Philadelphia Union is set to host Nashville SC under Saturday night lights at Subaru Park this weekend, and after the team’s final training session before matchday, Head Coach Jim Curtin met with the media, previewing what’s to come.
Adding Adeniran
Philadelphia Union welcomed a new face to training on Friday – admist the excitement in Chester surrounding Wednesday's momentous 5-1 win, the club announced they had acquired 25-year-old forward Samuel Adeniran from St. Louis City. Days after landing in Philly, he joined the team in their matchday prep in front of fans at open training.
The 6’4” striker was in attendance for the team's midweek match, watching from a suite, but on Saturday, he’ll join the matchday 20-man roster with his new teammates for the first time.
“Sam will play a role in the game tomorrow at some point, whether it's as starter or off the bench. He'll be involved, for sure, and I've told him that already,” Curtin said.
For Curtin, keeping things simple is the key to ensure Adeniran's first appearance goes smoothly, especially as the team looks to build on their recent success.
“He's been here for two days, you don't want to overload him with information, but keep things simple, realize all our strikers at the Union get service, we will get you service, just run hard in the box, get on the end of crosses, we see how good you are in front of goal and trust that our guys will get you the ball.”
Could Cavan play?
14-year-old Philadelphia Union Academy product Cavan Sullivan made his historic Major League Soccer debut on Wednesday, becoming the youngest to ever do so for any North American professional sports league. He broke Freddy Adu’s record making worldwide headlines, and he’ll be back on the bench for Saturday’s match.
Sullivan was sent onto the pitch in the 85th minute, and though his appearance was brief, Curtin shared a glowing assessment of those inaugural moments playing for his boyhood club.
“He did a really good job. Couple of one touch passes that showed he's not afraid to dribble at defenders that are 25 to 30 years older than him. He did a great job of stepping into the game, left a good impact on the game, and a good impression on the coaches.”
Scouting Nashville
Nashville SC will travel to Philadelphia holding a five-game losing streak, most recently falling 3-0 to Orlando City SC on their home pitch. Their recent misfortune aside, the match will be a test for the home team, who’s summer has just started to take a turn for the better.
Curtin shared what his conversations with his group have sounded like since Wednesday’s win as they look ahead to their final match before MLS play pauses and Leagues Cup begins.
“We now are stressing to the guys that one result means nothing if we don't follow it up with another good performance against Nashville,” Curtin said. “Nashville is still a very dangerous team that always starts with Hany Mukhtar. Shaffleburg is in really dangerous good form coming off Copa America – he’s a great dynamic attacker.”
Nashville SC parted ways with Head Coach Gary Smith in May, and he’s since been replaced by interim Rumba Munthali. Another new team leader is on the way, but until then, it’s likely Nashville’s players will be fighting for both points and personal success as incoming head coach BJ Callahan continues to watch from afar.
“We have to be at the top of our game to get a result against a team that has a new coach coming in BJ Callahan. They will be motivated to play for their coach who will obviously be watching from a distance. For those in Nashville they are getting, for me, for my money, one of the best coaches that our country has.”
With Callahan, a friend of Curtin's, at the helm, he told media that it's likely Nashville will be an even more formidable Eastern Conference foe in years to come. But for now, the focus remains on Saturday and the opportunity for another three-point swing up the standings.
