Philly Sports Jabronis
Report From Philadelphia Union
HOUSTON, Texas – Philadelphia Union fell to Houston Dynamo 1-0 Saturday night at BBVA Compass Stadium in front of 18,457 fans. The loss came after Philadelphia held Houston scoreless for 90 minutes, but Cristian Maidana’s free kick goal in the fifth minute of stoppage time sealed the win. Philadelphia returns home this week to take on D.C. United Saturday, July 9, on Patriot Night at Talen Energy Stadium.
Early on, it was Union goalkeeper Andre Blake making another bid for MLS Save of the Week again. In the 29th minute, Will Bruin was found open in the box and sent a header towards the net. Blake denied Bruin with a diving stop to his left to keep the match scoreless.
Chris Pontius gave the Union their best attempt at a goal in the first half. The Union earned a corner after constant pressure in the attacking third. Tranquillo Barnetta took the corner and placed the ball perfectly for Pontius who found himself free in the box. Unfortunately the attempt sailed over the bar.
In the second half, the Union saw the return of C.J. Sapong who entered the match in the 63rd minute as a sub. It was the first time Sapong has seen action since June 1 against Columbus. Sapong immediately created pressure as a sub, sending an opportunity towards the net, but was blocked.
After a back-and-forth defensive affair, the match took a turn when Josh Yaro was sent off after receiving his second yellow of the match. The Union defender was issued his first yellow in the second minute of play. He picked up his second in the 87th minute on a questionable call on Mauro Manotas.
In stoppage time former Union midfielder Maidana delivered a beautiful free-kick to give Houston the 1-0 lead. Moments later the final whistle blew and Union fell to Houston.
Philadelphia will look to bounce back Saturday night when they host D.C. United on Patriot Night at Talen Energy Stadium. Kick-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. and will be the second meeting between the two clubs.
MATCH RECAP
Houston Dynamo 1, Philadelphia Union 0
BBVA Compass Stadium
Houston, Texas
POST MATCH AUDIO
FINAL MATCH STATS
Shots: 18-7 Houston
Shots on Target: 8-2 Houston
Possession: 51.9 – 48.1 Houston
Passing Accuracy: 83-76 Houston
Fouls: 9-8 Union
Corners: 8-3 Houston
Duels won: 36-26 Houston
Tackles won: 12-11 Houston
SCORING SUMMARY
HOU – Cristian Maidana 90+5’
DISCIPLINE SUMMARY
PHI – Josh Yaro (Yellow) 2’
PHI – Josh Yaro (Red) 87’
PHI – Warren Creavalle (Yellow) 90+4
PHILADELPHIA UNION STARTING XI
Andre Blake; Fabinho, Richie Marquez, Josh Yaro, Keegan Rosenberry; Brian Carroll © Ken Tribbett 88’); Warren Creavalle; Chris Pontius, Tranquillo Barnetta, Ilsinho (Leo Fernandes 62’); Roland Alberg (C.J. Sapong 62’)
Substitutes not used: John McCarthy, Ray Gaddis, Walter Restrepo, Cole Missimo.
HOUSTON DYNAMO STARTING XI
Tyler Deric; DeMarcus Beasley, Raul Rodriguez, David Horst, Jalil Anibaba; Collen Warner; Boniek Garcia, Ricardo Clark, Alex (Cristian Maidana 69’), Giles Barnes (Andrew Wenger
84’); Will Bruin (Mauro Manotas 60’)
Substitutes not used: Joe Willis, Sheanon Williams, Agus, David Rocha.
OFFICIALS
Edvin Jurisevic (referee), Mike Rottersman (assistant), Andrew Bigelow (assistant) Ismail Elfath (fourth)
ATTENDANCE
18,457
TEAM NOTES
- C.J. Sapong made his first appearance since June 1, a span of three MLS games. He had been sidelined with a left ankle sprain.
- Due to heat and humidity, the match had two water breaks following the first 30 minutes of each half.
- Andre Blake made six saves, tied for the second most he’s made all season long. He also made six against Columbus Crew SC (March 12), Seattle Sounders FC (April 16) and Montreal Impact (May 14).
- Roland Alberg made his first start at forward this season. The Dutch midfielder had previously started six games.
- For Alberg, it was the first time he did not score a goal in an MLS game since May 28, snapping a three-game streak. The club’s record is four consecutive games, held by C.J. Sapong and Jack McInerney.
- Keegan Rosenberry played his MLS leading 18th straight game of a full 90 minutes. Rosenberry has now logged 1,620 minutes this year.
- Barring an appeal, Josh Yaro will miss the Union’s next game against D.C. United on July 9.
