Goals at both ends of the contest saw Philadelphia Union and Toronto FC finish level at 1-1 on Saturday evening at Subaru Park.
Philly came out of the gates eager to set the tone and they delivered with a wonderful team effort leading to a fourth minute finish from Indiana Vassilev. The midfielder capped off a seven-player sequence that was directly and methodical to set up a 1v1 chance for Vassilev who was clinical to put home the pass from Tai Baribo.
The chippy contest between the Eastern Conference foes looked destined to finish with that scoreline but a late goal from Toronto FC's Deandre Kerr in the first minute of stoppage time saw the two sides depart Chester with a point each.
The Boys in Blue are right back in action next week as they face off against rivals New York Red Bulls twice. The first match up takes place at Subaru Park on Wednesday, August 13th, as the two battle for a the last remaining spot in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Semifinals. Tickets for the rivalry showdown can be purchased online here!
How The Match Unfolded
Lineup notes
After a two week pause from Major League Soccer play, Head Coach Bradley Carnell sent out a strong lineup anchored by Andre Blake in net. The three-time MLS goalkeeper of the year was protected by a backline featuring Nathan Harriel and Kai Wagner on the outside, plus Jakob Glesnes and Olwethu Makhanya paired at centerback.
In the midfield, Jesus Bueno earned the start for the eighth time this year, lining up with Indiana Vassilev, Danley Jean Jacques, and Quinn Sullivan. Up top, Tai Baribo and Bruno Damiani were the chosen attacking duo.
Carnell had his entire roster to choose from with the exception of Ian Glavinovich, so he started the match with an impressive bench featuring Andrew Rick, Olivier Mbaizo, Frankie Westfield, Alejandro Bedoya, Jovan Lukic, Jeremy Rafanello, Mikael Uhre, Cavan Sullivan, and new signing Milan Iloski.
4', Coming in hot | Philadelphia Union opened the match with a dominant fourth minute goal, finished by a determined drive from Indiana Vassilev. Although it ended it with the 24-year-old midfielder driving the ball past Toronto backup keeper Luka Gavran, the goal took the entire team, with touches from 7 different players in the buildup.
20', Toronto chance | Toronto found a breakaway down the left side in the 20th minute, but Jakob Glesnes tracked down Djordje Mihailovic, in his first game since departing Colorado to sign with Toronto. His tackle resulted in a corner, but Philadelphia cleared it, preventing an opposing opportunity.
28', Yellow card caution | After a strong opening stretch from the Norwegian All-Star, the referee showed Glesnes a yellow card, leaving him out for Satruday's upcoming Red Bull rivalry match in New Jersey due to accumulation.
Halftime | Philadelphia Union left the field for halftime up 1-0, and kept the same lineup on the pitch upon emerging from the locker room for the second 45'.
55', Baribo ruled offsides | 10 minutes into the second half, golden boot contender Tai Baribo almost added another to his total, seemingly capitalizing on chaos in the box to net the team's second of the night. Moments after player and fan celebrations settled down, the officials reviewed the play, ruling Baribo's effort offsides.
67', Major Union changes | In the 67th minute, Carnell made his first changes of the match, sending on Mikael Uhre, who scored two goals off the bench in the team's recent win against Colorado Rapids, and newly-signed striker Milan Iloski for his Union debut. The attacking pair replaced Bruno Damiani and Tai Baribo.
83', Blake comes up big | The Canadian side's best chance to equalize came in the waning moments with a corner kick play presenting Kevin Long the chance for a one-timer that was denied by a quick reaction from Andre Blake.
86', Danley denied late | Philly pushed for an insurance goal moments later with a centering pass getting to Danley for a rocker from the top of the box but it was punched away on a diving save from Luka Gavran.
90+1', Toronto equalizes | With 10 minutes added to the second half, the visitors launched one more attack and found the game-tying goal as substitute Deandre Kerr timed his run to tap home a cross from Malik Henry.
