Union allows two 90+ minute goals in loss to CF Montreal

The Philadelphia Union went up against CF Montreal at the Olympic Stadium on Saturday night, facing off against a team who has not yet scored their first goal of the season. But that did not matter today, as Hernan Losada’s side scored three goals to defeat Philly by a score of 3-2. Jim Curtin returned to his usual starting eleven for the match, minus Andre Blake who was out due to his abductor strain injury. As he did on Tuesday night against Alianza, Joe Bendik replaced Blake, having his first start of this 2023 MLS season.

Rough Start for the Union

Jim Curtin’s side had a decent chance right after kickoff, but after that, nothing seemed to go the Union would want it to. In the third minute of the match, Montreal striker Romell Quioto slotted home a penalty past Joe Bendik to give the home side an early 1-0 lead. The penalty was given after a handball in the box by Jakob Glesnes, which the Norwegian defender was also given a yellow card for. After the goal by Quioto, the Union was outplayed and outclassed by Montreal for the majority of the first half, going into halftime down by a score of 1-0.

Mikael Uhre Scores a Brace

If there was something positive to be taken from the match against Montreal, it was the fact that striker Mikael Uhre found himself on the scoresheet for the first time this season. Uhre scored not only one but two goals in the loss.

Uhre’s first goal came right after the second half started, and it helped the Union equalize at the time. Daniel Gazdag found Mikael at the top of the box, who then shot and tucked the ball past Sirois and into the left side of the net. Uhre’s second goal came in the 60th minute, and this gave the Union a 2-1 lead in the match. It was once again Daniel Gazdag who connected with the Danish striker on the goal, and it was a beauty of a pass by the Union’s number 10. Uhre’s brace would give the Union the lead for the majority of the match, just until the end.

Carranza’s Red Card

In the 69th minute of the match, Union striker Julian Carranza would receive his second yellow card of the night, and get sent off. Carranza received his first yellow card in the 58th minute for persistent infringement, and then his second yellow was on a rough challenge where the yellow was definitely deserved. With this red card, the Argentine striker will miss the Union’s next match against Orlando City on March 25th at Subaru Park, which will be a match the club will already be short-handed due to the international break.

Chaos at the end

The Union would hold onto their 2-1 lead until the 90th minute when Chinonso Offor would score a controversial goal. Offor headed the ball into the net after a rebound off a corner kick, and Montreal had their equalizer in the match. But before the goal was officially confirmed, there was some drama that ensued on the pitch. The referee went to VAR to check for a possible offside on the goal, which at the time did look like he was offside. Due to this, the referee called the goal offside, and the Union had thought they escaped a late game-tying goal.

However, after even more listening to his headset, the referee went back to VAR to check for a second time, and it was seen that Kai Wagner kept Offor onside, giving Montreal their equalizer. A few minutes later, Montreal would get the game-winner as Quioto shrugged off Mbaizo to head the ball in the net for his second of the match.

The Union will look to rebound from this tough defeat next Saturday when they go up against Orlando City. The match will be at 7:30 PM EST, and it will be held at Subaru Park. As stated prior, the Union will be short-handed in the game, as there will be an international break occurring at the time.