If you want two names to sum up the game on Sunday, Fabian Castillo and Mauro Diaz are those names. Castillo and Diaz were the catalysts for the Dallas attack which led to a pretty comfortable 2-0 win over the inexperienced Union squad. Inexperienced meaning that three of the starting four defensive backs made their MLS debuts. Tribbett, Rosenberry, and Anderson were those four and it showed in their separate performances. Watching the game was not that bad. Watching the defense miscommunicate due to lack of experience with each other was bad. Watching the defense attempt to offside trap the whole game was bad. Watching Brian Carroll try to keep up with the pace of the Dallas attack was bad. Fabinho getting ran through like a turnstile was awful to watch. But even in the darkest of moments, fans saw a star being born. Fans saw goalkeeper Andre Blake turn into a solidified shot stopper. Blake’s eight saves should have been enough to keep the Union in the game. Fabian Castillo and Maximiliano Urruti did not see it that way and they were the two goal scorers that set the games tone. Even with the negatives mentioned above, should Union fans panic?
As of Sunday, a Twitter account was created titled “Do the Union suck?” A response to that question is we don’t know as of yet. Sunday was only week 1 of 34. The Union played the possible future MLS Cup champions. When you play a team of that caliber, it should be expected that you have some struggles. When you give five players in the starting XI their MLS and or Philadelphia Union debuts, of course, there will be growing pains. It comes with the process of the rebuilding phase. The argument can be made, however, that coach Jim Curtin leaving two experienced MLS defenders on the bench in RB Ray Gaddis and CB Richie Marquez maybe was the deciding factor. It’s not a bad argument to make. Gaddis and Marquez possess the pace to keep up with the high-octane attack of Dallas. Sitting them on the bench crippled their potential pace in the back. The Union possibly have the worst 10 game start to the season out of any other team. Next week the team faces the Columbus Crew in Columbus. Not the most ideal first two games they could’ve asked for.
It isn’t time to panic yet, fans. There are so many variables still to solve on the team that it would be unfair to say that it’s time to panic. Like stated in the previous paragraph, the schedule is not kind to the Union. Seven of the ten games are against 2015 MLS Cup Playoff teams. Half the team was overhauled in the off-season. There need to be a couple of competitive games for the team to gel together. Communication and trust need to be established. Knowledge of your teammates patterns and style of play has to be understood. Any other team across any other sport would have the same struggles with all of these problems and situations. As the season is 34 weeks long, panicking should be the last thing fans should do at this point.
Main Photo: Ronald Martinez, Getty Images
