Philadelphia Union’s pursuit of securing a spot in the Leagues Cup Final came up short in Ohio, falling to Columbus Crew 3-1.
Columbus Crew claimed an early lead on Wednesday night, and despite a first half equalizer from Daniel Gazdag, the defending MLS Cup Champions responded with two unanswered goals to emerge with the win.
Philadelphia Union can still finish its Leagues Cup run on a positive as they’ll return to Subaru Park for the Third-Place Match on Sunday, August 25th. While a trophy won’t be on the line, there's still a big prize to battle for as the winner will secure a berth in the 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup tournament.
The Union will host the match against whichever team falls in Wednesday's other Leagues Cup Semifinal. Official kick off is at 4:30pm and tickets for the match are available for purchase right now.
How The Match Unfolded
Lineup notes
Philadelphia Union traveled to Ohio without Tai Baribo, who picked up a pair of yellow cards in the quarterfinals. He was sent off against Liga MX side Mazatlán, leaving him ineligible to play against Columbus Crew on Wednesday night. In his absence, Curtin started Homegrown Quinn Sullivan as a second striker in their 4-4-2 formation and added Alejandro Bedoya into the midfield. Otherwise, the starting lineup stayed the same as they took on the defending MLS Cup Champions for the first time in 2024.
Goals
Diego Rossi, 12' | Andre Blake made an athletic save in the 12th minute, fully extending his body to deliver a diving stop when Colombian star Cucho Hernández took a contested shot from outside the box. Blake got a hand on it, making an impressive initial block but the rebound found Uruguayan midfielder Diego Rossi already advancing toward the goal. He capitalized on the opportunity, heading the ball to the back of the net before Blake could get to his feet for an early 1-0 lead.
Daniel Gazdag, 32' | Philadelphia Union tied it up in the 32nd minute by way of Daniel Gazdag, who wove through Columbus defenders in the box to whip one past Patrick Schulte in net. The build up started with the Columbus keeper readying to clear the ball, but Mikael Uhre and Quinn Sullivan pressed toward him, forcing a close pass to Yevhen Cheberko. Nate Harriel got a foot on the ball after Schulte, his fellow Olympian, got it to Cheberko, and the touch gave Gazdag an opportunity to pounce. From there, the Hungarian claimed possession and sped toward the middle of the box, releasing a point blank shot that became an equalizing goal for the Boys in Blue.
Diego Rossi, 44' | Columbus pulled ahead again in the 44th minute when Rossi secured a brace shortly before halftime. He first passed it to Christian Ramírez, who chipped it back to him in the box for a shot. Despite Jack Elliott’s efforts to track him down, Rossi placed it past Blake for a 2-1 lead heading into halftime.
Cucho Hernández, 53' | The hosts extended their lead to two early in the second half, when Steven Moreira found Hernández for a header chance in front of their Supporters' Section. Moreira sent a cross through the box, and when Hernández's first attempt to score was stopped by Blake near the post, he followed through on his shot, running onto his rebound for a goal despite Blake's attempt to stop him.
