The Philadelphia Union will return to Major League Soccer action on Saturday, October 10th, hosting Real Salt Lake for a cross-conference clash at Subaru Park. The team has just four home matches remaining on their regular season schedule – click here to purchase tickets to support the Boys in Blue in their push toward the playoffs!
One for the history books
The Philadelphia Union set two club records in their last match before the international break, defeating Orlando City to extend their unbeaten streak to 12 and their win streak to six straight. The team has earned points in every match since the World Cup break, when Southampton, Bucks County native Ryan Richter took over as interim Head Coach. Under his leadership, the team has achieved a historic turnaround from last place in the league to sixth place in the East, with room to climb before MLS Decision Day on November 7th.
What’s at stake
The team has seven matches to go over the course of the next month, playing four of the five teams that sit above them in the Eastern Conference standings before playoff positioning is locked.Â
From there, should the Union avoid a Wildcard match, Round One of the postseason is structured as a best-of-three series. The top four teams in each conference earn the chance to host the first and if needed, the last match of the round. Then, the Conference Semifinals and Finals are win-or-go-home, with venues decided by which team has a better regular-season record. The location of MLS Cup will also be dictated by Supporters’ Shield standings – this year, it falls on December 18th.
With this year’s Audi MLS Cup Playoff format in mind, the Union’s schedule ahead will be very influential on their postseason fate, and it starts with a home match against Real Salt Lake at Subaru Park on Saturday.
As it stands
Real Salt Lake sits at 11th place in the Western, sitting below the playoff line with 32 points. They’ve only won one MLS match since emerging from the World Cup break, most recently defeating New England Revolution 3-0 on Saturday, September 26th with a goal from 19-year-old Homegrown forward Aiden Hezarkhani, and two from 23-year-old forward Sergi Solans.
The Union sit at 6th in the East with 39 points, trailing upcoming opponents Chicago Fire and Charlotte FC with 45 and 43 points respectively.
Local legends in the making
The match ahead will mark the return of five starters from National Team duty – including the three Union Homegrowns who have each broken into the US Men’s National Team scene over the past two weeks. Frankie Westfield, Neil Pierre, and Cavan Sullivan each made their debuts and first starts for the Stars and Stripes, and on Saturday, Sullivan became the youngest-ever goalscorer for the USMNT, hitting the back of the net in the team’s 3-0 win over Mexico at 17 years and five days old exactly.
