(Photo courtesy of Carl Gulbish)
The Philadelphia Union’s home league winless streak has been extended to six games, but is three consecutive draws evidence that the team is turning things around?
“This is sometimes a windy, bumpy road,” Union coach Bradley Carnell said after the Columbus draw Saturday night, “and we find ourselves in that windy, bumpy road. But what you see is boys digging deep, committing, fighting, giving everything until the very last minute.”
The optimists will claim that three draws are better than the three losses to open the Union’s season. The Union’s latest 1-1 tie against Columbus came against a team that beat them 2-0 three weeks ago. Before that, the Union held Nashville SC, currently the league’s best team, to a 0-0 draw. And the home point drought ended April 18th in a scoreless draw against D.C United, who beat the Union on opening night back in February. That’s three points against three teams all ahead of the Union in the standings. And in a league where every point matters, three points can prove to be crucial in a tight playoff race.
The pessimists will laugh at that notion because every team in the league is ahead of the Union. D.C. has been as poor as any team in the league the past five seasons, Nashville played a mixed lineup in between Concacaf semifinal legs, and Columbus’ own struggles resulted in coach Henrik Rydström being let go following the Union draw. His 13 points in 14 games in charge of the 2024 MLS Cup Champions had been deemed not good enough by the club’s standards.
So where do the Union stand in all this mess?
The Union are currently 1-9-4 in the league with 7 points, an impressive free fall from last year’s Supporters’ Shield-winning season in which they only lost eight games total. Their 0-3-3 home record is a franchise-worst to start a season, and they’re currently ten points out of the final playoff spot. They’ve conceded the first goal in ten of fourteen games, and their only win, against Montréal, was a comeback victory on the road.
But with eight goals in their last seven games, their missing attack has been marginally better than six goals in their first seven, and they’ve recently converted a few of their turnovers in the attacking third, a key principle in the Bradley Carnell system. Add into the mix Milan Iloski finding the net in back-to-back games, the increased play of Cavan Sullivan, arguably the Union’s best player in recent games, and the return of a healthy Augustin Anello, and the Union will hopefully create a more balanced attack capable of turning road losses into draws and home draws into wins.
The optimists will feel better about that last sentence. The pessimists will point to the Union’s struggles by looking at the numbers.
Statistically speaking, here are a few simple Union stats to mull over (MLS Stats):
Statistic | Quantity | MLS Rank |
Goals Scored | 14 | 27th |
Goals Against | 24 | 21st (Tied) |
Goal Differential | -10 | 28th |
Total xG | 20.23 | 20th |
Shots Against | 57 | 4th |
Shots on Target | 59 | 23rd |
The pessimists will point to last season, where the Union ranked near the top in almost every category. The optimists will say it’s not as bad as 30th. The Union are getting players in good spots to score and are preventing other teams from getting shots off, something coach Bradley Carnell has reiterated since the beginning of the season
One stat that has jumped out this season is shots on target percentage. The Union’s 28.6% ranks last in the league (FBRef). They’ve been dreadful at hitting the target. Too many low percentage crosses, too many long distance shots that come nowhere close, too many shots through traffic, and not enough scoring opportunities inside the box where they force a keeper to make a save.
Sullivan leads the team with 7 shots out of 13 on target for 53.8%, good for 36th in MLS. Yet, he’s only recently begun to get regular minutes, which is one indicator that their chances of scoring are at least improving. Jesus Bueno is 5 for 10, or 50%, and 52nd in the league. Unfortunately, he’s been injured in recent games after a string of positive performances. Anello (4/10, 40%, 124th) and Indiana Vassilev (4/11, 36.4%, 142nd) are next among team leaders, but due to Anello’s injury battles and Vassilev’s role as a disruptor and creator, they haven’t had a large enough sample size to dramatically affect the team’s overall ratio.
Where are the strikers?
