The Philadelphia Union will see if their recent surge can handle the rigors of cross-country travel when they visit San Diego FC on Sunday.
The Union (8-10-6, 30 points) are on a nine-match unbeaten run in MLS play to move into a playoff slot in the Eastern Conference. And they only seem to be getting better after outscoring opponents 10-1 over their past three matches.
Philadelphia put together a complete effort Wednesday in a 5-0 thrashing at home over FC Cincinnati. Bruno Damiani delivered his first career hat trick to double his goal output on the season. In his return from a torn ACL, Quinn Sullivan scored a goal.
The Union is 7-0-2 in MLS action since the resumption of play following the World Cup break. Philadelphia has scored 23 of its 41 total goals on the season in the past nine matches.
Interim head coach Ryan Richter has tapped into the club’s full potential since taking over from Bradley Carnell, who was dismissed after a 1-10-4 start to the season.
Philadelphia’s trip to San Diego puts Union forward Milan Iloski up against his former club in a match near his hometown. Iloski was unable to come to terms on a contract to remain in San Diego during last season after he scored 10 goals in 14 matches. He leads the Union with 12 this season.
“It’ll be nice to see (everybody),” Iloski said, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. “But also, I’m there to show some people that they made a big mistake. I think I have a big chip on my shoulder, and I’m looking forward to the challenge. They’re a good team that’s playing well.”
San Diego FC (8-10-6, 30 points) have struggled to find the consistency they had in their MLS debut last season when they finished fourth in the Supporters’ Shield standings.
After winning two of three matches coming out of the World Cup break, San Diego FC are on a two-match losing streak after falling 3-2 at home to the San Jose Earthquakes on Wednesday.
“We’ve seen two sides to our group this year,” San Diego FC head coach Mikey Varas said. “… We’ve got to decide pretty quick which team we are. And that’s on me.”
San Diego FC trailed San Jose 3-0 in the 35th minute and their hopes of a comeback were dashed when goalkeeper CJ dos Santos received a red card in the 81st minute. Anders Dreyer scored in the 42nd minute and has nine goals on the season.
Marcus Ingvartsen leads San Diego FC with 11 goals but has missed three consecutive matches with a lower body injury.
–Field Level Media
