Philadelphia Union II took on Orlando City B at Subaru Park on Sunday afternoon for the 2023 MLS NEXT Pro season opener, falling 3-1. In the first half, Orlando opened the scoring in the fifth minute as defender Abdi Salim headed home a cross from midfielder Alejandro Granados. In the 17th minute, Orlando doubled their lead after forward Cristofer Acuña found the back of the net off a breakaway. Just before half, the Union responded when forward Nelson Pierre found midfielder Christopher Olney Jr. who buried his first goal for the club. In the second half, Orlando forward Moises Tablante sent another header to the back of the net, doubling Orlando’s lead.
Union II will return to Subaru Park on Sunday, April 2nd, where they will host Inter Miami II (3:00 p.m. ET).
Philadelphia Union II (1) – Orlando City B (3)
Subaru Park (Chester, PA)
Sunday, March 26th, 2023
TODAY’S MATCH INFO
REF: Sergii Boiko
AR1: Patrick Casey
AR2: Robert Cordrey
4TH: Sharon Gingrich
Weather: 59 degrees and sunny.
GOALS/ASSISTS
ORL — Abdi Salim (Granados) 5’
ORL — Cristofer Acuña (Pérez) 17’
PHI — Christopher Olney (Pierre) 30’
ORL — Moises Tablante (Acuña) 61’
DISCIPLINARY SUMMARY
PHI — Francis Westfield (caution) 44’
ORL — Jorge Almaguer (caution) 44’
ORL — Franco Pérez (caution) 48’
PHI — Maike Villero (caution) 50’
PHI — Christopher Olney Jr. (caution) 59’
ORL — Juninho (caution) 68’
ORL — Abdi Salim (caution) 69’
PHI — Jhon Solís (caution) 79’
ORL — Wilfredo Rivera (caution) 90+5’
PHI — Pedro Álvarez (caution) 90+7’
LINEUP
Philadelphia Union II: Andrew Rick; Anton Sorenson, Gino Portella, Devon Stopek (Luciano Sanchez 86’), Francis Westfield, Christopher Olney Jr., Maike Villero (Pedro Álvarez 75’), Boubacar Diallo (Noe Uwimana 75’), David Vazquez (Jose Riasco 46’), Stefan Stojanovic, Nelson Pierre.
Substitutes not used: Marcelo Mazzola, Anthony Ramírez, Nathan Nkanji, Brooks Thompson, Luke Martelli.
Orlando City B: Javier Otero; Franco Pérez, Nabilai Kibunguchy, Abdi Salim, Zakaria Taifi, Jhon Solís (Wilfredo Rivera 88’ ), Juninho, Jorge Almaguer, Alejandro Granados (Tahir Reid-Brown 79’) , Moises Tablante, Cristofer Acuña (Shakur Mohammed 67’).
Substitutes not used: Dominic Pereira, Jack Lynn, Fernando Sanchez, Chase Vazquez.
Team Notes
- Midfielder Christopher Olney Jr. scored his first Union II goal.
- Forward Nelson Pierre recorded his first MLS NEXT Pro assist of the season.
- Goalkeeper Andrew Rick registered five saves in his first MLS NEXT Pro start.
- Gino Portella, Devon Stopek, Christopher Olney Jr. and David Vazquez all made their first MLS NEXT Pro starts of their careers.
- Pedro Alvarez made his Union II debut on Sunday coming on as a second-half substitute.
The Union return to Subaru Park on Saturday, April 1st, where they will host Sporting Kansas City (7:30 p.m. ET / Apple TV).
