Happy first day of May. Ready or not, May is here and that means no shortage of Philadelphia Union matches. There are 7 league and at least one U.S. Open Cup match awaiting. Fortunately, the Union made the most of home games against lesser opponents over the last two weekends and will tackle the busy month with some wind behind their sails.

In the email today:

1. ⚡️Momentum Into May

By Matt McClain

The Philadelphia Union earned a second consecutive 3-0 victory Saturday afternoon and in doing so, they enter their toughest stretch of the season with some much needed momentum.

Head Coach Bradley Carnell used all of his available substitution windows Saturday during the win, a sign that he and his staff are prepared to make the necessary changes next month with eight games in less than 30 days next month.

The Union have seven MLS matches and at least one US Open Cup fixture. This gauntlet of sorts will begin Saturday north of the border in Montreal. Saturday’s matchup kickstarts a stretch of six games squeezed into a 14-day window.

As of now, Philly will have a chance to regroup and collect themselves following the 5/17 matchup at Atlanta. They’ll have a week to rest and prepare for a big home matchup against Messi and company on 5/24.

And in order to survive the month of May, Carnell and his players need to buy into the ‘next man up mentality.’

The club has leaned on this mentality already through the first 10 matches of the year. Currently, they have just two standard center backs on their roster following the knee injury and subsequent surgery to Ian Glavinovich earlier this month. A few weeks later, they shipped their most consistent offensive weapon, Daniel Gazdag, to fellow Eastern Conference opponent Columbus Crew.

In place of Glavinovich, the club has relied heavily on right-back Nate Harriel to fill the void. Its a job that he’s not totally unfamiliar with and so far there’s been no major errors or gaffs to speak of. But eight matches in less than 30 days would suggest squad rotation at all positions is possibly a must. And if so, who steps in at center back?

The midfield seems to be holding their own without Gazdag as well. But the further you look down the roster, the quality dips significantly. And that’s where mind over matter will have to be the key for Carnell and his group.

“We have another wave of energy coming off the bench,” said Carnell post-game Saturday. Guys like Cavan Sullivan, Bruno Damiani, and Chris Donovan were effective in their limited minutes of second half action. “Teammates help each other along the way. Chris Donovan does a great job as well coming on in the game and plays exactly how we like him to play, being a nuisance and a menace for the defenders again. You can see automatically we take another stranglehold on the game.”

Newly acquired striker Bruno Damiani needed just 15 minutes of action to help Philadelphia seal the victory with a 77th minute goal from inside the box. Damiani showcased nearly all of the reasons Philadelphia decided to splash a club-record amount of cash to secure his services on the goal by using his size and strength to back down the defender in the box, turn, and fire for the goal.

The ensuing celebration from Uruguayan striker indicated the goal was crucial for him after scoring just one goal eight appearances prior to Saturday’s clash against DC United. And more positively, Damiani seems poised and ready to help the club during this tough stretch in May as well.

“We have a very tough next stretch of matches,” said Damiani post-game. “I think the competition [internally] can be good for that, just to have whoever plays is going to be ready. I think that for us it is going to be really important.”

2. 🔢 By the Numbers

Ten games into the season, it’s a good time to look at some key numbers from the 2025 campaign.

6 Wins - Only FC Cincinnati has more in the East and Vancouver Whitecaps in the west (the both have 7)
19 Goals For - Only Vancouver and Portland Timbers have more (20)
17 Assists - That’s first in the league
9 Goals Conceded - Only New England (7), Charlotte (8) and Columbus (8) have conceded less.
17.0 xG - That’s fourth best in the league behind San Jose (23.0), Nashville (20.0) and Vancouver (18.5)
11.2 Opponent xG - That’s the lowest in the Eastern Conference.
106 Passes Blocked - That’s first in the league
112 Interceptions - Second in the league to San Jose and Colorado (117)
16 Minutes per Substitute - Third fewest in the league
41 Subs Used - San Diego FC leads the league with 51
515 Ball Recoveries - First in the league. San Jose is second with 483.
123 Tackles Won - Second in the league to Red Bulls (129)
185 Aerial Duels Won - Second only to DC United (187)
137 Fouls Committed - Sixth in the league
25 Yellow Cards - Fourth in the league

3. 👆🏾Social Post of the Day: Danley

4. 💧 Water Cooler: Player Ratings Poll Results

Comments:

“I thought Vassilev was going to be our new Bedoya, but instead he's our new Aaronson with the havoc he creates up top.”

“We still seem to be adjusting to a variety of newness: life w/o Gazdag, Carnell subbing and playing people in a variety of roles, newer teammates. So more time should see more cohesive play (thinking about the first half).”

“Glesnes only scores bangers.”

5. 🔗 Link Roundup

• West Chester United had little trouble advancing in the quarterfinals of the USASA Region 1 Amateur Cup, defeating Alexandria Reds 11-0 at Bryn Athyn College.

• Todd Lewis of The Free Kick broke down the goals from the DC United win.

• The U.S. Open Cup is returning to Chester next week for the first time since 2018. Luke McClung designed a poster, which you can purchase online.

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