If 10 consecutive games unbeaten wasn’t enough to impress you with what Ryan Richter’s been building with the Philadelphia Union since returning from the World Cup break, then how about extending the streak to 11 after being down 3-0 at halftime away from home?
Saturday night in the Midwest, the Philadelphia Union pulled off the unthinkable, scoring four unanswered goals in less than 10 minutes to defeat Sporting Kansas City 4-3 on the road and keeping the Blue and Gold’s post-World Cup unbeaten streak intact with 8 games to go.
Union, who hadn’t let in a goal in over 260 minutes and counting, conceded just five minutes into the game when Sporting Kansas City’s newest addition, André Luiz, danced down the right side of the field and into the box before hitting the back of the net with a left-footed shot that beat Andre Blake at the far post.
Five minutes later, Luiz found the back of the net again to give SKC an early 2-0 lead, this time with a left-footed shot from distance that beat Blake at the same post as the first.
Sporting Kansas City extended their lead to 3-0 with Wyatt Meyer’s header, which beat Blake at the same post as the first two, making it three goals in 15 minutes for the home side.
The game should have been done and dusted at halftime, but Ryan Richter’s Philadelphia Union had other ideas despite going into the locker room down 3-0.
Bruno Damiani got things going for the Union in the 64th minute after Frankie Westfield’s ball into the penalty area was deflected on goal and into the back of the net by the Uruguayan striker. It was his eighth goal of the season and his seventh since returning from the World Cup break.
Moments later, good link-up play between Quinn Sullivan and Danley Jean-Jacques along the right side of the pitch got Union into Sporting Kansas City’s box with numbers. Jean-Jacques squared the ball into the middle of the box for 16-year-old Cavan Sullivan, who redirected it on net with the first touch of his right foot to find the back of the net and cut Union’s initial three-goal deficit to one.
Just two minutes later, Quinn Sullivan played a rabona into the middle of the penalty area, finding Milan Iloski. Iloski helped off his defender, controlled the ball, and hammered home Union’s third goal in four minutes to tie the game and erase Sporting Kansas City’s three-goal lead.
Five minutes after Iloski’s game-tying goal, Kai Wagner played a left-footed cross into the penalty area for Neil Pierre, looking to complete the comeback. Pierre headed the ball back across goal for a teammate, but SKC's Zorhan Bassong put it in the back of the net as an own goal, giving Union a 4-3 lead in the 73rd minute after being down 3-0 at halftime away from home.
The come-from-behind road win in Kansas City extends Philadelphia Union’s unbeaten streak to 11 consecutive games (nine wins, two draws) under Interim Head Coach Ryan Richter.
The win moves Union’s overall record to 10 wins, six draws, 10 losses, and 36 points, putting them in 6th place in the Eastern Conference with eight games to go.
During the 11-game unbeaten streak, Ryan Richter’s Philadelphia Union have outscored their opponents 32-13, a goal differential of +19.
The Blue and Gold will return home on September 26th looking to extend their unbeaten streak to 12 against Orlando City SC. They’ll have to do it with a shortened squad as a handful of important players are set to be away on international duty at the same time. But if we've learned anything from the 2nd half of the Union's season, it's not to doubt Ryan Richter's Philadelphia Union will show belief and fight for those points!
