Philadelphia Union Thrash DC United on the Road

The Philadelphia Union remained calm, cool, and clinical in their 4-0 decimation of eastern conference rivals DC United to bring themselves within pegging distance of a playoff spot.

With momentum on their side after a 3-0 victory against New York Red Bulls, Philadelphia came into this match against DC United with a clear urgency about their level of play. They know the fans expect much more than what they’ve seen over the course of 2017 and a messy affair against a conference rival seemed to be just what this Union team needed to climb their way out of the depths of last place in the Eastern Confrence.

On yet another rainy evening of action in the capitals capitol, both Philadelphia and DC United came out of the gate rather disorganized in regards to consistent attacking buildup. Neither side found themselves able to break the opposition down effectively as the game became subject to numerous stoppages for misplayed balls and silly fouls in the middle of the pitch.

Union midfielder Ilsinho found himself open in space after a DC player slipped in covering the run but was unable to convert the attempt. Following the failed attack, the game opened up a bit more for both sides, yet Philadelphia held firmly in the back allowing zero shots on goal for the entirety of the first half.

May 13, 2017; Washington, DC, USA; Philadelphia Union midfielder Haris Medunjanin (6) shoots and scores during the first half against the D.C. United at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports /

It wasn’t until the 39th minute that Haris Mendunjanin fooled the entire DC defense by firing a knuckling shot from outside the box instead of electing to free one of his wingers into the box. While the strike was quality from the Bosnian midfielder, goalkeeper Bill Hamid was clearly not prepared to handle such a shot and saw it pass right through his outstretched arms.

Philadelphia continued to apply pressure as Fafa Picault had arguably his best game of the season for the blue and gold. His rediscovered confidence was evident in the way he moved and nearly found the back of the net on three separate occasions. The heart of the Union defense frustrated the imposing DC attackers to the point where Luciano Acosta found himself so irritated that he lunged into a tackle on Ilsinho and was given a straight red card in the 54th minute.

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From there, the killer instinct that has long eluded this Philadelphia team kicked in and instead of remaining complacent in their approach, they pressed and wore down the shorthanded DC side. Haris Mendunjanin’s corner in the 64th minute found the head of Oguchi Onyewu who rose above everyone and put the Union up 2-0. Fabian Herbers and Warren Creavalle entered the game in a critical time which helped disrupt any buildup from DC United. A nice break-up in the 78th minute saw Mendunjanin layoff to Picault who worked the defender and moved well to open up the target and delivered a top-class strike from the edge of the 18-yard box for his first goal of the season.

Even up by three goals, the Philadelphia Union continued to remain compact defensively and saw chance after chance come close to blowing the game wide open for them. Then in the 88th minute, Alejandro Bedoya picked out Herbers just outside of the box and struck a first time effort that can only be described as perfectly placed and simply unstoppable. The 4-0 victory had long been secured in their level of play. but to see this team maliciously attack an opponent the way they did Saturday night was certainly a sight to behold and one that will be well received by the Union faithful.

Next: Union Look to Continue Momentum Away from Home

Philadelphia registered nine shots on target and limited DC to only one throughout the course of the match. Though the possession was dead even, the Union were clinical in their approach to picking apart their opponent and executed counter-attacking chances and set pieces effectively. This can easily go down as the strongest showing by this squad and now find themselves just on the brink of the eastern conference playoff picture. Philadelphia will return to Chester, PA for a two game homestand against the Houston Dynamo and the Colorado Rapids.

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