Total team effort earned Philadelphia Union first win at Yankee Stadium

Finally, the Philadelphia Union has a win at Yankee Stadium.

Four games in, the Philadelphia Union sit atop the Eastern Conference table and have now accomplished a feat never done before in club history. This is the club’s first win at Yankee Stadium ever (they had two draws and five losses previously), and it took a team effort to get it done.

“It’s a difficult place to come and play with the field dimensions, but I think the number one thing that goes into that is they’ve had great teams. They’ve had really really good players, today was the same.” head coach Jim Curtin said on the team’s triumph in the Bronx. “It’s a very hard place to win, no question about it.”

Despite not holding on to the ball a majority of the game, the Union did more with their possession, a constant theme for the team.

Alejandro Bedoya has been the ageless wonder for the Philadelphia Union. Despite turning 35 next month, the captain has been one of the best playmakers in MLS. Bedoya had three key passes today and covered a ton of ground for the Union. Bedoya’s 12th-minute goal brings him to two on the season. Despite expectations to start slowing down, Bedoya only views age as a number.

Homegrown right back Nathan Harriel does not look to be giving up his spot on the backline any time soon. Since taking over at right back against Montreal, Harriel has quickly injected life into the Union squad. Today was the 20-year-old Florida native’s finest performance, his assist in the 33rd minute a thing of beauty. He also helped preserve the clean sheet with a goal line clearance in the second half.

Curtin praised Harriel’s aggressive nature after the match. “That’s three great games in a row for Nathan… The one thing I love about him is how brave he is. He always defends forward, and he does it in an aggressive way. More times than not when you’re aggressive and proactive rather than reactive as a defender you come out on top on a lot of duels.” 

Curtin also remarked about how New York City tried to overload the young defender’s side, and that he dealt with that pressure in a great game.

Four games in the Union look akin to the squad we all saw at the end of last season. They aren’t counting on individual performances to capture three points for them, everything they do is an 11-man effort with Curtin at the helm. They press as a unit, they counter as a unit, and everyone both experienced and young is stepping up their game.