Union vs. Revolution
2:30 p.m. on 6ABC
Just when they looked like the same old Union, the club came alive. With the help of two goals from Chris Pontius, the Union (1-0-1) hit the road and stunned the powerful Columbus Crew for their first win of 2016.
After breaking the ice to land in the win column, the Union aim for a rare winning streak when they challenge the New England Revolution (0-2-0) in their home opener on Sunday (2:30 p.m., 6ABC) at Talen Energy Stadium.
Here are five things to know:
1. Union homecoming
After two matches on the road to begin the 2016 campaign, the Union finally return home to Talen Energy Stadium on Sunday, where they look to open their home account with a win.
"[The win over the Crew] doesn't mean anything unless we bounce back in our house, in front of our fans, and show the same effort we did on the road," Union manager Jim Curtin said. "We need to do it in our own building. We've put an emphasis on really protecting this house. Getting three points this Sunday is very important to the group."
So, why is Curtin so adamant about a good start at home? The Union are attempting to forge a new, winning identity. And after going 7-7-3 at home last season - tied for the second-lowest amount of home wins in the Eastern Conference - a change at home means a change in overall success.
Philadelphia Union
"There's just been a lack of consistency here," Curtin said. "I think it's something that's felt. There's improvements that can be made from the technical side, from the coaching staff, to the players closing out games. I think that's a critical thing."
The Union plan on finding that success Sunday with a new mindset.
"In this building, we need confidence," he said. "There needs to be a lack of fear and not to expect the worst to happen. We have a great fan base that is behind us always from the start of the game and we need to feed off of that energy and be a little more aggressive."
2. Barnetta, Nogueira training
The Union's start has been unique. Immediately out of the gate, the club lost Tranquillo Barnetta, Maurice Edu and Vincent Nogueira - three top-tier starters, to injuries. But the good news is while Edu remains out for months with a fractured leg, Barnetta and Nogueira are on the recovery trail.
"Tranquillo trained in full today," Curtin said this week. "He's looked sharper and sharper, you can tell he's coming along. Vincent will be day to day."
Barnetta is suffering from a type of knee tendinitis, so conditioning will be his biggest issue. Still, if the Swiss midfielder can play, Curtin expects big things. It would be the first time the Union will have all members of their starting attack in the lineup.
"Between him, Ilsinho, [Roland] Alberg, they are all comfortable on the ball," the coach said. "You can start to see some real interchange there and good things starting to develop."
Nogueira was a late scratch last Saturday with an ankle injury but is expected to be available to Curtin on Sunday. The issue with Nogueira is not if he can play but how much time can he put in. If the Union aren't comfortable with Nogueira's ability to go 90 minutes, Warren Creavalle will be the go-to option.
"We decided [last week] that the best option was to go with Warren," Curtin said. "He had been sharp in preseason and in training. It worked out well."
3. Competitive Revs
When the Union talk about the Revolution, they mention their interchangeable midfield and slicing waves of attack. It's a style difficult to game plan against.
"Their attacking pieces pop into different situations and they have a flowing motion to them," Pontius said. "They're not stagnant and they're free to go anywhere. You have to keep track of them and keep their main players off the ball."
But while the Union work to figure out New England, the Revs are working to figure out the new-look Union.
"Philly is a whole new look in terms of how they're playing and the personnel they have," Revs manager Jay Heaps said. "It's going to be difficult. It'll be interesting to see, they're a good team and they bring a lot of different looks. They're a difficult team."
Yet, the Revs don't want to change much. The club might have just two draws on the season but outplayed D.C. United last weekend in a scoreless draw and were locked in a 3-3 road shootout against the Houston Dynamo.
"We want to play the same way," Revs forward Juan Agudelo said. "We try to keep the other team on the back foot. We need to be aware and understand that going into Philly, they are a good team."
4. Keep an eye on …
Union: Against the Crew last Saturday, Union goalkeeper Andre Blake put on a show, making six saves to give him a total of 14 over the first two games of the season. He's been the Union's best player to this point and that could continue against the offensively impressive Revs.
"Andre's been great for us," Curtin said. "He's a goalkeeper that has the ability to be in the discussion in the upper echelon of goalkeepers."
Revolution: What makes the Revs such a dangerous team is that they don't have just one focal-point player. But narrowing it down for Sunday, the Union's attention has to be on Diego Fagundez. The 21-year-old midfielder is in his sixth season and leads the Revs with a goal and two assists this year. He has two goals, two assists and seven shots on goal in his last five games against the Union.
5. This and that
• Fagundez might be young (21 years old), but he has more MLS experience than many on the field. To put his career in better perspective, Fagundez has played in 120 MLS games over six seasons, while Union veteran Maurice Edu has played in 91. That's almost a full season difference.
• Pontius spent seven seasons with rival D.C. United before joining the Union. According to him, the Union fans' grudge against him has lifted. "The fans have been good to me," he said. "Some apologized for things they said in the past, but it's been good."
• Curtin laid out exactly what he fronts from his team at Talen Energy Stadium this season. "I've set the goal of at a minimum of 10 wins in this building," he said. It's a lofty bar for a Union team that in six seasons as a franchise, has never exceeded seven home wins.
• Through two games, Union midfielder Alberg has had a limited impact. But in Curtin's mind, that's primed to change. "He's getting used to his teammates and his teammates are getting used to him," Curtin said. "He's really pushing to break into the starting lineup."
• The Union are 7-5-4 against the Revs all-time and 4-3-2 at home in the series.
