The Philadelphia Union have a chance to keep their lengthy MLS unbeaten run at Subaru Park intact when they host Dallas on Wednesday in Chester.
Over the weekend, Philly played Los Angeles FC to a 0-0 draw, moving them up to fourth in the Eastern Conference, while the Toros are clinging to the final playoff spot out West, a point above Sporting Kansas City following a 1-1 draw versus the Columbus Crew.
Match preview
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A match built up as a revenge fixture for Philly did not have the same excitement or drama that we saw when LAFC defeated the Union in the 2022 MLS Cup Final or the most recent CONCACAF Champions League semi-finals, as high winds and rain impacted what was a dull encounter between both teams, where no one managed to register a single shot on target.
That was the third successive tie game for Jim Curtin's men, who are well off their 2022 club record for points (67), currently on 49 after 29 domestic fixtures this year, eight fewer than they accumulated at this same stage last season.
Matching their regular season total for points from 2022 is already out of reach, but earning another opening-round home playoff game is once again a distinct possibility as the Boys in Blue have already secured a postseason berth and are only a point behind Orlando City for second in the Eastern Conference with five matches remaining.
Given their form at Subaru Park, having as many home games as possible in the playoffs would seem paramount for this team, who are unbeaten in their last 11 domestic encounters in Chester, with the Union suffering just one MLS regular season defeat there since the start of the 2022 campaign.
Losing at Subaru Park is a rarity for this club, and doing so against a Western Conference side is even rarer, with their last such defeat in this competition occurring on May 25, 2019, versus the Portland Timbers (3-1).
Another focus for them down the stretch of the regular season would be to tighten up defensively, as the Union have not been quite as stingy in that department as we are accustomed to seeing, conceding 35 goals domestically in 2023, which is as many as they have allowed in any of their three previous regular season campaigns and nine more than they gave up in 2022.
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Leaving it late has been the story for Dallas since the conclusion of the Leagues Cup, and thankfully for Nico Estevez and his team, they have woken up in the nick of time this month to remain in a playoff position.
The Toros have only drawn first blood in one of their last six domestic affairs, coming back to earn five points when trailing this month, with 15 of their 39 points in MLS thus far occurring after conceding the opening goal.
Since Estevez took charge at the beginning of the 2022 season, this team have got by with some fine defensive work and by capitalising on their counterattacks, and that has been the case for them to this point of 2023 with the Toros conceding the fewest goals in the Western Conference (33).
Three of their final five regular season fixtures take place on the road, where they have only captured three domestic contests all year, which is still only one fewer than this team managed over their previous campaign.
Only 13 of their 34 goals scored in league play this season have come away from home, nine of which happened in the second half, while they have notched the second-fewest goals in the Western Conference thus far.
Wednesday will be their final regular season encounter against an Eastern Conference opponent, and a victory would mark the first time this club will have won two games in the same campaign versus the opposite conference since 2018, while they have not defeated the Union at Subaru Park in over eight years (3-1 in March 2015).
Team News
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Jose Martinez could be a question mark for the Union in this midweek encounter because of a sore knee, while Jakob Glesnes and Leon Flach might each be game-time decisions as they are both dealing with core injuries.
On Saturday, the Union backline of Nathan Harriel, Damion Lowe, Jack Elliott and Kai Wagner did not concede a single shot on target versus the Black and Gold, helping Andre Blake collect his first MLS clean sheet since early June (3-0 win over CF Montreal).
Wednesday will be the first time the Union host the Toros since the 2019 campaign, when former Union striker Cory Burke and current captain Alejandro Bedoya each netted in the final five minutes as Philly came back to win 2-1.
Dallas are likely to be without Sebastian Lletget for this match as he has a hamstring strain, Tarik Scott is out after undergoing season-ending ACL and LCL surgery at the start of the campaign, Geovane Jesus has a sore right knee, while Bernard Kamungo might not be available because of a right shoulder injury.
Jader Obrian has scored in his last two home games for Dallas and he equalised 19 minutes after an own goal by Nkosi Tafari put the Toros behind against the Crew, while Jesus Ferreira now has three goal involvements in his last two fixtures.
Maarten Paes posted two clean sheets in his three regular-season away fixtures from the start of April until May 14 but has conceded at least once in his last eight domestic road games in this competition.
Philadelphia Union possible starting lineup:
Blake; Harriel, Lowe, Elliott, Wagner; Bedoya, Bueno, Sullivan; Gazdag; Carranza, Uhre
Dallas possible starting lineup:
Paes; Twumasi, Tafari, Ibeagha, Farfan; Pomykal, Illarramendi; Arriola, Velasco, Obrian; Ferreira
We say: Philadelphia Union 1-0 Dallas
Subaru Park is one of the most challenging places for opposing teams to come away with three points, and this will be a match where both teams have a lot to play for, even though the Union have already clinched a playoff berth.
The scoring depth of Philly should be enough to get them over the line against a Toros squad who do not have as many dependable attacking pieces.
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Top tip
Joel Lefevre
