Tell any fan that saw the first 60 minutes of Philadelphia Union and the New York Red Bulls on Saturday night that the match ended 3-1 in favor of New York and they probably won't believe you. Tell it to any Union fan who saw the full match and they still won't believe you.
It's the little things. Something we hear often from elderly couples, but perhaps not in the context of soccer. But that truly was the case for the Union on the night.
So what went wrong for Philadelphia?
Failure to Capitalize on Set Pieces:
13 corners, eight of them in the first half alone, and a handful of free kicks, but the Union created few if any opportunities from static situations and were ill equipped to do so in the first place (more on that later).
Lack of Team Identity:
Jim Curtin has tried to create a defensively sound team that likes to counter attack and is hard to beat but the team were ill equipped to do so on the night and seemed to have abandoned their traditional style as well. The Union was relatively dominant in the air, winning 25 aerials duels to New York's 21, with Sapong claiming 8 of those, however they failed to manage a shot on target from these.
Over Reliance on Crossing:
The timing of Coach Curtin's decisions were suspect, choosing to bring Casey and Fernando on late in the game and switch to a back three ultimately cost the team on the third goal; however, Casey and Fernando each won a single headed duel which bodes well for the team's strategy, but would have been far more productive earlier in the match, given the Union's whopping total of 41 crosses. Of these, Maidana had 24. However, the team only completed 12 crosses, for an accuracy of about 29%. For a team that relies upon height and strength, that's not a good tally.
Furthermore, the Union has had a spark at times from Ayuk's decision to forgo an early cross and run at a defender to cause havoc. However, on the night the Cameroonian only completed a single dribble and his crossing was noticeably leaving a lot to be desired, having completed just one.
In the first fifteen minutes of matches, the Union have typically sat back and absorbed pressure, tiring out the opposition and then counter attacking at the right moment. However, in Saturday night's match the Union pressed New York to positive effect, creating several half chances through dispossessing New York but they couldn't sustain said pressure nor could they truly capitalize on the chances created.
Goalkeeping Indecisiveness:
Both from the player himself and the manager. With Brian Sylvestre out with a hand injury, the starting spot was given to John McCarthy on the night. McCarthy had played the role of hero in recent cup matches but with the return of Andre Blake to full fitness, a player with arguably a higher ceiling, why was McCarthy playing? While not much can be said both positively and negatively about McCarthy on the night, bar the third goal (more on that later) the Union appear content to let Blake rot on the bench in order to show good faith to McCarthy. McCarthy however was in part at fault for the third goal or rather he could have made a better decision. Having been faced with a one on one situation, McCarthy came out late, attempted to make himself big but failed to close the angle to make the shot more difficult for Abang.
Player Selection:
Zach Pfeffer is a talented, talented individual and has a bright future ahead of him in MLS but NOT at defensive midfield. Yes it's wonderful for a young player to learn a position in order to get game time and Pfeffer has talked about his desire to improve the defensive side of his game in interviews but in a team that's clutching on to its last hope of making the playoffs, missing key players with others playing in different positions or benched, now is perhaps not the time. Pfeffer had just one tackle and two interceptions on the night, less than midfield partner Brian Carroll who had 3 tackles, 5 interceptions and one clearance. Left midfielder Sebastian Le Toux even completed more tackles than Pfeffer. Add to this Pfeffer's best attributes (his passing and overall creativity) and the opportunities he created on the night with third man runs and it's clear he should be playing closer to goal.
Furthermore while Edu has been arguably the Union's best defender, with the return of Marquez and Vitoria to injury and the loss of Nogueira, a key contributor to injury it's clear Edu should have returned to midfield for the time being. While the Union's best defender on the night with 5 tackles, 3 interceptions and one clearance, Edu was also one of the Union's best passers, with his 73.5 % accuracy second only to Brian Carroll. This is key for a team that often has their central midfielders playing them out of the back. With the return of Edu to midfield that would pave the way for the return of Marquez or Vitoria who would have provided an option to aim for on set pieces they were so missing at times on the night.
In a similar vein, the pairing of Sapong and Fernando would offer an alternative that the Union has been lacking up front. Sapong has been proven to be best when running at defenders as he's surprisingly quick and a good dribbler for a player of such size and strength. Sapong completed the most dribbles of any Union player on the night with two. Should he be paired with Fernando, as he was (sort of) late in Saturday's game, it provides the Union with another player to receive crosses and long balls and would allow Sapong and Maidana to make runs off of him. Casey can provide a similar function.
Finally, from a tactical view point, the Union's opponent the Red Bulls proved that it is indeed acceptable to play with a single holding midfielder (as the Union typically do given Nogueira and Pfeffer tendency to roam (the heat map shows Pfeffer was equally present in front of the New York penalty area as he was in front of his own). For the Union to do this successfully, they need to follow New York's model. Surrounding the defensive midfielder with "two way players". What this means is midfielders, who may be offensively inclined such as Klejstan and Felipe Martins, but who can also defend when necessary and provide support for Dax McCarty. In the Union's case they play with fewer central midfielders per say but could benefit from the extra protection and control of midfield. But why not look at it with statistics? On the night midfielders Klejstan and Martins proved this. Sacha managed two tackles, two interceptions and clearances and Felipe had 3 tackles, 1 interception and 4 clearances. Combined, they nearly equaled defensive midfielder Dax McCarty's total on the night.
In conclusion, while the Union's performances have not necessarily matched their results this is a team that continues to evolve and develop and show positive signs. Given the student of the game Curtin is, expect to see more concrete tactics from Philadelphia should the proper players arrive.