Philadelphia Union
Philadelphia Union kick off MLS campaign in nation’s capital
After starting Champions Cup play with an electrifying 5-0 win, the Philadelphia Union make their way to the nation’s capital.
After starting Champions Cup play on Wednesday with an electrifying 5-0 win over Defence Force FC, the Philadelphia Union make their way to the nation’s capital to take on D.C. United. The Union looks to extend its unbeaten streak against D.C. to 10, but a familiar forward stands in their way. MLS is back, folks. Let’s break down the squads going into Matchday One.
New Faces, Same Questions: D.C. United’s Offseason Examined
The best part of rock bottom is there’s only one way to go, right? D.C. United won the wooden spoon last season after finishing at the bottom of the MLS table. The club finished with a record of 5-11-18, its fewest wins in a season since 2020. Manager René Weiler took the helm in mid-July of 2025, and the club believes in their skipper to build on the foundation of last season.
Weiler led the team through their last eight matches of the season, dropping only three games with a record of 1-4-3. Worth noting, his one win came against Eastern Conference finalist NYCFC at Yankee Stadium; a large feat for a club in the dying embers of an abysmal season.
The offseason for D.C. United came with a variety of signings looking to build a foundation for Weiler. Most important to Union fans, this came with the $4.6 million signing of Tai Baribo. Tai enters 2026 off his best MLS regular season, bagging 19 goals and four assists for the U.
Dr. Erkut Sogut, D.C.’s managing director of soccer operations, said, “Beyond goals, he (Tai) understands how to create space and is deadly in the air, making him a perfect fit for the identity we are building at the club. We are thrilled to welcome him to the nation’s capital.”
Additionally, Romanian international Louis Munteanu arrives in a club-record move from CFR Cluj, fresh off claiming the Romanian SuperLiga Golden Boot with 23 goals in the previous season.
To reinforce a defense that conceded 66 goals in 2025, D.C. United added center back Sean Nealis from the New York Red Bulls, Swiss defender Silvan Hefti from Hamburger SV, and Japanese left back Keisuke Kurokawa from Gamba Osaka.
The club also bolstered its goalkeeping corps by signing MLS veteran and U.S. international Sean Johnson as a free agent. Johnson brings a wealth of experience, with 431 MLS starts and 109 clean sheets across 16 seasons.
A plethora of flashy signings highlighted an uncharacteristically active offseason for the Red and Black, but the question remains with their midfield. Jackson Hopkins and Brandon Servania line out an inexperienced core that could struggle to find their latest attacking options.
Keys To Success
D.C. United needs to feed their new attackers. Both proven goal scorers, the name of the game will be getting Baribo and Munteanu the ball in positions to threaten a shaky and inexperienced Union back line. Likely lining up in a traditional 4-4-2, there is a lack of pressure to perform between the strikers, allowing them to play off one another to create chances against Blake.
If D.C. United can locate their forwards and provide them the freedom to create, and they could cause serious problems for the Philadelphia Union heading into tonight’s match.
Defending the Shield – Building on Success
For Philly, Bradley Carnell is relying on youth in an offseason that brought various replacements to a series of roster changes. The Philadelphia Union returns to MLS play after capturing its second Supporters’ Shield in club history. Carnell had a perfect debut season, posting a 20W-8L-6D record to finish with a league-best 66 points. However, after falling short in a frustrating 1-0 loss to NYCFC in the Conference Semifinals, Union fans will ask the question, “What have you done for me lately?”
The emphatic answer to this is a group of new, young faces that have already proven themselves on the professional stage. After losing key players such as 2025 MLS Best XI defender Jakob Glesnes and forwards Tai Baribo and Mikael Uhre, the Union moved forward by bolstering both their attack and defense.
Most prominently, the Union made a significant investment to land 20-year-old Ghanaian striker Ezekiel Alladoh, paying a club-record $4.5 million to acquire him from Swedish side IF Brommapojkarna. Additionally, former U.S. youth international attacker Agustín Anello from Boston River, where he featured in Uruguay’s top flight.
On the back line, Colombian Geiner Martínez arrives after competing in Uruguay’s Primera División with Juventud de Las Piedras and Central Español, along with Japhet Sery Larsen, who makes the move from Norway’s SK Brann.
The Union opened their 2026 account with an impressive 5-0 rout of Defence Force FC. The Boys in Blue found goals from four players, including some set-piece magic from Milan Iloski, a brace from Bruno Damiani, and the first goal for Ezekiel Alladoh in his club debut.
Defensively, Andrew Rick held down the posts, grabbing his first shutout of the year with a single save, a testament to a rotated squad featuring seven different defenders throughout the 90 minutes. With a crowded start to the calendar year, the match today will feature likely the intended starting XI for the season, but the question will remain which players round out the back four in front of Andre Blake.
Keys to Success
Pressure. Pressure. Pressure. The Philadelphia Union made their money last season with relentless energy in dangerous parts of the pitch. Finding weak spaces in the D.C. formation will not be difficult, and it is up to the aggressiveness of a young squad to win the first and second balls, counter effectively, and capitalize on United’s lack of back-line cohesion.
Defensive inconsistencies for the Union will not be uncommon, but I’d expect the side to settle into the match as it progresses. An opening match against a familiar attacking face is just what the doctor ordered for a team that is still working out who their back line will be to protect Blake between the sticks.
You can catch the match tonight on Apple TV at 7:30 p.m.
