Union’s Anthony Fontana steps up in best game since MLS debut

When the Union announced two years ago this month that Anthony Fontana would come up to MLS for the 2018 season, the news was greeted with no small amount of hype. The Newark, Del., native was the first creative playmaker produced by the club’s youth academy, and when a young American comes along with that kind of skill set, he or she always gets attention.

Fontana added to the buzz when he was thrust into a starting job on opening day last year because Borek Dockal wasn’t ready to play yet. Fontana delivered a goal in his debut but made just five appearances for the Union the rest of the season: four as a late-game sub and one as a starter in an early-round U.S. Open Cup game. He spent the rest of the campaign with Bethlehem Steel.

By the time the year ended, there was a bit of a sense that he hadn’t met expectations -- even though putting expectations on an 18-year-old rookie might have been a bit much. And It didn’t help that Fontana dealt with a few injuries during the year that weren’t bad enough to be big news but were bad enough to keep him off the field for a while.

Fontana resolved to get better over the winter, buoyed by a stint with the U.S. under-20 national team for World Cup qualifying in November. But he could only do so much about the arrivals of fellow academy product Brenden Aaronson -- who reached the big stage with even more hype -- or big-ticket international signings Marco Fabián and Jamiro Monteiro.

So there wasn’t much playing time to be found with the Union early in the season. He made one appearance in late March, then played exclusively for Bethlehem through June. But he never lost hope, or the skill set that got him here in the first place.

The Union’s coaching staff noticed. So did sporting director Ernst Tanner, who pulled Fontana aside recently for a conversation that lit a spark. They met again this past week for a bit of film study, with Tanner pointing out a few areas of the game to focus on.

“Any time you get advice from the GM, you’ve got to take it to heart and really work on the things that he said I should work on,” Fontana said.

That has clearly happened. Fontana has played in four straight games, and his 29-minute run in Saturday’s 2-0 win over the Chicago Fire was his longest outing in a MLS game since that debut start.

“I’ve kind of felt like all I needed was that opportunity, and recently I’ve been getting it," Fontana said. "I’ve been grabbing it with both hands. I’m so happy for that.”

He capped off his latest outing with his second goal of the year, pouncing on a loose ball after a well-timed run to give the Union some badly-needed insurance.

“He’s earned it,” manager Jim Curtin said. “Every chance now he gets for minutes with the first team, he’s pushing. We’re going to put the best players on the field, and Anthony has been one of our best players in training every day. He stepped up in a big spot and scored a big goal for us.”

Though he’s still only 19, Fontana has gained a professional’s perspective, and a more professional approach to the game. He is also finally over those injuries.

“Knock on wood - wherever that is,” Fontana quipped, surveying the Union’s locker room for some wood to knock on.

“I feel like some of that [injury history] might just be due to over-training, because I would do a lot of stuff individually [while] the trainers might have said, ‘Oh, you should ease off,'" Fontana said. “This year I’ve been doing the extra work, but I’ve been a lot smarter about it. And also, it might have been kind of me growing into my body."

He looks the part these days.