carlos Gil drifts over to that area all the time, and let's be honest, the best player that's on the field tonight, so Leon was around him from the start. I think he did a good job on him. What people maybe don't see, I see it every day in training. He closes the ball down and takes the last step quicker than any player I've actually ever seen. His ability to get pressure on the ball, make a deflection, a block, a steal is really impressive. So, big night for Leon.”
Getting back to winning ways at home
Philadelphia Union are still undefeated on the road in Major League soccer play, and Saturday’s win came when they needed it most, but Curtin assured the team won’t rest on their laurels. To close his press conference, he expressed how important it is to him and his staff to return to their winning ways back home in Chester in front of the fans at Subaru Park.
“I still won't sleep tonight because I'm still mad about the losing streak we have at home. It's been killing me and it eats at me every night. Winning makes us all feel good. It's a justification for how hard these guys have been working, because we're still the same group right? I’m still the same coach, these are still the same players, nut when they get confident and they get going, we can beat anybody,” Curtin said.
“Now my job is to push the right buttons and keep us going in the right direction. It's been a tough stretch for sure. We don't like losing our home games. I have to apologize to the fans. I take the responsibility for that. But again, this group can beat anybody and I think we showed that again tonight.”
