Momentum, ‘next man up’ mentality carrying Philadelphia Union into busy May

The Philadelphia Union earned a second consecutive 3-0 victory Saturday afternoon and in doing so, they enter their toughest stretch of the season with some much needed momentum.

Head Coach Bradley Carnell used all of his available substitution windows Saturday during the win, a sign that he and his staff are prepared to make the necessary changes next month with eight games in less than 30 days next month.

The Union have seven MLS matches and at least one US Open Cup fixture. This gauntlet of sorts will begin Saturday north of the border in Montreal. Saturday’s matchup kickstarts a stretch of six games squeezed into a 14-day window.

As of now, Philly will have a chance to regroup and collect themselves following the 5/17 matchup at Atlanta. They’ll have a week to rest and prepare for a big home matchup against Messi and company on 5/24.

And in order to survive the month of May, Carnell and his players need to buy into the ‘next man up mentality.’

The club has leaned on this mentality already through the first 10 matches of the year. Currently, they have just two standard center backs on their roster following the knee injury and subsequent surgery to Ian Glavinovich earlier this month. A few weeks later, they shipped their most consistent offensive weapon, Daniel Gazdag, to fellow Eastern Conference opponent Columbus Crew.

In place of Glavinovich, the club has relied heavily on right-back Nate Harriel to fill the void. Its a job that he’s not totally unfamiliar with and so far there’s been no major errors or gaffs to speak of. But eight matches in less than 30 days would suggest squad rotation at all positions is possibly a must. And if so, who steps in at center back?

The midfield seems to be holding their own without Gazdag as well. But the further you look down the roster, the quality dips significantly. And that’s where mind over matter will have to be the key for Carnell and his group.

“We have another wave of energy coming off the bench,” said Carnell post-game Saturday. Guys like Cavan Sullivan, Bruno Damiani, and Chris Donovan were effective in their limited minutes of second half action. “Teammates help each other along the way. Chris Donovan does a great job as well coming on in the game and plays exactly how we like him to play, being a nuisance and a menace for the defenders again. You can see automatically we take another stranglehold on the game.”

Newly acquired striker Bruno Damiani needed just 15 minutes of action to help Philadelphia seal the victory with a 77th minute goal from inside the box. Damiani showcased nearly all of the reasons Philadelphia decided to splash a club-record amount of cash to secure his services on the goal by using his size and strength to back down the defender in the box, turn, and fire for the goal.

The ensuing celebration from Uruguayan striker indicated the goal was crucial for him after scoring just one goal eight appearances prior to Saturday’s clash against DC United. And more positively, Damiani seems poised and ready to help the club during this tough stretch in May as well.

“We have a very tough next stretch of matches,” said Damiani post-game. “I think the competition [internally] can be good for that, just to have whoever plays is going to be ready. I think that for us it is going to be really important.”

At the striker position, Carnell finds himself in an enviable spot with three strikers who are clearly starting caliber players. Tai Baribo is not shy when it comes to scoring goals with Mikael Uhre now has an assist in back to back games to further the cause. Depth at striker is likely not going to be the main source of issues should they arise in May.

Which then leaves the midfield in question. Surely without Gazdag, the quality of the group decreases. But since his departure, only one match was a true red flag – see the 1-0 loss to NYCFC as the example.

Since then, Philadelphia have scored three goals and held teams scoreless in back-to-back matches. And the midfield has played a major role in both matches despite Jovan Lukic being absent Saturday due to a red card suspension.

Guys like Danley Jean Jaques have stepped up massively the last two games. Danley found the back of the next against Atlanta and DC, and it is possible that his role is more than just a stringy defensive one moving forward.

It seems the main takeaway so far through 10-games is that this club may have found their own intrinsic motivation. They’ve found ways to keep pushing themselves while blocking out some early season noise that increased in volume following a shaky month of March in which they won just two of five matches. And that internal culture that continues to build each week will face its ultimate test next month.

The Union are back in action Saturday, May 3 at CF Montreal with kickoff set for 7:30 p.m. on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV.