Union’s skeleton team starts the playoffs with a visit to Columbus

CHESTER — The version of Philadelphia Union that finished fourth in last month’s Leagues Cup looked more like what the club hoped they would when the season began six long months ago. They more or less resembled a playoff team, although the MLS standings say otherwise at the moment.

Now, as the Union returns to the finish line for the final nine-game sprint of the regular season, they will be able to rely on that return to basics.

The search begins on Wednesday evening with a visit from Columbus, the newly crowned Leagues Cup champion, at Subaru Park (7:30 p.m., AppleTV).

Originally scheduled for Saturday, that game was postponed because both teams advanced to the Leagues Cup semifinals, which the Crew won 3-1 in Ohio on Wednesday. They pulled away with the same scoreline against LAFC on Sunday to claim another trophy, a repeat of last year’s MLS Cup final.

Wednesday is the second of three meetings in quick succession. The Union returns to Lower.com Field on Oct. 5 in a game where their playoff hopes could be on the line.

The teams are in completely different positions in the table.

Despite reaching the finals of the Leagues Cup and the CONCACAF Champions Cup, Columbus (12-4-7, 43 points) is in third place in the East and is one of the four favorites for home advantage.

The Union (6-10-9, 27 points) are not so lucky, missing the postseason by one spot in 10th place. They are stuck in a vicious tangle of seven teams within two points between 9th and 15th place. This is the result of just one win in 16 league games from April to early July.

But Union has been much better recently, 5-1-3 in the last nine matchdays.

They have allowed ten goals in that span, five of them in seven games before losing to the Crew and a 2-2 draw with Colorado in the Leagues Cup third place match, which they lost on penalties. Both teams have three games in the week, with New York opponents waiting this weekend – the Crew host NYCFC, the Union visiting the Red Bulls.

The Union’s squad for these final nine games is smaller than at the beginning of the season, apart from Julian Carranza, Jose Martinez and Damion Lowe.

Martinez’s transfer to Brazilian club Corinthians was sealed on Monday, Lowe’s move to Saudi club Al-Okhdood on Tuesday. The squad includes only 17 outfield players who have started an MLS game, three of them less than 10 times.

Given the personnel shortage, it is fitting for them to go back to basics. Commitment in defence with Andre Blake’s return is one component. They have also scored counter-attack goals in six of seven Leagues Cup games, a return to the DNA that made them so difficult to beat in 2022.

Tai Baribo, who won the Leagues Cup Golden Boot with seven goals, has spearheaded that effort, scoring 13 goals in his last 13 appearances.

“I think when we’re at our best we’re very solid defensively, we’ve got some good goalkeeping, some timely saves or timely defending in the box and that feeds into our transitions,” Curtin said. “I think you saw some good transitions during the Leagues Cup. You saw a lot of them from Tai Baribo finishing playoffs, often with good movement and direct touch. When you get a direct finish it usually means you’ve made a really good transition.”

The defensive part is made more difficult by the fact that there are only two experienced centre-backs left. Jakob Glesnes has started 33 games in all competitions this year. Jack Elliott has started 27 times and will be suspended if he receives a yellow card in the next five games.

Behind them are Nathan Harriel, who is himself one of only three full-backs in two positions, and Olwethu Makhanya. In that order because the centre-back from the U-22 initiative from South Africa is not yet ready for prime time. He has made 17 starts for Union II.

“I think there were some really good moments at Union II,” Curtin said. “But there were also some big mistakes that every young player makes and you have to learn from them. Training with the first team is not easy for him every day, but that’s what every young player has to go through. If he keeps working hard and gets better every week, he’ll get his chance eventually.”

If there is a need beforehand, Harriel will play in the center. However, the Union only has five defenders on the roster who have played in the MLS.

Given those limitations, the path to the playoffs is narrow. Curtin estimated Tuesday that at least five wins from nine games are needed to get over the finish line. The traditional target is 45 points, but the tie has now pushed it closer to 42. Eight of the Union’s last nine opponents are in playoff positions in the East as the club has stumbled through the easy parts of the schedule.

Curtin’s core team has been through a lot, but to make the playoffs for the seventh year in a row, they will have to bear a heavy physical burden.

“Those little details are now something we have to pay close attention to when we play Columbus, when we play Miami or Red Bull or whatever comes up at the end,” Curtin said.