For the 2nd consecutive year, the Philadelphia Union had their hopes of lifting the Leagues Cup trophy ripped away from them in the competition’s Semi-Final round. A Diego Rossi Brace in the opening half, a 3rd from Cucho Hernandez in the 2nd, and 3-1 loss to Wilfried Nancy and the Columbus Crew marks the 6th time since 2021 that Union have advanced to the Semi-Final of a tournament or further without getting their hands on silverware.
It was another big opportunity for the Union, but the opportunity lost provides fans with another reason to shout the question they’ve been asking for years – why can’t the front office bring in the type of players that ended Union’s Leagues Cup dreams on Wednesday night?
Starting XI
Jim Curtin and Union were shorthanded from the jump, needing to play without Tai Baribo – the team’s best goalscorer over the last month and a half – due to double yellow cards that Baribo received in the Quarter-Final against Mazatlán. Of course, Philadelphia would also be without Jose Martinez, who is reportedly currently in Brazil finalizing his move to Corinthians.
Here’s how Jim Curtin lined his team up against Columbus on Wednesday night
4-4-2 Diamond:
GK: Andre Blake
RB: Nate Harriel, CB: Jakob Glenses, CB: Jack Elliott, LB: Kai Wagner
CDM: Leon Flach
RCM: Ale Bedoya, LCM: Jack McGlynn
ST: Quinn Sullivan, ST: Mikael Uhre
Rossi gives Crew the early lead
Getting a result at Lower.com Field, a venue in which Wilfried Nancy‘s Crew have lost just twice since his arrival in Columbus, was always going to be a tall task for Union, and would likely require them to weather the storm through the opening 15 or 20 minutes of the game. But in a similar fashion to last year’s Leagues Cup Semi Final, Union conceded an early goal, putting them at a disadvantage just 12 minutes in.
Cucho Hernandez whipped a ball into the penalty area with his right foot, which Andre Blake caught sight of late, but with enough time to dive and push the ball away from the far bottom corner. Despite Blake’s efforts to clear the ball away from the face of goal, the clearance landed perfectly in the path of Diego Rossi, who headed the ball freely into an open net.
Union’s high press leads to Gazdag leveler
Credit where it’s due, the Union didn’t pack it in after Columbus’ early goal, and found a way to get themselves back into the game. In the 32nd minute of the match and down 1-0, Union sent players forward and looked committed to forcing Columbus into turning the ball over in their own defensive 3rd. It was Nate Harriel who eventually nicked the ball off of a scrambling Crew backline, which Daniel Gazdag quickly pounced on before firing the loose ball the back of the net, making Columbus pay and leveling the game at 1.
Rossi regains the Crew’s lead before half
A little more than 10 minutes after Gazdag’s equalizer, Columbus regained the lead before half thanks to Diego Rossi’s 2nd of the night. In the 42nd minute and approaching half-time, Christian Ramirez received a pass just outside the penalty area with his back turned to goal.
Ramirez turned towards net and flicked the ball up and over Union’s backline, dropping perfectly into the path of Diego Rossi. Rossi let the ball take a bounce in front of him, and volleyed the bouncing ball into the back of the net with his right foot. 2-1 Columbus before half-time, and all the momentum back on the home-team’s side heading into the break.
Cucho’s Dagger Early in the 2nd Half
Coming out of the half-time break and down 2-1, Union knew getting the next goal could be vital, and they were almost able to scape something together early in the 2nd half. Union put a number of attractive attacking sequences together early in the 2nd, but their final ball into the penalty area continued to fail them.
With Union pressing for the equalizer, Columbus found their opportunity to hit Union going the other way and made them pay. 8 minutes into the 2nd half, Mo Farsi sprinted forward and across the midfield line with the ball at his feet. Farsi eventually laid the ball into the path of Rossi, who played the ball out wide to Steven Moreira. Moreira whipped in a fizzing cross which found the head of Cucho Hernandez, whose unmarked attempt on net was saved by Andre Blake.
Andre Blake’s save was left in the penalty area for Hernandez to pounce on, and before a Union defender could even start to react to what was happening, the ball was in the back of the net and Union’s hopes of hosting the Leagues Cup final at home were all but dusted.
Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
