The Philadelphia Union have yet to clinch a spot in the MLS Cup playoffs with three matches remaining, but they hope to take another step closer when they visit Orlando City on Wednesday night.
The Union (9-12-10, 37 points) may feel that they deserved more than a 1-1 draw against Atlanta United on Saturday — outshooting the visitors 22-9, including a 7-1 shots-on-goal advantage — but they saw Nathan Harriel’s 61st-minute go-ahead goal canceled out by Saba Lobjanidze’s header in the 72nd minute.
The Union sit in the ninth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference but are level on points with eighth-place Toronto FC and 10th-place CF Montreal, with Saturday’s draw representing a missed opportunity to make headway.
“We’ve put ourselves in a situation where we’re still in control of our own destiny, but at the same time, our margin for error is, is very, very small,” Union head coach Jim Curtin said after Saturday’s match. “Not taking those extra two points (against Atlanta) makes it a little bit more challenging. There’s no question about that.”
Orlando City (13-11-7, 46 points) clinched a playoff spot with a 3-1 win over FC Dallas on Saturday. Orlando can finish no higher than fourth in the East, which would give it home-field advantage through at least the first round of the playoffs. NYCFC and the New York Red Bulls are two points behind Orlando with two matches remaining.
Though its spot in the postseason has been secured, there’s a clear understanding within the Orlando ranks that the Union team coming to town will be desperate to claim a critical three points with little time remaining in the regular season.
“They surely will come here trying to qualify (for the playoffs) so it’s going to be intense, no doubt, and for us we will be ready (to) try to take advantage of this opportunity,” Orlando head coach Oscar Pareja said on Monday.
Orlando received goals from Ramiro Enrique, Rodrigo Schlegel and Facundo Torres on Saturday. Torres’ goal was the 44th of his career, tied for the club record across all competitions.
Harriel’s goal for Philadelphia was his first of the season and just the third of his MLS career.
–Field Level Media