Preview: The Battle for Pennsylvania is on between Hounds and Union

It’s the rivalry match we’ve been waiting for since, well, forever.

The Pittsburgh Riverhounds, at long last, will play MLS’ Philadelphia Union on Wednesday, May 21st, at 7:30 pm on Paramount Plus/CBS Sports, and it’s in a US Open Cup match. Winner goes to the quarterfinals. Loser goes out of the tournament.

The Philadelphia Union began as an MLS expansion club in 2010, and for any number of reasons (being in different leagues, distance, the luck/un-luck of the US Open Cup draw) the two sides have never met up, until now. Is it a big deal? Yes, on at least two levels.

First, since the demise of the Harrisburg City Islanders and Bethlehem Steel, Pittsburgh hasn’t had a natural in-state rival of any kind to square off against. And also, the USL hasn’t even given us a team in Cleveland to hate on in a classic W.PA vs Ohio style beef we all love. The best we can do these days is a sort of rivalry with Loudoun United. Which is only a rivalry because … it’s not far from Pittsburgh. But Loudoun as a geographic entity lacks, well, anything. If you’ve been there, it’s pretty much a soulless suburban waypoint between one place you need to be at and another place you need to get to. Pittsburgh may not be perfect, but it’s a least a city that is more of a destination than an offramp and a Holiday Inn Express.

Second, this match is a big deal because the Riverhounds are the last USL team left in the tournament. MLS teams ate everybody’s lunch in the Round of 16. Reddit’s USL discussion group summed it up with a post titled “So we’re all Riverhounds fan going forward in the open cup, right?!” The Hounds are the last true underdogs remaining in the Open Cup, and so everybody that roots for the little guy is pulling for them.

To sum up/TL;DR my preview below though, it’s going to be a very tough matchup for the boys from PGH.

Tactics and Personnel

In 2022, the Union were a Gareth Bale headed-goal away from winning MLS Cup. The match went to PKs and they collapsed in the shootout, 3-0. Hey, it happens.

Some of the core players on that team – Andre Blake, Mikael Uhre, Jakob Glesnes, Kai Wagner, and Alejandro Bedoya – are still with the Union. After another solid year in 2023, the Union kind of fell apart in 2024, finishing 12th out of 14 teams in the Eastern Conference with just 37 points in 34 games. Manager Jim Curtain was fired, and Union owner Jay Sugarman and Sporting Director Ernst Tanner brought in Bradley Carnell, previously of St. Louis City SC in MLS.

Of those mentioned players, the most likely starter in an Open Cup match is Former USMNT midfield cog Alejandro Bedoya. At the senior age of 38, he’s mostly a veteran bench presence for Philly, but a USOC tie is the perfect medium-stakes opportunity to give the old fella a chance to captain a match while also resting Philadelphia’s regulars midweek for their Saturday MLS league matchup. Two-time MLS Goalkeeper of the Year Andre Blake probably won’t feature against the Hounds; he’s been hurt since May 3. Philly homegrown Andrew Rick, who is just 19 years old, has been starting since then, and either he or 2024’s backup Oscar Semmle with mind the net.

A key piece to the Union rebound from a bad 2024 has been Tai Baribo. The Israeli international joined the Union in 2023. He saw his minutes increase in 2024, and as a result he got a modest 9 goals in a losing campaign. Management chose not to blame Baribo and let him keep his starting spot, and they’ve been rewarded for that decision. The swarthy Mediterranean has 11 goals in MLS competition for Philadelphia – that’s as many as Lionel Messi and Christian Benteke combined. I’m betting Baribo won’t start, but he’ll likely be on the bench in case they need him, and he’s a pure killer in the box. He creates space in a blink and his finishing this season is bonkers-good; he’s generated 7.0 Expected Goals according to American Soccer Analysis, but put 11 goals into the net. Only one MLS player (Cincinnati’s Evander) has a higher G-xG rate. In other words, every half-chance you give him seems ticketed for the twine. Fun bonus fact (that perhaps only a handful of people know): Baribo says a prayer after scoring*, and makes a point to pull the back of his jersey over his head when he does it, because Jewish prayers are supposed to be said with one’s head covered. And your own hand doesn’t count.

You can expect Baribo will be supported in midfield by Indiana Vassilev, a young talent that joined Philly from St Louis in the offseason, and perhaps Nathan Harriel, who has blossomed into a reliable piece for the Union in his fifth full season in the league. Hard-core USL and Riverhounds nerds will remember him as a fresh-faced kid from the 2019 Bethlehem Steel and 2020 Philadelphia Union II squads that came to Highmark Stadium. Dangerous wingback Kai Wagner might get a start in this match too, but I doubt it. That’s good for Pittsburgh- he’s devastating on the dribble and whips in one of the best early crosses in MLS from a fullback. Don’t believe me? His percentile stats from FbRef.com for Assists, Expected Assists, and Shot Creating Actions are all 99th percentile. If you give him five yards to hit a pass, he will put it right where it needs to be from anywhere in the final third. It’s terrifying.

They might also run out Cavan Sullivan, the youngest player ever to feature in an MLS game when he entered a match last year. He was featured in the MLS/Apple documentary series ‘Onside’ earlier this year. A match against the Riverhounds might be a great starting opportunity for him.

The defense has conceded just 14 goals in 14 games. The Union are also on a six-game unbeaten streak. I wish I had better news to deliver to you, Hounds fans, but this team is hammering all comers right now. Meanwhile, of course, the Hounds are being, well, the Hounds.

Carnell has this team in a 4-4-2 like it’s 1987 and your dad just dropped you off at school in his Iroc Z. OK not really. The Union 4-4-2 is probably more of a 4-2-2-2, and instead of the old school ‘steady lines advancing, spreading across the field, and creating danger with long passes’, the Union prefer to stack one side of the field for a fast attack that takes advantage of numerical superiority and technical skill at pace. They also, as mentioned when I gushed about Kai Wagner, cross really really well, and also play corners really really well.

It’s a good team. If the Hounds go out this round, odds are, they’ll have nothing to be ashamed of.

And if they win, it will be remembered as an epic triumph over one of MLS’ best squads.

Rabbi’s Expected Starting XI

GK: Oscar Semmle

Defense: Olywethu Makhanya, