The Philadelphia Union are still waiting to know who they’ll play in their eastern conference semifinal. Tonight’s matchup of Nashville vs Orlando will determine who will be coming to Chester on Sunday. This has a lot of fans asking, Who’d you rather face Nashville or Orlando?
Who’d you rather face?
This is an interesting matchup with two teams the Union was able to beat at Subaru Park this season. Philly dominated Orlando 3-1 and put on a convincing defensive performance beating Nashville 1-0. Both of these games occurred in the Union’s home stretch and were important wins that helped secure the 2-seed for Philly. Now that it’s a win-or-go-home situation, which team would the Union fare better against.
The case for Nashville SC
Nashville is the 3-seed that finished just behind Philly thanks to the wins tiebreaker. They are a truly great defensive team, and when their attack is fully healthy, they have a scary squad. Since this team is so good, why would anyone want to face them in a one-off playoff game?
I’m not sure there are many that would say that they want to face Nashville in a one-off, but if there is one thing that some might point to as a reason why they’d want to see Nashville in the conference semifinals. That would be if you want the Union to play the best competition en route to a championship run.
Playing the 3-seed Nashville would be the tougher of the two matchups. And that could be a good thing. This Union team looks as defensively sound as Nashville. This could lead to which attack is better on the day. With Subaru Park as the backdrop for the match, and the strikers wanting to make up for the plethora of missed chances against Red Bull, maybe that gives Philly the upper hand? In my opinion, I wouldn’t want to see Nashville at all, but that’s just me.
The case for Orlando City SC
Orlando has been a mess of a team all season. They have star players like Nani and Dike, and a great goalkeeper in Gallese, but only was able to be the 6-seed for the playoffs. Will this talented team be able to get past Nashville?
You can never discount a star like Nani balling out in a playoff game, and it seems like many would hope that happens. Philly matches much better with Orlando as their defense has been middle of the pack this season. They give up almost a goal-and-a-half per game in 2021. Their up-and-down form makes them a better fit for Philly as well.
Orlando has won four, drew four, and lost five since September. That topsy-turvy form makes them a bit unpredictable, but also inconsistent. This might be why the Union were able to score three goals vs Orlando in September, and also why they could be the better team to play in a one-off match.
Nashville or Orlando?
So who’d you rather see the Union face on Sunday? Is it the stout defense of Nashville or the inconsistent stars of Orlando? Lets us know in the Doop by the River Twitter poll, in our comments section, and on social media!
Nashville and Orlando face off tonight, Tuesday, November 23 at 8 pm EST. Don’t miss that action to see if your prediction came true on who the Union will face in the conference semifinals!
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Mandatory Credit: PHILADELPHIA UNION, ANDREW ZWARYCH
