Philadelphia Union resumes regular season play on Wednesday night at Subaru Park, taking on Columbus Crew for the second time in just over a week. On Tuesday, Head Coach Jim Curtin met with the media, previewing the match.
MLS is back
Wednesday's showdown will be Philadelphia Union’s first Major League Soccer match since their July 20th win against Nashville, and they’ll host defending MLS Cup Champions and 2024 Leagues Cup Champions Columbus Crew. With nine regular season matches remaining on the schedule, good results are essential moving forward.
“The players look forward to returning to League play. We recognize now we're not where we wanted to be in the standings this year, but we have an opportunity to maximize the amount of points that we take down the stretch and make things right and find a way to get in the playoffs” Curtin said.
It’ll be Philadelphia Union's third game in eight days having played on Wednesday and Sunday, and Columbus Crew have been one of the most dominant teams on the continent in the past year, but Curtin ensured that his group is eager to take on the challenge ahead.
“It's a difficult test for sure, knowing that we'll have some games in quick succession here with a really great Columbus team coming to town, and one that we just played in the semifinal, and then a quick turnaround to play Red Bull, a big rival on the weekend. So, not a lot of rest, but to be fair, we're on the same rest as Columbus, so we have to have a good reaction in our building. I know the players will be up for the game.”
Centerback chronicles
During his press conference, Curtin addressed questions regarding defensive depth, specifically at centerback. While Jack Elliott and Jakob Glesnes are the stalwart starters, Curtin expressed his staff’s mindset around the position following Damion Lowe's departure.
“We have some options – Nathan Harriel can slide in there and do it. He's played center back this year for us. Makanya hasn't gotten minutes with the first team, but he has with the second group,” Curtin said.
“We do recognize it's a little bit of a risk. Not dissimilar to when we lost Stuart Findley years back where we relied on the two of them to kind of close out the year. So yes, they can do it. We have to get through these next two games, then we get a little bit of a break for some recovery with the international window. Then there are a couple more, you know, Saturday, Wednesday, Sunday-type setups for us. It will be busy, tose guys have done it in the past. If the load becomes too much, we are comfortable making a change and maybe giving Nathan a shot at centerback, or Makanya as well.”
