Things we learned from the Union’s 6-0 win over the Houston Dynamo

Usually, when I write takeaways, I try to ensure that I have at least three bullet points to hit. Whether it’s tactics or player specific, I’m usually able to find enough to talk about. However, this Philadelphia Union team is simply so good, that fans and media alike have run out of topics. This team is just so good that you can’t find new ways to say that they’re good anymore.

All the same, here are two quick hits from the Union’s dominant performance at Subaru Park.

1. Damn. 

No, Houston is not a good team. But 6-0 is wild. Almost as wild as 7-0, but that’s impossible, right?

There is a fair critique that the Union is only running up the score on some of the worst that Major League Soccer has to offer. But, frankly, those are the only teams that allow six goals. LAFC isn’t going to lose to Philadelphia 6-0. Even Chicago won’t lose 6-0, given that they have the benefit of Gaga Slonina in the net. Great teams run up the score against worse teams. Even better teams follow those matches up with solid road victories in Orlando. 

It’s too often that good teams play down to worse opponents. The Union has brought the same level of intensity to every match, and they will continue to do so until their season ends, one way or another. 

2. Give McGlynn more minutes

No, USMNT Twitter accounts, Quinn Sullivan and Paxten Aaronson shouldn’t get free MLS minutes just because it would make for good content and possibly even some player development. Jack McGlynn, on the other hand, is a different case.

It’s been a few months since the Leon Flach/McGlynn argument has started to filter into the Union fanbase. With his last few performances, the 19-year-old has solidified that he has earned his role as a starter. 

It isn’t that Flach is a poor player or that he’s even playing bad right now. But McGlynn offers an attacking element that Flach can’t. As great a defender as he is, Flach struggles to progress the ball, and with the Union’s attack heating up, Jim Curtin needs a progressive midfield. 

Flach can still serve a purpose to this Union team. A defensive closer would be massive for when the Union are up 2-0 against a tough opponent. And with Jose Martinez’s *ahem* discipline troubles, he serves as a great backup no. 6. But McGlynn is ready to take that next step, and so is the Union.