No Bedoya, no problemfor deep and confidentUnion

The talk around the Union has shifted toward the future in recent weeks. Having a player reportedly on the verge of a move to Europe will do that.

But Sunday night’s match with Inter Miami was very much rooted in the present. For as bright as the club’s prospects figure to be once it cements the route to rare status with a first sale, the here and now doesn’t lack for prosperity. When the day comes that BrendenAaronson and other young stars are no longer members of the Union, the club will be just fine.

It showed that against InterMiami, with young players again stepping up for a 3- 0 win in a Subaru Park soaker.

The Union were without Ray Gaddis due to a hamstring injury and Alejandro Bedoya, suspended for yellow- card accumulation. The last Union game where neither player logged a minute was Sept. 3, 2016. In the four years since, one or the other has started in all but three games. Add the absences of Warren Creavalle and Jack Elliott, and another 250- plus games of MLS experience were unavailable.

Yet the Union ( 8- 2- 4, 28 points) hardly missed a beat. Anthony Fontana, making his first start since his debut in the 2018 opener, scored his fourth goal in asmany games. Aaronson added a goal late and the crucial play to set up Ilsinho’s goal.

“It’s often tricky: A lot of times when teams lose their captain, there’s a big regression,” Jim Curtin said. “There’s a lot of nerves that go into it. But Ale has done a great job of supporting the team this week, and when we stepped on the field this week, guys felt like they needed to do a little bit more, which is a sign of growth, a sign of a good team. When you’re missing one of your best players, missing your captain, everyone has to step their game up. Ours sometimes happen to be teenagers ... they all, I think, raised their level quite a bit.”

Inter Miami ( 3- 9- 2, 11 points) had 16 shots, Andre Blake making three saves, one a top- class denial. Intermissed a penalty and hit the post. It fields a lineup with a World Cup winner ( Blaise Matuidi), a Champions League finalist ( Gonzalo Higuain) and a $ 12 million mid- career Mexican international ( Rodolfo Pizarro), a marked edge in pedigree and prestige.

But Ernst Tanner’s goal in installing this high- pressure system was to level gulfs in talent. And while the expansion side’s issues could solve themselves with time together, for at least one night, the Union’s plan held true.

“I said it to the guys before the game that 11 players — minus our captain — that are cohesive and together and have belief and are fighting for each other can beat any group of individual, talented players,” Curtin said. “Miami has a talented team and a lot of talent in their group. But I thought the exercise tonight was that we showed the way the Philadelphia Union plays, the way the next man can step up even when we’re missing our captain.”

That systematic approach is why the Union weathered the absence of Bedoya. It’s why, with Fontana firing and young players bubbling up, they’ll survive whenever Aaronson heads to Europe, which could happen at the end of the season if reports linking him to Red Bull Salzburg prove true. It’s why they’ve won 10 of 15 games since MLS restarted in July, including a 6- 1- 2 record since returning to homemarkets, allowing just four goals in nine outings.

Before Aaronson leaves, the Union could land that elusive first trophy, either through the MLS Cup playoffs or via the Supporters’ Shield for best regular- season record, as they’re two points shy of Columbus and level with Toronto.

The continuing emergence of Homegrowns is integral to the system’s logic, scoring seven of the club’s last 12 goals after scoring 10 total goals in the franchise’s first 10 seasons. In the last five games Homegrowns have seven goals and five assists.

“Every time us Homegrowns step on the field, we want to make an impact,” Fontana said. “And as of late, we’ve just been killing it. It’s all down to all the work we’re putting in, and we’ve just got to keep it up, simple as that.”

They’ve gotten results this week without Gaddis, without Kai Wagner, without JoseMartinez. The success — and more importantly the level of play — without Bedoya may have been more difficult. But it reinforces a central point of the Union’s identity.

“I feel like we responded really well,” Fontana said. “Ale, obviously he’s a really big part of our team. I know he trusts us to go out there and get the job done. Personally, he gave some little bits of advice, but I know that when one player steps out, everyone else steps up.”