The Philadelphia Union have taken sole possession of last place in the MLS Eastern Conference. For a team that had so much growth over the last 6 seasons, it is all coming crashing down.
The Philadelphia Union has arrived at rock bottom.
Make no mistake about it—the Union are a bad team. While they are not last in the entire league as of yet, their downfall is enough to say it probably can’t get worse. Players have regressed far ahead of schedule, and ownership is silent on the team’s state.
When the Union returns home against New England on Wednesday, it remains to be seen if protests will continue.
However, for now, Union fans do not have much to look forward to.
That is except for the debut of the possible 14-year-old phenom.
Cavan Sullivan Has Arrived
Just when most fans were ready to give up, the Union gave them a little something to hold onto. Cavan Sullivan will be part of the Union’s gameday roster for the first time since his record signing.
While head coach Jim Curtin has been non-committed to how much play the phenom will see, fans should be excited nonetheless. It was uncertain if the phenom would feature for the Union this season. However, with the team’s trajectory, there is no reason not to see what the kid can do at the top level.
Rock Bottom Came Early
The most shocking part of the Union’s decline is its coming from its foundation. Jack Elliott and Jacob Glesnes have regressed to levels no one could foresee. Glesnes, who won MLS Defender of the Year just 2 seasons ago, has become a shell of himself. Jack Elliott has made mistakes that have cost the Union a number of points.
The matter of fact is, despite losing Julian Carranza, the offense is scoring goals. Unfortunately, the defense just can’t stop a parked car from scoring on them. Now, Jim Curtin has announced that Andre Blake is healthy and will return to his post between the sticks. However, there have been defensive lapses not even he could save the defense from.
Blake will certainly boost morale. However, Blake needs to use his voice to try to shake Eliott and Glesnes back to a shade of their former selves. If he can’t do that, the Union will not be climbing out of the basement of MLS anytime soon. Consequentially, Cavan Sullivan will not be able to save them either.
The Power is with the Fans
We saw the start of protests around Subaru Park the last time the Union were at home. Mutiple signs critical of ownership had been confiscated.
Now, the Union return home in last place. It is up to the fans to make their voices heard and protest the state of the club. Tonight, we will see if the going is going to get worse for Union owner Jay Sugarman.
Unfortunately, we may be at just the beginning of a tough time in the Union fandom.
PHOTO: Skyler Hoffner/PHLSportsNation
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