Photo courtesy of Carl Gulbish
MLS playoffs, the rejuvenated Philadelphia Union are coming for you.
For the third time in ten days, the Union won at home, a streak that last occurred from late July to early August of last season. But after an atypical start to 2026 in which the Union failed to claim three points at Subaru Park, they’ve now gone from winless to a respectable 3-3-3.
Saturday night’s victory provided the most drama since the Union returned from the five week World Cup break, evidence of an improved mindset and a willingness to scrape until the final whistle. Up a man following Enea Mihaj‘s red card in the 30th minute, the Union conceded a goal on a Miguel Almirón counter. Then it went from bad to worse when Atlanta doubled their lead on a fantastic strike by Tristan Muyumba in the 66th minute. It’s safe to assume the Union from the first half of the season would have stumbled. Bradley Carnell’s post-game almosts and unluckies would have pointed to a high number of chances created, yet with few shots hitting the target, it was always difficult to back the Union’s bark with any true bite.
This might be a different team.
Seven minutes after going down two goals, Milan Iloski scored his eighth goal in six games, a club-high for consecutive scoring games. With ten goals on the season, his own streak proves that his blistering start to last season’s campaign with San Diego FC was no fluke.
“It feels good,” Iloski told Backyard Pitches. “As much as I’m happy to score in back-to-back games and that we won, I’m trying to do more and hold myself to an even higher standard.”
Last season, he had a similar run of eight goals in five games prior to his loan return to the Danish Superliga with FC Nordsjaelland. This season, he has ten league goals, eleven in all competitions.
The goal that started the comeback 🐍 pic.twitter.com/4h3vuY6TM3
— Philadelphia Union (@PhilaUnion) August 3, 2026
Six minutes into stoppage time, with referee Allen Chapman’s final whistle seconds away, Neil Pierre headed home Kai Wagner’s cross to level the score at two. Pierre’s emergence, a move of confidence brought about by his strong relationship with interim head coach Ryan Richter, might not have happened with the previous staff. Though Pierre’s MLS experience is limited, his raw talents cannot be overlooked. The 6’7” central defender has been almost unmarkable inside the attacking penalty area, scoring his second in three games. Pierre also had a header off the bar earlier in the first half and could have easily added another in his debut against the New York Red Bulls.
At 2-2, it would have been easy for the Union to settle for the home draw and claim crisis averted. But again, the Union kept pushing, and on the final attack, Wagner’s cross found Ezekiel Alladoh at the top of the box, and the soccer Gods rewarded a player who needed a goal more than any other. Alladoh’s side volley exploded off his left foot as if shot from a canon, beating keeper Lucas Hoyos. Prior to Atlanta, Alladoh only had two shots on goal in almost 600 minutes, so a winner at home in the manner he did, with a winning streak on the line, could prove to be a major boost in the 20 year-old’s season moving forward.
Wild scenes after Alladoh’s winner.
— Backyard Pitches (@BackyardPitches) August 2, 2026
3 straight for the Union.
pic.twitter.com/BTwezaa0UU
Though the Union dug their own hole, they still found a way out, and some of that comes from taking a risk to win the game rather than accept a draw.
“Home games, in MLS, you have to go for the win,” Richter said after the game. “One point at home is not enough to make the push that you want throughout a season.”
While earlier in the season, as three points became one, or one point became zero, getting a result from the final kick further builds the momentum Richter and his team have been trying to instill since their return.
“When we came in, the thing we emphasized most was the mentality,” Richter said. “These one-goal games, especially at home, it’s not a good thing to be in games and losing by one goal, that’s not a positive to me. It’s the energy, the mentality, the fight to turn these games your way.”
The winning streak doesn’t negate the season’s awful start, but it does put the Union’s future into a more favorable light. The Union (4-10-4, 16 points) moved up to 13th in the Eastern Conference, seven points out of the final play-in spot currently held by D.C. United and their leading scorer Tai Baribo (11 goals).
Unfortunately for the Union, the season takes another sidestep with the return of Leagues Cup, a competition even more hindering to their league flow following the extended World Cup break. The Union will host Liga MX Champions Cruz Azul, Necaxa, and Santos Laguna over the next ten days, with additional games and MLS schedule changes should they advance to the knockout rounds. The silver lining as always becomes the potential to earn a spot in the Concacaf Champions Cup, a goal that has become much more realistic given the team’s current form. Should they advance, the Union will likely have upcoming league matches against their nemesis NYCFC and MLS Champions Inter Miami postponed, which creates an opportunity to continue their league streak against Austin (14th in the West) and two teams they’ve beaten this season in Montreal and the Red Bulls.
