Philadelphia Union narrowly defeats New York Red Bulls in 1-0 road win

The Philadelphia Union (5-4-2) defeated the New York Red Bulls (1-5-6) on Saturday, winning 1-0. A goal from Daniel Gazdag decided the night as the Union picked up important points to remain in the playoff picture in Major League Soccer.

Jim Curtin made several changes to the Union’s starting lineup after the group’s loss on the road to LAFC the previous Tuesday. Quinn Sullivan and Damion Lowe started in place of Mikael Uhre and Jack Elliott. Leon Flach also started at the No. 6 slot in place of an injured Jose Martinez.

Startin' different tonight ⚡️

📝👉 https://t.co/CUYutSrvLH#StartingXI | #RBNYvPHI | #DOOP | @MLS pic.twitter.com/vlwpDo4pKR

— Philadelphia Union (@PhilaUnion) May 6, 2023

New York began the match with strong momentum at home, dominating the first 15 minutes while Philadelphia struggled to put together any real offensive creative moments.

The Red Bulls’ best chance on the night came in the 10th minute, when a curling shot to the top of the net from John Tolkin was stopped by a highlight reel save from Andre Blake.

Andre Blake just doing what Andre Blake does 🤷‍♂️🧱

Watch with #MLSSeasonPass on @AppleTV: https://t.co/hMmsCwQc8K#RBNYvPHI 0-0 #DOOP pic.twitter.com/5LEgxCrwmp

— Philadelphia Union (@PhilaUnion) May 6, 2023

Philadelphia began to generate some momentum, which was eventually realized in a penalty drawn by Julian Carranza in the 26th minute. Carranza made the most of a tug to the arm in the penalty area from Dylan Nealis. Gazdag stepped up to finish the play and converted his seventh penalty goal of the 2023 campaign.

Disaster nearly struck for Philadelphia in the 68th minute, when Blake was forced to outmaneuver two Red Bull attackers well outside of his penalty area. After beating one attacker, Blake was tackled by former Union forward Cory Burke. Blake briefly went down with an injury and Burke received a caution for the tackle.

The Union didn’t have it easy to close out the match. Seven minutes of stoppage time gave the Red Bulls plenty of opportunities to draw the match. Still, the visitors held on for their first road victory in MLS this season.

With solid performances from the backline throughout the night, it’s hard to single out one player as a man of the match. However, Damion Lowe had a great outing, especially after seeing limited action in recent weeks. He wasn’t perfect, but Lowe put his body on the line in the shutout.

The Union will return to action in the U.S. Open Cup against Minnesota United. The match will take place at 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 9 in Minnesota, and will be broadcast on the Bleacher Report app and Bleacher Report Football YouTube.