The Philadelphia Union finally held a highly-awaited home fixture after 310 days without a game at Subaru Park. In 2020 a lot of norms have been altered but, in the heat of the night against the rival New York Red Bulls, there was a sense of familiarity from the opening kick. Both sides felt each other out for the first 30 minutes of the fixture exchanging heated tackles. That all changed in the 31st minute when Kacper Przybylko hit the back of the net off a cross from right back Ray Gaddis
From then on the game opened up with each team having opportunities to score towards end of the first half. The New York Red Bulls had a prime chance to level the game from Tim Parker’s glancing header that Przybylko saved off the line. The Union did not waste any time trying to double the scoreline but an effort from Przybylko was denied by Red Bulls shot stopper Ryan Meara to end the half.
New York looked change the outlook of the game early in the second half by getting close the Philadelphia goal but a strong defensive effort meant they never truly threatened the Union. A little over a hour into the fixture, Andre Blake was tasked with merely making comfortable saves to keep the score at zero.
Przybylko kept putting the pressure on the Red Bulls back line as he found himself in front of goal striking a shot just over of the bar of the goal in the 68th minute off a stunning pass from Brenden Aaronson through the center of the pitch. The homegrown’s vison and maturity continues to show as the precision pass to carved up New York’s defense.
Sergio Santos entered the match late and created additional chances with his energy by pinning the Red Bulls back in their defensive third. Santos, in good form, created multiple chances in front of goal but couldn’t fire one home. Santos had one shot on goal from the center of the box only to see it saved by Meara.
Andre Blake preserved the shutout with a couple of big saves down the stretch, including a vital punch out to in the last kick of the game. The Union won their Subaru Park opener and now have back to back shutouts while continuing to climb the Eastern Conference table.
Next up for Philly’s finest is a showdown with rival DC United on August 29th at 7:30 p.m. live on PHL17 and PhiladelphiaUnion.com
Goals
31'-PHI- Kacper Przybylko
Takeaways
- THE BIG PICTURE: The Union got off on the right foot with a goal from Kacper Przybylko notching his second of the season. The Red Bulls, meanwhile, have some questions to answer after failing to score on a Union backline who have gotten back to back shutouts in regular season play. The Union also picked up where they left off solidifying making Subraru Park one of the toughest places to play in league.
- MOMENT OF THE MATCH: The Union took the lead in the 31st minute of the game. The goal came through the Union’s combination play on the right leading to Przbylko game winning goal.
