VS. DATE / TIME: Saturday, May 1, 2021 7:30 PM EDT MATCH PREVIEW: MLS Match Preview VENUE: Subaru Park Chester, Pennsylvania Ticket Information GAMETIME FORECAST: Clear Temp: 54° Feels Like: 51° TELEVISION BROADCAST: PHL17 (Local) COMCAST: Channel 807 HD, 7 SD Verizon FiOS: Channel 517 HD, 17 SD Streaming at https://www.philadelphiaunion.com/stream and on ESPN+ CURRENT MLS STANDINGS MLS INJURY REPORT MLS DISCIPLINE REPORT LAST MEETING: Thursday, July 9, 2020 ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex / Bay Lake, Florida New York City FC 0 - 1 Philadelphia Union MLS Matchcenter MLS is Back Tournament Group Stage
Squad rotation will be heavy. We might even see a few homegrowns start. I expect to see Elliott on the bench so that Glesnes and new guy from Scotland can get a game in together before they do it for real on Tuesday with Eliott at the 6 due to Brujo's suspension. I'l go with 1-1 tie and that might be optimistic.
So we'll see Brujo again in like June or something. Oh well. Concacaf on Tuesday. Only competition we can get up for, I guess.
That match made me a little concerned that if Atlanta gets on their horse, they can put up 3 on us. Martinez needs to be fined by the team for his idiotic actions. Hard play is fine, but he literally hit the NYCFC player in the head twice, he'll be lucky to only be banned another game.
Some observations before the red card: All MLS opponents so far have appeared superior in their ability to pass and move, pass and move, all the while maintaining possession (you know, play soccer). It’s looking a bit like a return to the traditional Union when we for years had to endure a deficit in personnel compared to most opponents. I’m frustrated that Burke is someone they need to rely on. While I think he can be very good in the air with his head, first touch consistently remains an advantage for the opposing side. It’s becoming clear that a serious attempt at upgrading the forward position is needed. Regarding the red card: Martinez is being paid to do a lot of watching from the stands this week and next. Curtin has got to get through to him, or he will continue to put his teammates at a disadvantage. Being a man down for most of a match is obviously tough to watch, but just about equally bothersome is the fact that we have to watch most of the game with a TV scoreboard graphic that effectively becomes doubled in size. There’s got to be a less obtrusive way to inform the audience that a team is playing a man down. How about a little red card symbol next to the team’s name on the score graphic? Yes, I’m in a complaining mood after that one. I’m getting the return of some old Union vibes.
The Union capitalized on Atlanta’s mistakes quite well! But, it was obvious how Atlanta has better overall players and it showed in how they possess the ball and build attacks versus how the Union attempt the same. Atlanta couldn’t finish last week—we can only hope they don’t rediscover that ability this week.
Dear @PhilaUnion. This shit is a joke. You want me to cater my wardrobe to your needs so you can put your fancy ass graphics on, comp my tickets and pay for my food. pic.twitter.com/Y1u6e4VjZU— Julian Brown (@JulianBPresents) May 1, 2021 lol, I saw this on my Twitter feed. Union trying to tell fans that they can't wear light colored clothes.
I agree with Julian. While the Union asked nicely, they are doing it for commercial benefit and all the people complying should be compensated. They could give everyone in those sections a coupon for a free water if they wear light clothes. They could even use this to encourage advertisers to participate By saying the ads will look better.
Eh, RSL did thw same thing. Honestly, the virtual graphics are fine. If teams are going to use them, then don't sit people in those sections.....
I don’t think ad graphics are ideal for the viewer: the ball can get “lost” in the ads when traveling high through the air (though, I think it’s improved recently). Clearly, there is a need to make up some of the revenue lost due to shutdowns. Plus, once you start a new revenue stream it’s difficult to stop it. They started this when no one was in the stands, and now they want to continue it and suddenly find themselves in need of compliance from supporters.