Union goalkeeper Blake sharp despite lack of fitness

Quarantine was on the fitness of most MLS player, they’ve said. But consider what it was like for a goalkeeper.

Running on the soccer field and running around your block is an analogous if imperfect replacement. But getting drilled with shots and having to make fast reaction saves? Or controlling the flow of a game and directing a team? There’s no replicating that in a backyard. It took several weeks after the early May return to training for field players to even be able to shoot on goalies in the name of safety.

That dearth of conventional preparation makes all the more impressive what Andre Blake did in Thursday’s 1-0 win over New York City FC, in the Philadelphia Union’s opener of the MLS Is Back tournament. The finer points of goalkeeping form — when to rush off the line, when to shout for defenders to step or to track runners, when to punch or when to catch — there’s little that could’ve prepared Blake for that in the four months since the Union’s last game.

“It was very tough,” Blake told media in a videoconference Sunday. “It was about doing as much as you can while you can, try to find ways to stay sharp mentally, stuff like that. It was tough, but we just tried to make the most of the time we had and how quick here we could get the sharpness back. It’s still a work in progress, but it’s been good.”

Instead of rust, Blake looked extremely sharp, making seven saves in one of his better performances in a while. It marked the Union’s first clean sheet in 19 outings (including the playoffs). A big part of the Union’s defensive dip last year was a pedestrian season by Blake’s usual All-Star standards.

But from the start in Orlando, Blake is on his game. He delivered a man-of-the-match performance, which included a handful of outstanding saves late to make Alejandro Bedoya’s goal stand up.

In a tournament that is so short, where defenses could wilt in the Florida heat and strikers look short of their characteristic edge in front of goal, Blake could loom ever larger.

“Especially in a short tournament, a hot goalkeeper is a very powerful thing,” manager Jim Curtin said. “As the game went on and we got a little fatigued and New York City was coming at us as we knew they would when we were up 1-0, you need your goalkeeper to make some big saves. Andre made some really, really important, crucial saves down the stretch. It’s great knowing that we have him behind us and our midfield and defensive line can be aggressive because we know if we make a mistake, he’s there to bail us out.”