The Philadelphia Union was able to outlast Cincinnati. Now they will host the winner of Montreal and NYCFC in the eastern conference final! Montreal and NYCFC face off at 1 pm ET on Sunday. The match poses the question for Union fans, who would you rather face?
Union to face Montreal or NYCFC
Philadelphia will be playing the eastern conference final at home for the second straight year. They will face either the second-best team in the east, Montreal, or have a rematch of the 2021 eastern conference final against NYCFC. Which team would you rather come to Chester?
A 1-seed vs 2-seed matchup?
The Union took four of a possible six points off of Montreal in the 2022 regular season. Philly got an early season win up in Montreal but failed to find the winning impact at Subaru Park. The last match between these two was in April, and both sides look drastically different now than they did back then. Should it be these two sides meeting with the right to make MLS Cup hanging in the balance it’ll be an epic match between the two best sides in the east.
Philadelphia went on its amazing run through the summer and part of the fall, but they were closely followed by Montreal. While Philly was paying more attention to the Supporters Shield Race, Montreal made sure to stay within striking distance. CF Montreal was only two points off of Philly at the end of the season. They are a solid team that hasn’t lost since August. Should they come to Chester for the eastern conference final it will be an intense match with little splitting the two teams.
A game 329 days in the making?
Next Sunday marks 329 days since the Union fell to NYCFC in the 2021 eastern conference final. The blue team from New York went on to win MLS Cup last season. In 2022, the Union made it a point to beat down NYCFC. They beat them twice, first at Yankee stadium in March, then at Subaru Park in June. It’s clear Philly look for revenge when they take on NYCFC. Should they advance to the conference final, then it will be another chance for revenge.
NYCFC has had a tough season. They were flying high early on, but their coach, Ronny Deila unexpectedly left the club, and then their talisman, Taty Castellanos was loaned out in the summer. This made for a summer skid for NYCFC. At the end of the season they got things back on track and now are a game away from making yet another conference final. Could we see the epic rematch that Union fans have been talking about possibly happening all season?
Who is coming to Chester?
Whether it’s Montreal or NYCFC coming to play on the banks of the Delaware River, the Union know that they will need to keep their tenacity up while keeping cool heads.
This Philly team has shown that they are head-and-shoulders above the other teams in their conference, however, comes to Chester will have to be at their very best to beat the Union.
Montreal and NYCFC play today at 1 pm ET on ESPN! Tune in to see who the Union will play with a chance at making MLS Cup on the line!
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Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher/Icon Sportswire & David Kirouac/Icon Sportswire
