Union with chance to make playoff statement against Toronto FC
CHESTER >> In the infinite wisdom of the MLS scheduling machine, the season has trickled down to its final 10 games before the Philadelphia Union and Toronto FC meet for the first time.
When they do finally collide Saturday at Talen Energy Stadium (7 p.m., TCN), the ramifications will be felt through the Eastern Conference, endowing the game with extra meaning for the hosts as an opportunity to make a statement.
A split finally appears to be forming in the East. The largest gap in the standings exists between Montreal (33 points) and D.C. United (27) in fifth and sixth, respectively. The Union (9-8-7, 34 points) and Toronto (10-7-7, 37 points) find themselves on the right side of that divide, and a win by the Union could take them up to second place by the end of the weekend.
Against the four other teams in relatively secure playoff position, the Union have struggled this season, posting a 1-2-2 record against the two New York teams and Montreal with a minus-3 goal differential. They have five meetings left with those teams, and a result at home against Toronto Saturday would go a long way in proving not just the Union’s playoff credentials but the possibility that they could make some noise in the postseason.
The Union enter on the heels of a huge win over New England, 4-0. Toronto rides a five-game unbeaten streak, though that run was dampened slightly by a draw in Houston last Sunday in a game that was stormed out a night earlier and extended the Reds stay in the Lone Star State. Toronto has a beneficial finish to the season with just three away dates left after Saturday.
Playoff picture aside, the game will feature an impressive lineup of U.S. internationals, with a fair few international stars sprinkled in. Jozy Altidore and Michael Bradley will be paying a visit to Alejandro Bedoya and Charlie Davies, both of whom are poised to make their Union home debuts.
And we’ve gotten this far without mentioning the reigning MLS MVP, Sebastian Giovinco, who leads MLS with 15 goals and is tied for second with 11 assists. He’s got a dizzying seven goals and four assists in his last five games and is certainly the league’s foremost set-piece magician.
“He’s the toughest guy to handle in the league in terms of you can tell people to be tight to him and he blows by you,” Union manager Jim Curtin said in his weekly press conference Wednesday. “If you shy off him he can shoot from 30 (yards). He can also make a pass off a full sprint. So, he’s as dangerous a guy as there is in our league to prepare for. It’s not a one-man job. You need multiple guys around the ball.”
The other tactical nuance presented by Toronto will keep Curtin guessing until game time. Toronto manager Greg Vanney has vacillated between three- and four-man backlines all season. He deployed a threeman defense last week, then promptly saw both wingbacks in the midfield of the 3-5-2, Mark Bloom and Justin Morrow, exit with firsthalf injuries. (Morrow is listed as questionable for Saturday, while Bloom is likely out.)
Toronto remains without veteran goalie Clint Irwin, meaning former Reading United player Alex Bono should start again. Will Johnson returns from his latest injury, but Benoit Cheyrou remains out, and new loanee, Panamanian midfielder Armando Cooper, could feature.
Altidore, meanwhile, made his first start in three months last week, scoring the Reds’ only goal in Houston. His return adds yet another dimension to Toronto’s danger that the Union must prep for.