It was the greatest MLS match ever played! Okay, maybe not because applying the term "great" to a match usually means that there was high quality play, which this match lacked, but it very well might be the most entertaining MLS match ever. It certainly rivals the great 5-4 Red Bulls win over the Galaxy in 2007 as matches that could not have possibly been any more entertaining. That is how much fun it was to watch the Philadelphia Union crumble on Wednesday night at PPL Park, falling behind 3-0 and 4-1 before storming back with three goals in the second half to earn a magnificent draw against the New England Revolution.
Philadelphia Union Vs. New England Revolution: Amazing Match Sees Union Come From 3 Down To Draw
The match started terribly for the Union. Just nine minutes in, A.J. Soares got free on a corner kick and headed the ball well past a helpless Zac MacMath. It was the beginning of a theme for MacMath. The rookie was making his first start in place of the injured Faryd Mondragon and got no help from his defense. A penalty allowed Rajko Lekic to make it 2-0, then Monsef Zerka and Benny Feilhaber each scored before the half to give the Revs four goals, while the Union were looking absolutely hapless with just one goal of their own.
Danny Mwanga came on at halftime for the Union so that he could make it look like they hadn't give up. Down 4-1 and having looked as terrible as they had, Philadelphia was surely done, right? Well it didn't take Mwanga long to make an impact, expertly gathering a tough pass and then playing the ball into the path of a streaking Freddy Adu, whose calm, precise finish cut the Revs' lead to 4-2. It was Adu's first goal since signing with the Union this summer, but it was all for nothing because Philadelphia had no chance at getting back in the match, right?
If a team is to come back from three goals down then they need a little help and the Revolution gave the Union in the 79th minute. A long throw in was flicked on to the back post where Sebastien Le Toux gave chase. That's when Pat Phelan either lost his footing or his head and he fell on the back of Le Toux. The referee had no choice but to blow his whistle and point to the penalty spot, where Le Toux stepped up and blasted it home to cut the deficit to just one.
Getting back to within one was quite an accomplishment for the Union, but it looked like their comeback would fall short as the match went into extra time. Then, Victor Valdes was able to get to a cleared corner kick and boot it back into the box. Veljko Paunovic was there waiting for it, but has his back to goal so he just chested the ball towards Le Toux, who made no mistake in rifling the ball past Matt Reis to complete the amazing comeback. PPL Park exploded and everyone was in shock, unsure if what they had seen in the last 90 minutes was really true.
The 90 minutes at PPL Park on Wednesday night was indeed a real match. Unbelievable as it may be, Philadelphia looked like a bunch of 12 year olds for 45 minutes before managing a great comeback in the second 45 minutes. Maybe it was appropriate that a match being played two weeks late after initially being postponed because of Hurricane Irene was one of the craziest matches the league has ever seen. Maybe more appropriately, as crazy as it was, it extended both teams’ winless streaks to seven match, but the Union will hardly feel like losers after this one.
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