Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Gazdag’s brace leads to rout of New England
Jim Curtin talks often about his players winning their individual battles. He rarely has in mind so granular a struggle as what Mikael Uhre waged against New England center back Andrew Farrell Saturday night, but it fits the bill nonetheless.
Uhre outfoxed Farrell to assist on Daniel Gazdag’s opening goal in the 56th minute, then drew the penalty kick Gazdag buried in the 74th as the Union dispatched the second-place team in the East, 3-0.
Julian Carranza added the third goal in the 88th, after sub Chris Donovan split through the wickets of Farrell to compound his misery. The win stretches the Union’s unbeaten streak to five games and sees them climb to fifth in the East at 6-4-3 (21 points).
New England (7-3-3, 24 points) had entered having allowed just 11 goals in 12 games this season.
First it was guile from Uhre. After Jose Martinez won a ball near the top of the area, he sprung a counter with Gazdag, who played a hopeful ball angled toward the touch line that Uhre and Farrell, the veteran American central defender, could chase. Farrell
got a touch, then hit the deck under the softest of persuasion from Uhre, with a light hand on the shoulder.
Referee Lukasz Szpala wasn’t taken in, waving play on for a Union throw. Uhre took it quickly, leading to a 2-on-1 where Gazdag bashed a shot off the left post and into the right side netting for his first goal from open play this season.
In the 72nd, Uhre and Farrell found themselves isolated on the other side of the field, chasing a ball down the right edge of the 18-yard box. Uhre had him beaten for pace and Farrell made contact that he thought was shoulder-toshoulder but was lower on the body, sending the Danish forward to the deck.
Szpala pointed to the spot, Gazdag stepped to it and sent goalie Djordje Petrovic the wrong way for his sixth goal of the season.
The Union changed things up from the start, going with a 3-5-2 at home for the first time after using variations on the formation to get results away from home, at Cincinnati and Colorado. This version had two forwards, Uhre fit to start again after a knee issue, and a central midfield pairing with more dynamism thanks to Martinez’s return. Curtin started
Leon Flach over Alejandro Bedoya after the latter had a “minor Grade 1” quad strain uncovered after training Friday.
The first half had some kinks to work out but held promise. It may not be a coincidence that the front three of Uhre, Carranza and Gazdag looked sharp in creating chances, though not yet in finishing. Gazdag had a shot blocked in the box in the 12th minute after Flach dribbled through the lines. Carranza had the best chance for either side in the 27th, heading down a lofted cross from Martinez, but the outstanding Petrovic was a little better, getting his left glove down to
paw it away.
The Revs could’ve gone ahead in the 19th, when Ema Boateng got the better of Jakob Glesnes, but former U.S. international striker Bobby Wood swiped his attempt wide at Boateng’s cross.
By halftime, both teams were without their midfield engines. In addition to Bedoya missing out, Carles Gil parked himself on the turf in the 32nd minute with a noncontact injury. The 2021 MLS MVP was quickly replaced.
Andre Blake didn’t have to make a save, all eight Revs’ attempts missing the target, for his second consecutive clean sheet.