Milan Iloski ranks 196th in the league with 13 shots on target out of 45 attempts for 28.9% average. Yet his 4 goals leads the team, and his recent scoring form gives more hope that he’s heating up.
Stas Korzeniowski ranks 205th with a 28.6% from 2 shots on target out of 7. He earned his first minutes with the senior team in over a month in a late sub appearance in Orlando, but his role as the team’s fourth striker ultimately comes down to tactics and availability.
Ezekiel Alladoh’s 2 shots on goal (8 total shots) came in recent games. His 25% average ranks 229th in the league, and more importantly, his zero goals in MLS play have certainly put him in the spotlight. The Union’s most expensive-ever transfer has had a nightmare start to his time in Philadelphia.
Perhaps more staggering is that Bruno Damiani ranks 277th in the league with an 11.1% average, placing 3 shots on goal out of 27. Playing a key role in the Union’s attacking woes, Damiani faces the most pressure of any of the Union front players to get on track.
As a unit, the Union’s top strikers’ shots on target per 90 minutes currently ranks as follows:
Iloski (1.06, 50th), Alladoh (.34, 171st), and Damiani (.26, 210th)
“For strikers, not getting a goal so far is probably weighing on their confidence a little bit,” Iloski said about Damiani and Alladoh, “I’m just trying to be positive with them, keep them going and keep them in a positive mind frame.” In addition to missing the target, the lack of production from the strikers largely comes down to not being in many positions to score. In terms of expected goals (xG), Iloski (3.73, 37th), Damiani (2.76, 67th), and Alladoh (1.2, 130th) haven’t been in enough opportunistic goal scoring opportunities, which can be indicative more of the team’s play than the individual performances.
“They have to believe in themselves first, and I’m sure once they get the first goal, more will follow.
Anello provided a big boost off the bench Saturday night. Following a Union turnover in the front third, he was responsible for setting up Iloski in front of the goal after beating his defender on a quick break.
Iloski pulls the Union level. Forced turnover conversion. The type of goal the U have been missing. pic.twitter.com/4alA8Yfz0A
— Backyard Pitches (@BackyardPitches) May 17, 2026
“It takes a little bit of pressure away from Cavan on the other side,” Carnell said about Anello’s return to the team. “If we can bring on another dribbler, another one-v-one specialist on the sidelines, and that creates the equalizer.” Carnell said the addition of Anello and Sullivan attacking from the sides demands more respect from the opponents and creates more quality transitional moments.
On the field, Anello expressed frustration as he tried multiple times to get on the same page with his teammates.
“I think it’s going to come,” he said after the Columbus game. “Me and Milan have known each other for a while. Things didn’t go out today but I’m confident in the future those through balls are going to come.” Anello, Florida born and European raised, arrived this offseason following two years in Uruguay and was expected to fill one of the ten roles before his early-season injuries. His skillset and experience adds a more creative layer to the Union’s attack, something that has been largely lacking.
“We’re there. We’re so close,” he said. “We just have to keep working, trusting that the process of the team is going to come in one certain moment. And when we take the step over this hurdle, the wins are going to come.”
“The only way is up from here,” Iloski said, “for us right now, we have to go to Miami and try to get anything we can out of it.”
The Union travel to Miami Sunday night in what will be the final game before the World Cup break. Miami, despite all their success, has not been as good at home either. They are 1-1-3 at home, not the dazzling display that was expected when they opened Nu Stadium earlier this season. But a sluggish start, a Round of 16 exit in the Concacaf Champions Cup, and a coaching change has not derailed the team’s season. They’ve scored fourteen goals over their last four games but have also conceded nine, which means the Union could exploit their defensive weaknesses.
Regardless of Sunday’s result, the Union’s play must improve if they’re to be considered in the playoff mix, and an uncharacteristic layoff in the middle of the season may be exactly what they need.
“Thankfully, we have a break and we can make the changes necessary,” Iloski added. “There’s a chance for all of us to go back, look in the mirror a little bit, come back humble and ready to work and try to do what we can.”
