Love it or hate it, the Leagues Cup Knock-out stage is upon us. The Philadelphia Union‘s 1-0 Win against Charlotte FC and 2-1 loss to Cruz Azul on Penalty Kicks was enough to move DOOP through the group-stage and into the Round of 32.
Standing in their way of moving one step closer to lifting the Leagues Cup Trophy and punching their ticket to next season’s CONCACAF Champions Cup is Laurent Courtois and CF Montreal, a team that’s gotten the better of Union so far this season. Let’s take a look at how the two stack up in the do-or-die game at The Soon on Friday night.
How to watch Union vs CF Montreal
When: Friday, August 9th @ 7:30pm
Where: Subaru Park
Where to Watch: Apple TV+
Philadelphia Union vs CF Montreal betting odds
Philadelphia Union -155
Draw +320
CF Montreal +370
Union’s Leagues Cup So Far
Union were expected to advance from their group consisting of Cruz Azul and Charlotte FC, and they got the job done. DOOP took care of their opening match of the tournament against Charlotte FC thanks to another goal from Tai Baribo in a 1-0 game. Cruz Azul’s PK shootout win against Charlotte officially punched Union’s ticket to the knock out round, but a positive result against Cruz Azul would ensure Union finish top of he group.
Cruz Azul looked destine to get all 3 points at Subaru Park after taking a first-half lead, but Daniel Gazdag spoiled the party and equalized in the dying moments of the game. Cruz Azul would end up getting the extra point from PKs, but Union’s 4 points would send them through with the most points in the group. Union scored 2 goals in the 2 group-stage games, and conceded just 1. Tai Baribo and Daniel Gazdag both scored 1 goal.
Montreal’s Leagues Cup So Far
Montreal’s start to Leagues Cup came with a 4-1 humbling at the hands Orlando City SC. Orlando scored 3 unanswered goals in the opening half of the game to give themselves a comfortable lead at home. Josef Martinez would draw one back for Montreal, but it proved to be just a consolation prize as Orlando would close the game out with a 4-1 win.
Montreal turned things around in game 2 against San Luis after Tom Pearce and Matías Cóccaro gave them a 2-0 lead within the first half hour. Montreal’s Sunnis Ibrahim would add a 3rd goal late in the game, which proved to be the winning goal after 2 late ones from San Luis.
Meetings This season
Union and Montreal have already shared their 2 MLS meetings of the 2024 season. The first of which came on June 1st, just as Union were starting to tailspin. Sunusi Ibrahim opened the scoring for Montreal in the opening minute of the game at Subaru Park.
Union fought back and scored 2 goals in as many minutes mid-way through the second half to take control of the lead, but 5 minutes later Jack Elliott was shown a Red Card which changed the landscape of the game for both teams. Montreal, of course, would end up equalizing the game from the ensuing free-kick, and Union would drop points from a winning position at home.
The return fixture up in Montreal was just as agonizing for Union fans, after DOOP returned home from Canada with no points after taking a 2-1 lead into the half-time break. Goals from Quinn Sullivan and Jesus Bueno put Union in a good position to earn points on the road, but 3 2nd half goals from CF Montreal sent Union back to Chester with their tail between their legs.
Available Players & Predicted Lineup
Nate Harriel and Jack McGlynn’s arrival back in Philadelphia after their time at the Olympics means Jim Curtin has pretty much his entire squad available for selection against Montreal on Friday night. The two exceptions to that are young CB Olwethu Makhanya, who probably wasn’t going to play anyway, and Isaiah LeFlore – injured before ever getting on the field for Union.
Oh, and if you were wondering – no, Union’s newest signing Daniel Jean Jacques will likely not be available for tomorrow’s game as he’s still working through the International Transfer Certificate and P1 Visa process. However, once that process is complete, DJJ will be eligible to be added to Union’s Leagues Cup roster.
With all the tools in the box available, here’s how I think Jim Curtin lines up his 4-4-2 Diamond against CF Montreal:
4-4-2 Diamond:
GK – Andre Blake
RB – Nate Harriel, CB – Jakob Glesnes, CB – Jack Elliott, LB – Kai Wagner
CDM – Jose Martinez
RCM – Ale Bedoya, LCM – Jack McGlynn
CAM – Daniel Gazdag
ST – Tai Baribo, ST – Sam Adeniran
Though it seems like a straight-forward lineup to predict, there are a few questions in Friday’s starting XI. The biggest of those questions are how quickly Nate Harriel and Jack McGlynn reintegrate back into the squad, but I think they’ll step right back in.
Because of Jack McGlynn coming back into the lineup, that means one of Ale Bedoya or Quinn Sullivan have to move to the bench. I think Ale Bedoya provides your team with leadership and experience in a knock-out game, and gives you an option off the bench in Quinn Sullivan.
Mikael Uhre could very well get the start up top and I’d have no complaints – but when you look at how Montreal plays and how Jim Curtin wants to exploit them, Sam Adeniran running at and pressuring defenders into mistakes makes a whole lot of sense with their game-plan.
“We want to try and win the ball as high up the field as possible, they play very brave, whether they’re winning or whether they’re losing, they play the same way. There’s familiarity with both groups, we know how each other is going to play and hopefully we can take advantage of some situations here at Subaru Park.”
-Jim Curtin on facing MontrealScore Prediction
This is a game Union should win, especially at home. But nothing’s promised and Union have to go out and take care of business against Montreal on Friday night. Montreal is a team that doesn’t score a ton of goals(17th in MLS), but they do concede them (4th most in MLS)!
I think Curtin’s team will pressure Montreal into mistakes while playing out of the back on Friday night, and I think Union will make them pay for it, too. And if they don’t force them into mistakes deep in their own half of the field, Union’s defense is looking much more solid after the return of Andre Blake, which Jim Curtin says is providing the rest of the team with confidence.
“We really improve now with Andre being back in goal. Just our team defending – the confidence and the cohesiveness that the backline has, the midfield, trikers, everybody is connected. Yeah, we still give up chances but it’s a lot less and Andre’s made some big saves for us when we’ve needed him, too.”
I’m going with a 3-1 Union win on Friday night. Tai Baribo keeps his hot-streak going with another brace, and Jack McGlynn brings the fans present home from the Olympics with a goal of his own to send Union through to the Leagues Cup Round of 16, where they’ll face the winner of FC Cincinnati and Santos Laguna.
Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
