Philadelphia Union
Union II concede late, drop first of the season to CT United FC
Ten-man Philadelphia Union II fought hard but conceded late to CT United FC, falling 2-1 for the first time this season. A beautiful strike from Malik Jakupovic gave Union II an early lead, but second half goals from Laurie Goddard and Barnabas Tanyi earned CT United a deserved three points.
Óscar Benitez was sent off after earning a second yellow card, leaving Union II shorthanded late in the match.
Union II faced CT United FC, a new MLS Next Pro team, for the first time on Sunday. Led by Union original Shavar Thomas, CT United were originally set to begin league play in 2025 but pushed back their debut one year to 2026. After a win against Cincinnati 2 and a loss to Chattanooga, CT traveled to Chester for their third match ever. CT United is an independent
MLS Next Pro team, meaning the side facing Union II is their first team, not the reserves. Similar to Chattanooga FC, who defeated Union II last year, these rosters typically run a bit older, since MLS clubs like the Union use MLS Next Pro as an opportunity for younger academy talents to get professional game minutes.
It was a choppy start to the match for the young Union side, trying and failing to play out of the back multiple times. George Marks made two brilliant saves within the first six minutes, one of which he made from inside the net, palming a header from Cauã Paixão off the line. The physicality was on display from both teams, with tackles flying in heavy and often. Oliver Pratt
and Óscar Benitez were shown early yellow cards.
Despite CT United having a higher quantity of scoring chances, Union II scored against the run of play in the 42 nd minute. Oliver Pratt picked up the ball and drove into midfield before finding Kellan LeBlanc. LeBlanc pulled the ball back to Malik Jakupovic, who faked a shot, sending two defenders before slotting the ball into the bottom right from the edge of the box.
Despite CT United’s sustained pressure, Union II made it to halftime with a 1-0 lead. CT United began the second half on the front foot again. Big striker Laurie Goddard, who caused Union II issues all match, tried to latch on to a long ball over the top, but Marks came far out of his box to slide tackle the ball away. Despite a great play by Marks, Goddard got the best of him
just after in the 58 th minute. Gonzaga alum Robbie Mora picked up the ball wide to the right after a failed Union II clearance. Mora crossed in to Goddard, who scored a brilliant scissor kick to level the score at 1-1.
Just after the restart, Union II turned over the ball to CT United. Óscar Benitez stepped in late trying to win back the ball, clattering into the CT United player. The referee played advantage, but came back after the play to show Benitez his second yellow, leaving Union II down to ten men. CT United substitute Barnabas Tanyi was active after the red card, asking questions of the Union II back line. Kaiden Moore switched off on a long ball, and Tanyi picked his pocket, in on goal from just past the halfway line. Tanyi attempted to chip Marks, who read it the whole way, standing tall and bailing out the Union II defense once again.
Marks’ heroics could only hold up for so long, and CT United cashed in on their sustained pressure in the 86th minute. Union academy product Dylan Lacy picked up the ball deep in central midfield before launching a beautiful long ball over the top to Tanyi. This time, Tanyi controlled the ball and fired a shot into the bottom left corner, beating Marks to give CT United a 2-1 lead. Down to ten men, it was too late for Union II to recover, dropping the match 2-1 for their first loss of the season.
After the match, Union II head coach Ryan Richter spoke about facing an older and more physical CT United side.
“It’s exactly what the players need… the overall physicality and the competitiveness of this game compared to the first two games of the season, I mean, it’s such a bigger challenge, where mistakes are punished,” Richter remarked. “You have to be up to the level of the physicality before we talk about anything for the game, and that's not always the case with the second teams. Having these independent teams, I hope that the league can keep adding more of them, because it’s such a valuable experience; you can say you learn from mistakes, but you really learn from mistakes when you get punished for them.”
After the match, Union II find themselves in fifth place in the MLS Next Pro Eastern Conference.
Next week, Union II are back in action on the road against heated rivals and defending champions New York Red Bulls II. The match will take place on Sunday, March 22 at 5 p.m. EST at MSU Soccer Park.
Union II Lineup:
George Marks; Giovanny Sequera, Finn Sundstrom (64’), Rafael Uzcátegui, Oliver Pratt; Óscar Benitez, Timo Mendoza (70’), Kellan LeBlanc, Willyam Ferreira (64’); Malik Jakupovic (64’), Sal Olivas (78’)
Subs:
Andrew Craig, Lennon Harrington (64’), Kaiden Moore (70’), Matheus de Paula (64’), Tyler
Gladstone, Nehan Hasan (64’), Theo Reed, John Ruf (78’), Alex Smith
Coach: Ryan Richter
Yellow cards: Benitez (15’, 60’), Pratt (16’), Sequera (80’)
Red cards: Benitez (60’)
CT United Lineup:
Anthony Ramos; Rickson van Hees, Michael Boamah (58’), Lukas Kamrath, Andre Applewhaite; Alex Monis, Steven Sserwadda, Robbie Mora (66’); Ibrahim Kasule (58’), Laurie Goddard, Cauã Paixão (58’)
Subs:
Jahvar Stephenson (58’), Nelson Rodriguez, Dylan Lacy (66’), Barnabás Tanyi (58’), Daniel
D’Ippolito (58’), Ernesto Gomez, Hivan Kouonang, Sean Petrie, Christian Rodriguez
Coach: Shavar Thomas
Yellow cards: Monis (28’), Applewhaite (35’), D’Ippolito (89’)
