Union face ‘trap game’ against Chicago Fire on Wednesday

The Union want to keep up their winning ways, but face a midweek test in Chicago.

Union forward Cory Burke runs with the soccer ball past New York City FC midfielder Alfredo Morales on Sunday, June 26, 2022 at Subaru Park in Chester, PA.Read moreYONG KIM / Staff Photographer

by Meg Swanick, For The Inquirer

Published June 28, 2022, 6:35 p.m. ET

The Union continue their MLS campaign on Wednesday as they take on the last-place team in the Eastern Conference, Chicago Fire FC. The match follows a 2-1 statement victory in Chester as the Union fought back in stoppage time to defeat New York City FC and reclaim first place in the conference.

“We got back to looking like us: being physical, winning duels” said Union manager Jim Curtin. “Could we still be sharper in the final third of the field? Obviously yes, but we talked about all week: Win, lose or draw, let’s really go back to just looking like the Philadelphia Union. I thought we did that, against a big opponent …”

The Fire (3-8-5) are coming off a tough loss to the Houston Dynamo and Curtin is aware they’ll be hungry to get a win at home.

“It is a trap game,” cautioned Curtin. “I used that exact word in the locker room. The thing that I keep stressing is, if we’ve learned anything about MLS this season, it’s that records mean nothing. When the ball kicks off and it’s a new 90 minutes, anybody can beat anyone.”

Wednesday’s match will test the Union’s ability to finish games. They tend to come out strong, but their dominance can wane in the second half. With four homegrown talents (Jack McGlynn, Paxten Aaronson, Quinn Sullivan, and Brandan Craig) still playing with the U.S. under-20 team in Honduras, Wednesday will also challenge the Union to perform short-staffed in a tight run of games.

“We’ve been pretty good on Wednesday nights, but we have to really bring the energy, replicate what we had in the first half and then maintain that for 90 minutes,” Curtin said. “We can’t pace ourselves in the game; we have to empty the tank.”

The Union’s next three matches against lower-ranked teams also provide their strikers the chance to find confidence and hit a run of form. With three striker options available in Julián Carranza, Mikael Uhre, and Cory Burke, no one has yet to run away from the pack in scoring, though all have shown potential. (The Union’s top scorer, midfielder Dániel Gazdag, has seven goals.)

Uhre was signed this offseason, only to find injury and inconsistency on arrival. Uhre scored in the ninth minute against NYCFC and impacted the game all over the field Sunday. The next three matches will provide the opportunity to continue his progress.

Burke notched a goal Sunday as well, bouncing in the stoppage-time winner. Burke heads to Chicago with a history of success. “Cory has had some good games and scored some goals against Chicago,” Curtin said. “We are aware of that. He’ll contribute in some way, shape, or form, either as a starter or off the bench.”

Carranza has one more goal than Uhre and Burke this season with four, but he hasn’t scored since the start of May. Curtin spoke at length about his impact, work ethic, and potential:

“If you think about the way we want to play, it starts with our forwards being willing to defend and disrupt the opponent. He’s excellent at that, as good as there is in the league in terms of working hard defensively.” Curtin sees Carranza as a double-digit goal scorer. “He’s contributed in a big way for us; he’s obviously a guy I want to keep around here in Philadelphia for good.”