The Union’s MVP from 2022, attacking midfielder Daniel Gazdag, has agreed to a DP contract extension to stay with Philadelphia for the next three seasons! The deal is another significant bit of business by Philly’s Sporting Director Ernst Tanner.
Gazdag; Philly’s DP through 2025
26-year-old Daniel Gazdag is staying in Philly becoming a new designated player (DP) with the club. The extension he signed keeps him under contract until 2025, and there’s a club option for 2026 as well. This would keep Daniel with the Union until his early 30s and could keep the foundation of a winning culture in Philly. Sporting Director Ernst Tanner sure thinks so.
“Daniel became one of the top two-way players in Major League Soccer as well as a league MVP candidate last season. His 22 goals and 10 assists in the regular season show his value to our attack, and his defensive work rate and intelligence were key in helping us build a top defensive unit. He’s a great fit for our aggressive style of play and we are excited to reward him with a Designated Player contract that keeps him in Philadelphia for the coming years.”
Philadelphia Union Sporting Director, Ernst Tanner
While Gazdag does have ambitions to play in Europe, he’s choosing Philadelphia for now, but more success and winning a trophy or two could mean that the Union’s number 10 is transferred out before the end of his new contract. The Hungarian’s importance to Philly has been seen in his breakout 2022 season, and now he will be able to showcase this even more in a pivotal 2023 for Philly and possibly for years after that!
A new number 10 in Blue and Gold
Gazdag has changed his number as part of this new contract as well. He’ll don the number 10, becoming the ninth player in team history to wear that shirt. If there was any player that deserved that number it is Daniel Gazdag.
His ability to create for others and bang in goals makes him the positional number 10 Union fans clamored for for years on end in the past. Look for number 10 on the field for the blue and gold being involved in many attacking sequences.
As the Union prepares for a hectic and busy 2022, Gazdag could and should be the focal point of the Union’s success. Could it be that he is the star DP Philly will rely on to bring a trophy to the city of brotherly love?
A star to lean on during a trophy run?
As has been mentioned many times since the 2022 season, Gazdag’s 22 goals and 10 assists were the second-best attacking stat line of any player in MLS last season. He was pivotal in Philly’s chances of competing for the Supporters Shield and MLS Cup last year.
Will he be called upon to do this again in 2023? Philly notably will play in four competitions this year (MLS, Concacaf Champions League, US Open Cup, and Leagues Cup) and they want to progress far in each competition.
This would mean that the club would play 50+ matches in 2023, and if they are to achieve anything, they’ll need their number 10 to be at the forefront of the attack. Only time will tell how Gazdag will influence this Union team in 2023, but one thing is clear, the club is willing and ready to win now!
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