Philadelphia Union: Uninspired and inconsistent in loss to Montreal

The Philadelphia Union found themselves recovering after another loss.

The Philadelphia Union found themselves once again in a situation that could’ve solidified their push for the final playoff spot in the eastern conference.

Against a less then formidable Montreal Impact squad, a night full of emotion and hopes for something to lift the cloud over this organization was met by a team who were simply uninspired and inconsistent.

Story of the season, huh?

Besides the four game winning streak in May, Philadelphia has failed to capitalize on positive results going into the preceding matches they’ve played in. The fair amount of optimism in their good performances has been immediately met with games in which passing has been spotty, build-up has been hindered and shots have simply not found their way onto net.

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Last night was no different for the Union. A fairly calm first half that ended scoreless left room for many to wonder how they would respond to registering only one shot on target in 45 minutes; a trend that has plagued this team all season long. Unfortunately, they were only able to increase that number by one as chance after chance fell by the wayside due to Ilsinho’s and Chris Pontius’ inability to work into space on the ball and find the runners in the box.

Blame can also be thrown the way of centerback Joshua Yaro who was directly responsible for two of Montreal’s three goals of the game. His missed clearance in the 69th led to Blerim Dzemalli firing a volley past the outstretched hand of John McCarthy His costly control of the ball in his own half led to Dzemalli doubling his tally for his 6th goal of the season in stoppage time. Another soft penalty conceded by McCarthy was buried by Ignacio Piatti in stoppage time which ultimately iced the game for the visiting Impact.

The only question that remains is whether the next match is met with intensity and passion or uninspired play and inconsistent buildup, will it really matter? Philadelphia has 10 games remaining on the season but face the most difficult schedule to close out their season in all of MLS. Six of those matches are played away from home and eight are against opposition in relatively comfortable playoff positions. And with their current track record of flat performances on the road (1-7-3 on the year away from Talen Energy Stadium), the clock is quickly approaching midnight on yet another Union campaign.

Next: Union Welcome Montreal at Home

Philadelphia will seek to keep their playoff hopes alive Saturday August 19th against Chris Wondolowski and the San Jose Earthquakes.

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