
Michael Orozco-Fiscal debuted his thumb-sucking celebration against Toronto...on Saturday night, it was back (Terry McLaughlin/ASN Philadelphia)
At home for the final time of their inaugural season in Major League Soccer, the Philadelphia Union looked to leave a positive lasting memory with their fans during the off-season. The first campaign was definitely a success for the league’s newest franchise. However, the majority of the success was not particularly the play of the team, who will finish in the bottom half of the Eastern Conference and solidly out of the playoffs following their final game next Sunday in Columbus, but the success of the franchise as well as the city and region itself. This year has shown that high-level soccer was badly needed in this area, with supporters showing that they are more than willing to snap up any soccer content offered. A beautiful new stadium on the waterfront debuted to rave reviews and has been consistently filled near capacity throughout the season. Philadelphia has launched a viable candidacy to host World Cup matches if and when the event returns to the United States. All that needs to happen going forward is for the product on the field to match the setting and atmosphere surrounding it.
Early on, it was apparent that the Union came out wanting to put on a good show for the home crowd. Manager Piotr Nowak set the tone with his lineup, putting his standard XI on the pitch, showing that he would not just be playing out the string on the season while experimenting with youth. His corps rewarded him with an 8th minute goal off of a Sebastien Le Toux corner sent to the top of the 6-yard box that found the head of Alejandro Moreno. Ale didn’t get much on it, but it fell to the goal mouth, where Fred cleaned it up, slamming into the back of the net for his 4th goal of the season.
Philadelphia continued to dominate the run of play and a lucky bounce sent them through for their 2nd goal in the 28th minute. As the ball bounced free in front of New York’s penalty area, Seba raised his hand, calling for the ball. However, Stefani Miglioranzi thought he saw a slight opening and attempted to fire a shot, which was blocked. Fortunately for the Union, the ball bounded to Le Toux exactly where he had been signaling for a pass to come, and he easily slotted a pass towards the goal mouth and suddenly Red Bulls keeper Bouna Coundoul found himself staring at Michael Orozco-Fiscal and Danny Mwanga crashing the net unmarked. It would be Orozco-Fiscal banging an easy one home, his second of the season, followed by his favored thumb-sucking celebration.
From there, it was just a matter of shutting up shop and taking home the win. But that is not the style of this team nor this manager. The Union continued to press for more goals, maintaining possession in the New York half for the better part of the 1st half. The Red Bulls, for their part, seemed to follow the example of legendary French national and Arsenal striker Thierry Henry, who did not make the trip to Philadelphia. Despite being locked in a battle for the top seed in the Eastern Conference with Columbus, New York did not show up at all in the first half and certainly paid for it.
Whatever manager Hans Backe said to his team at halftime paid immediate results. A clean, efficient buildup saw the ball on the foot of striker Mehdi Ballouchy in the 48th minute. Sheanon Williams, who had been turned inside out by Dane Richards, was left lunging at Ballouchy as he laid the ball off to fullback Danleigh Borman just above the penalty area left of center. Borman unleashed a pretty left-footer that snaked past a frozen Brad Knighton in the bottom right corner of his goal.
At that point, it was clear that Philadelphia had a game on their hands. New York was buoyed by their early goal and remained active throughout the 2nd half. They produced several more scoring chances, but their attack also left the door open for the Union counter-attack. Neither side was able to punch one in, however, with Salou Ibrahim and Danny Mwanga trading near misses around the 70th minute. As the game approached the final 10 minutes, the Red Bulls went into full on attack mode, searching for an equalizer.
Finally, in the 4th minute of stoppage time, they found one. Following a second consecutive corner, Juan Agudelo slotted a loose ball earmarked for the bottom right corner of the goal. By all rights, it was the equalizer and a fitting microcosm of the Union’s first season. That’s when Fred intervened. Stationed on the goal line at the post, the Brazilian’s lightning-quick reactions allowed him to clear the line and give the home fans the memory the team sought to provide. The home debut and finale were braced by Sebastien Le Toux’s hat-trick and Fred’s game-saving clearance as time expired, two moments that will linger with supporters through the long off-season. As the team gathered in the center of the field for a brief ceremony and fireworks display to show their appreciation for their stalwart fans, they offered the promise of an improved team commensurate with their stadium and supporters. 2010 was just the beginning.
Philadelphia Union Starting XI
———————————–Knighton—————————————
Williams———-Califf——————–Orozco Fiscal————-Harvey
—————-Coudet————–Miglioranzi———————————–
Le Toux———————————————————————–Fred
———————-Moreno———————-Mwanga———————
New York Red Bulls Starting XI
———————————Coundoul————————————-
Albright————Mendes————-Ream———————-Borman
Richards——–Marquez———–Tchani———————Lindpere
—–Ballouchy———————–Angel—————-
Scoring Summary:
PHI – Fred 4 (Alejandro Moreno 6) 8′
Michael Orozco-Fiscal 2 (Sebastien Le Toux 11) 28′
NY- Danleigh Borman 1 (Mehdi Ballouchy 1) 48′
Philadelphia Union — Brad Knighton, Jordan Harvey, Danny Califf, Michael Orozco Fiscal, Sheanon Williams, Fred, Stefani Miglioranzi, Eduardo Coudet (Andrew Jacobson 66) , Sebastien Le Toux, Alejandro Moreno (Justin Mapp 62), Danny Mwanga (Shea Salinas 84)
Substitutes Not Used: Chris Seitz, Juan Diego Gonzalez, Roger Torres, Nick Zimmerman
New York Red Bulls – Bouna Coundoul, Chris Albright (Jeremy Hall 79), Carlos Mendes, Tim Ream, Danleigh Borman, Dane Richards, Rafael Marquez (Juan Agudelo 79), Tony Tchani (Salou Ibrahim 45), Joel Lindpere, Juan Pablo Angel, Mehdi Ballouchy
Substitutes Not Used: Greg Sutton, Austin Da Luz, Carl Robinson, Sinisa Ubiparipovic
Misconduct Summary: NY- Danleigh Borman (caution, Reckless Tackle) 18′
NY- Juan Pablo Angel (caution, Reckless Tackle), 55’
PHI- Fred (caution, Tactical Foul), 68′
Referee: Paul Ward
Referee’s Assistants: – Philippe Briere, Cameron Blair
4th Official: Terry Vaughn
Time of Game: 1:58
Recent Comments