Brotherly Game Archive
Questions loom prior to Red Bulls-Union US Open Cup match
With Philadelphia Union striker CJ Sapong out of the U.S. Open Cup match against the New York Red Bulls, significant questions loom regarding who will replace him.
While there never seems to be an ideal situation for the Philadelphia Union to play a U.S. Open Cup match, the suspension of CJ Sapong due to a dubious red card in the last U.S. Open Cup match against D.C. United leaves a huge hole at the striker position in the Union’s 4-5-1 formation. The Union have few options available for their match today against the New York Red Bulls – their first match up in the tournament against the Red Bulls since being eliminated 2-1 in a Qualifying match back in 2010.
Designated Player Fernando Aristeguieta hasn’t played since suffering a left fibula contusion in a game against Columbus Crew SC on June 3, coming out of the match in the 37th minute. Veteran Conor Casey got a goal against Toronto FC on Saturday, however those 19 minutes were the first since he suffered a quad injury on May 24 against New York City FC.
Beyond that, the Union are thin at the striker position. Sebastien Le Toux could be moved up, however the Union are also thin on the wings – especially with Andrew Wenger out due to a concussion suffered against Toronto.The only other forward left is Antoine Hoppenot, whose season thus far is probably better defined by his comments on Twitter than the four minutes he played against the Chicago Fire on March 29.
I posed two questions to the staff here at the Brotherly Game: 1.) "Will Aristeguieta's lack of playing time hurt the Union?" and 2.) "Who would you start as a striker?" Here are the answers.
Barry Evans) 1) Yes. In games where you might get one chance, you have to be sharp to take it (are Le Toux awful whiff for what happens when you aren’t sharp). 2. I would start Casey. He likes to score against the Red Bulls, and got a goal on Saturday which is far more than Aristeguieta has done lately.
My take is that while neither man will be totally match fit, Aristeguieta if healthy should be the man to get the nod. His status as a Designated Player and one who is ostensibly trying to earn a move from FC Nantes should give him the incentive to play as often as he can and prove that he's not the brittle forward who has so far missed 10 of 21 MLS matches due to injury. Casey worries me in his ability to go 90 minutes – especially when coming off of an injury. Even if he was fully healthy, he's only gone a full 90 three times in the past two seasons. While Aristeguieta's lack of playing time will hurt him some, he will undoubtedly have the freshest legs on the pitch – a huge asset when the temperature will be 91F with the heat index approaching 105F.
Who would you start? Take the poll and let us know in the comments section below why you picked who you did!
