Philly Leader

Two early goals proved decisive as Philadelphia Union extended their unbeaten run against rivals New York Red Bulls with a 2-0 win on Saturday night.

Mikael Uhre needed just four minutes to put the Boys in Blue ahead with a long-range finish from the top of the box for the Danish forward’s seventh goal of the campaign. Ten minutes later, Uhre and Daniel Gazdag combined to set up Tai Baribo for another long-range goal, giving the Union a multi-goal lead.

With this victory over their Eastern Conference rival, Philadelphia Union extended its unbeaten streak against the Red Bulls to 14 matches, dating back to 2019.

Philadelphia Union will be back in action after the FIFA International break with a road trip to Inter Miami CF on Saturday, September 14th. Kickoff from Florida is set for 7:30 PM ET.

The match unfolded with eight games remaining and a spot in the playoffs still within reach. Philadelphia Union fielded a strong lineup featuring Mikael Uhre and Tai Baribo paired up top. Danley Jean Jacques made his second consecutive start in midfield alongside Jack McGlynn, Alejandro Bedoya, and Daniel Gazdag. Nate Harriel started on the bench due to recent back spasms, while Olivier Mbaizo took over at right back opposite Kai Wagner on the left. As usual, Jack Elliott and Jakob Glesnes were paired at center-back in front of Andre Blake in net.

In the fourth minute, Mikael Uhre confidently scored a perfectly placed shot from distance for a 1-0 lead. Ten minutes later, Philadelphia Union extended their lead when Baribo shot from nearly the same spot, sending the ball into the lower left corner for a 2-0 advantage.

Philadelphia wasn’t just effective offensively – Andre Blake made crucial stops in the 18th minute that stifled close-range efforts from Elias Manoel and Kyle Duncan.

New York Red Bull sought to begin their comeback early in the second half with Scottish international Lewis Morgan finding space but sending a shot off the woodwork. In response, Head Coach Jim Curtin made his first change of the match in the 53rd minute by replacing team captain Alejandro Bedoya with Homegrown Quinn Sullivan.

Despite being down by two goals and time running out, Manoel had another chance one-on-one against Blake but saw his shot crash off the post once again. Ten minutes later, Manoel was denied by the woodwork yet again.

As pressure mounted on their defense during much of the second half, substitute Quinn Sullivan got space on an attack but narrowly missed extending Philadelphia's lead further. Shortly thereafter, Head Coach Jim Curtin sent Samuel Adeniran onto replace Uhre.

Baribo nearly made it 3-0 with just over ten minutes left as he saw another cross hit off-post effort go wide. The final substitution saw Leon Flach and Jeremy Rafanello enter for Jack McGlynn and Daniel Gazdag respectively.

With time running out, New York continued pushing all efforts forward but Andre Blake ensured he maintained his shutout by making critical saves late into stoppage time.

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