A strong defensive effort saw Philadelphia Union push their unbeaten streak to six games with a 1-0 win against the Columbus Crew at Subaru Park on Saturday evening.
As fans continued their roar of an applause for Mikael Uhre in his first start for the Boys in Blue, the forward was welcomed into the U.S. league with a hard challenge from the visiting Crew. The Union kept their composure, taking the free kick and generating a goal in the second minute. Columbus cleared the initial ball for Brujo Martinez got it back and drove to the corner flag. With an energetic River End, the Venezuelan floated a cross to the far post that the keeper couldn’t handle and sent it into his own net.
Following the opening goal by Philly, the anticipated chess match between Jim Curtin and Caleb Porter then took shape. The chessboard cut field saw powerful midfields face off man vs man. Leon Flach and Martinez focused on denied MVP candidate Lucas Zelarayan and were successful in the opening half, limiting the Crew’s No. 10 to just two shots.
In the 23rd minute it was another midfield matchup that nearly saw the second goal of the night with Daniel Gazdag swiping the ball from Darlington Nagbe just past the center circle. The Hungarian turned his head and went into attack mode, feeding Julian Carranza at the top of the 18. The forward had a go on frame that blocked by Columbus but it fell to Gazdag who flicked a right-footed shot and forced a tough save from Elroy Room.
Just before the halftime break, Columbus made a final push to equalize and silence the home crowd. Yaw Yeboah drew a foul against Flach and put the visitors in scoring range for Zelarayan. The midfielder took the opportunity from 25 yards out, going for the upper corner. Andre Blake showed why he’s the best keeper in the league, putting his body on the line to fly through the air and keep it 1-0 for the Boys in Blue.
Both sides came out of the knowing that the next goal of the contest would be decisive. In the opening ten minutes, the two sides combined for five chances. Columbus saw both Artur and Derick Etienne Jr., denied by Blake in quick succession. With the Crew pushing for a tying goal, the Union’s counter went on the attack in the space behind left back Pedro Santos. Alejandro Bedoya and Carranza each attacked that side of the pitch in the space but saw each of their attempts saved on the other end.
Just after the hour mark, Curtin made his first change with Cory Burke coming in for Carranza. With the fresh attacking piece, the Union diamond shifted into lockdown mode. Shortly after Quinn Sullivan completed the positional swap with Uhre getting subbed out.
The move saw Columbus dominate possession but limited in scoring chances with the Union happy to concede play on the flanks. When the Crew looked to come inside, the gritty midfield and defense were right on their hip to deny a second ball and just looking to push it forward. That came to fruition in the 81st minute as Cory Burke collected a volley and raced into the Crew’s territory. Seeing the angle tighten, the Jamaican international riffled a pass to his right for Gazdag but once more was denied a fifth-straight game with a goal after a smothering save.
The Boys in Blue hit the road next weekend for their only April contest away from Subaru Park as they head north of the border to take on Toronto FC. Kick off from BMO Field is set for 7:30 p.m. ET with coverage of the Eastern Conference contest on PHL17 and PhiladelphiaUnion.com.
