Philadelphia Union are back at Subaru Park with a pair of home matches this week. Ahead of their game against New England Revolution on Wednesday night, Head Coach Jim Curtin took to the media to provide updates. Here are our Founders Brewing Co. Pressing Points.
Revenge on the Revs
The Supporters’ Shield winning Philadelphia Union were knocked out of the MLS Cup Playoffs in just the first round last year after falling to the New England Revolution. Each time the teams matched up last season, the games were very intense and the Union came away with points each time…except for when it mattered most in the playoffs. Coach Curtin touched on the fact that he is still hurting from that loss, but it’s a different year with difference groups on each team, so the group must move on. The Union will be playing on short rest against a fully rested New England team and the team knows the importance of this match to get back into their winning routine at Subaru Park.
Coach Curtin respects Rev’s head coach Bruce Arena and knows that “they’re playing well and I think they’re one of the strongest teams in our conference, if not the League.” They are equipped with a strong attacking front with Carles Gil and Gustavo Bou, both who can shoot from distance. Leon Flach will be tasked with a large part of controlling Gil who Curtin labelled as “one of the most underappreciated players in the league.” The Union have their work cut out for them and understand that this is an opportunity to steal some early season points from a top-conference club.
Daniel Gazdag joins the Union
Earlier in the day, the Union announced their signing of attacking midfielder Daniel Gazdag. Coach Curtin touched on both the excitement on the signing and frustration with the Visa processes. “This has been a longer process and things don’t happen has quickly as you want. He is a talented player that I am super excited to work with. His ability speaks for itself and he fits right into our locker room by proving he can fill in for whatever role his previous team needed. This is a big signing for the club and we can’t wait to get him here on the field as quickly as possible. Daniel does things with the ball you can’t really teach. He’s going to be a guy that we’re going to put on the ball as much as possible and is certainly going to add a lot of goals and assists to our club.”
Jack McGlynn
Homegrown Jack McGlynn saw his name in the Union’s Starting XI for the first time on Saturday against Chicago and Coach Curtin admitted Jack was quite surprised to have his name called. The 17-year-old successfully stepped up and was an important piece to the Union’s 2-0 win over the Fire. His ability to slide across when Leon was pulled out of the middle to make a key tackle or block was crucial to the team’s success.
“For his age he was brave," Curtin said of the homegrown. "He has a wand for a left foot and he can make any pass and shoot from a distance. The moment was right to reward him and I think he’ll only get more and more comfortable as the year goes on. Jack has a really, really bright future and this is just the beginning for him.”
Philadelphia Union look for their first MLS home win of 2021 when they face off against the Revs tomorrow night. Kick off from Subaru Park is set for 7:30 p.m. ET and can be seen on PHL17 and PhiladelphiaUnion.com.
