Danley Jean-Jacques turned plenty of heads during his Philadelphia Union debut: Quotes from teammates & Jim Curtin

If you weren’t familiar with Danley Jean-Jacques and his game when Union announced the signing of the FC Metz midfielder in early August, it won’t be much longer until you are. 

The 24-year-old Haitian International started and logged his first 90-minute performance for the U this past weekend, a 2-0 win on the road against the New York Red Bulls. He put on a display that not only elicited positive feedback from Jim Curtin and his teammates postgame, but one that will excite Union fans and provide some hope that adjusting to life post-José Martinez won’t be so bad after all. 

High Praise for Danley Jean-Jacques from Jim Curtin

I’ll admit myself, I didn’t know who Danley Jean-Jacques was when news came out that he was joining Philadelphia Union from FC Metz, but I did have a good deal of confidence that someone who spent the last 2 seasons playing in France’s Ligue 1 might have success in Major League Soccer. Jim Curtin spoke about that transition and the positive early signs from DJJ after Saturday night’s win against Red Bulls.

“First of all, it’s a perfect matchup because it’s second balls, it’s tackles, you’re up quick, there’s no time to really even think and that fits his skill set.  What I think you saw with Danley tonight, is really his composure on the ball. When you come from French Ligue 1 and you jump into MLS, as unique as our league is, he’s playing week in and week out against high, high level teams where you have to defend for 90 minutes, and I think you see the good defensive instincts, but then you can also see composure in tight spaces.  Some of the passes he played into Danny [Gazdag] – you’re starting to see some of the relationships come – balls into Jack [McGlynn], I think he did a great job not only defensively but going forward” 
-Jim Curtin on Danley Jean-Jacques first 90 minute performance

Jack McGlynn’s thoughts on DJJ’s performance

Upon arrival, Danley’s stats pointed at him being a more defensive midfielder than an attacking-minded one – which made sense with the rumor of him being the replacement for José Martinez. But it’s pretty clear after Saturday’s showing against a high-pressing Red Bulls team, that DJJ feels comfortable getting on the ball and moving the team up the pitch, which was an aspect of Danley’s game that Jack McGlynn was happy with after Saturday’s win

“I think he had a great performance tonight, he doesn’t really speak too much English so it was more-so just communicating with hand signals and stuff, but it’s great having him there, he cleaned up the ball defensively really well and was able to play through the lines and play forward, that definitely helped breaking their [Red Bulls] press”
-Jack McGlynn on DJJ

Ale Bedoya confident Danley Jean-Jacques will integrate into squad quickly

Ale Bedoya, Club Captain and the only other French-speaking player on the team (thanks to his 3 year stint with FC Nantes), says despite no one else being able to really communicate on the field with DJJ yet, he’s settling in nicely with his new team after coming in during the Summer transfer window

“Summer signings in this league are difficult, right? And not all players get acclimated right away, but I think he’s done a great job of trying to get integrated into the team quickly, try to learn our style of play, but I think as a 6 what’s expected is a guy that can break up plays, get interceptions or recoveries, and also be able to help our back line play out of the back and move forward.”
-Ale Bedoya on DJJ’s integration into Union’s team

If you’re sill struggling to see the recurring talking point here, it’s that Danley’s ability to get on the ball and progress Union up the pitch is already starting to present itself and impress his manager and teammates. Of any player on the pitch on Saturday night, DJJ produced the highest number of Expected Assisted Goals (0.62), most of which coming from a play late in the game where he played a nearly perfect ball to the backdoor for Tai Baribo with an open net, but Baribo’s feet got caught under him and his attempt was denied by the post.

“I think it’s so critical for a 6 to get on the ball and help us progress the ball forward and help us with transitional moments, and I think he’s helped do that tonight, and he’s very unlucky not to get an assist in the second half. That was a great run out of midfield and Tai just got a little unlucky, but Danley’s showing some good stuff”
-Ale Bedoya on DJJ’s assist opportunity

What to expect from DJJ moving forward

I don’t want to put too much pressure on the kid, but he looks like he’s going to be an absolute baller for this Philadelphia Union team, and will play a big role in Union’s chances of making the playoffs in 2024. I’ve got really high hopes for Danley Jean-Jacques, and I think a pre-offseason with the team will have him sprinting out of the gates come next season. But what should we expect from DJJ in the meantime, while Union are still battling for a playoff picture? Hopefully more of what we saw against the Red Bulls on Saturday night, and maybe there’s even more to his game we haven’t seen yet.

“What I’ve seen so far is that he’s willing to put in the work, he covers ground which is important for us and the way we set up. And I thought tonight he was calm on the ball and played some really good forward balls that really helped us get into transition moments, counter attacks – I think the first goal was a great ball that he played forward. I don’t know what is range of passing is yet, I think José (Martinez) was able to spray more diagonals, but it’s just his first month, so I think in terms of expectations he looks great.”
-Ale Bedoya on what he’s seen from DJJ so far

If you want to check out a video highlighting some of DJJ’s shining moments against Red Bulls from this weekend, take a peak at this video my buddy Todd from The Free Kick Podcast put together, and make sure you check out all of Todd’s awesome work while you’re at it.

The little move at the 55 second mark where he’s able to dribble around a defender in the midfield, and then quickly split 2 additional on-coming defenders with a pass that sends Union on transition and provides them with a goal scoring opportunity….yeah, I try my best to not get animated in the press box, but that one got me pretty excited and on the edge of my seat. Hopefully a sign of much more of that to come from DJJ.

Danley Jean Jacque’s Stats in 90 minutes against Red Bulls

When looking at the stats from DJJ’s first 90 on the road against a Red Bulls team that hadn’t lost at home in 2024, you can’t find too much to complain about. One might nit-pick the lack of duels won, tackles, and the amount of times being dribbled past, but I think for a guy who’s just arrived from France, can barely communicate with his teammates while learning a new system, and is just logging his first 90 minute performance, you gotta have hope that those things work themselves out – and his stats from previous seasons suggests they will and that he’s going to be a really solid player in the middle of the park for this Union team, and hopefully someone that helps bring a trophy to the City of Philadelphia.

“That was a great performance from Danley, not easy to come into a new team, language barrier – the thinking was to start Ale with him just for communication, Ale knowing the intensity and what a Red Bull game needs, I think they did a great job in the first half”
-Jim Curtin on DJJ

Minutes: 90
Accurate Passes: 22/28 (79%)
Chances Created: 1
Expected Assisted Goals: 0.62 (game high)
Touches: 45
Successful Dribbles: 2
Passes into Final Third: 3
Tackles: 1/2 (50%)
Dribbled Past: 4
Clearances: 2
Interceptions: 2
Defensive Actions: 6
Recoveries: 3
Duels Won: 5/11 (45.45%)

Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports