Philadelphia Union
Sullivan brothers lead Union to Decision Day victory
The Union won their final MLS match of the regular season in decisive fashion on Saturday night, defeating Toronto FC 4-1 at Subaru Park. Led by strong performances by the Sullivan brothers, the Union secured the 6th seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs behind two goals from Cavan and Quinn’s goal and assist. Bruno Damiani scored a penalty for insurance, sending the Union on their way to a comfortable victory.
The Union entered Decision Day looking to end their late-season slump, finding themselves winless in four matches heading into the season finale. With a playoff spot already secured, the Union playing for seeding and trying to avoid the play-in match between the 8th and 9th ranked teams in the Eastern Conference. Their opponents in Toronto FC were already eliminated from playoff contention, looking to play spoiler on the final day.
Before the match, Union captain Alejandro Bedoya was honored after announcing his retirement earlier this week. Surrounded by friends and family, Bedoya was the ceremonial drum striker for the match, receiving a standing ovation from the crowd while Kevin Casey gave him a touching tribute over the stadium speakers. Bedoya will step away from the professional game at the conclusion of this Union season.
The Union started the match on the front foot, shaking off some of the rust and fatigue that had lingered over the last few weeks. Quinn Sullivan thought he had given the Union the lead just after the ten-minute mark. A slick move in build-up by the Union found Danley Jean Jacques through on goal via a Cavan Sullivan back-heel flick. Jean Jacques tried to take the ball around the Toronto goalkeeper, going down under minimal contact. Quinn arrived to tap the ball over the goal line, and the Union celebrated. After a lengthy review, it was determined that Sullivan was offside from the touch from Danley, and the contact on the Haitian midfielder was not enough for a penalty. Referee Tim Ford disallowed the goal.
The Union cashed in on their early momentum in the 28thminute. A deep cross by Quinn was brought down by Indiana Vassilev. He couldn’t pull the trigger to get a shot off, dribbling away from goal in the 18-yard box. After a couple quick touches, he swiveled to play a low cross to Cavan Sullivan, who was left unmarked. Cavan tapped home to give the Union a 1-0 lead, his 8th MLS goal of the season.
Cavan was at the center of the action minutes later when the Union doubled the lead. The 17-year-old Sullivan was toppled over in the box by young TFC defender Richard Chukwu, and Ford awarded a penalty. His brother Quinn stepped up to take the penalty, firing confidently past Yarbrough to double the lead.
On the stroke of stoppage time, Jovan Lukic took a yellow card for an attacking-half foul on Toronto’s Jackson Gilman. With the yellow, Lukic reached the threshold for a yellow card suspension and will miss the first match of the playoffs.
It was nearly a third for the Union a minute later. Cavan laid off a pass to Westfield who guided a calm finish past Yarbrough in the Toronto net. After another VAR review, it was determined that Quinn Sullivan was yet again offside, this time shielding the vision of the goalkeeper.
To add insult to injury, Toronto halved the deficit on the stroke of halftime. After conceding a corner, Djordje Mihailovic’s delivery found Josh Sargent, who headed off the post and into the net. The goal was the last kick of the half as well as Toronto’s first shot on target in the match. Despite being dominant in the opening 45 minutes, the Union went into the break ahead by just a goal.
Despite the frustrating decisions of the first half, the Union put it behind them in the second. In the 58th minute, Bruno Damiani flicked a long ball in behind that put Quinn clean through. He unselfishly squared it for his brother, who tapped home calmly for his 2nd of the match to put the Union ahead 3-1. The Union added another to their lead in the 73rd minute from another penalty kick, won by Quinn after some grappling on a corner kick. Damiani dispatched it confidently, extending the lead to 4-1.
There was a scare for Union fans toward the end of the match. Cavan went down grabbing his knee after a foul. After trying to walk it off, he was removed from the match for Malik Jakupovic. Just before the end of the match, Alejandro Bedoya subbed in for his final regular season professional appearance for the Union. He embraced Kai Wagner, Quinn Sullivan and Nathan Harriel as he stepped on the pitch one last time. Soon after, the final whistle blew, with the Union taking their final regular season match 4-1.
The Union will be in action next in the 2026 MLS Cup Playoffs. They will enter the Best-of-3 first round as the 6th seed, facing off against New England Revolution and club record goal scorer Daniel Gazdag in the first round. Their first match will be in Foxborough between Friday, November 20th and Tuesday, November 24. They will return to Subaru Park for the 2nd match on November 27 or 28.
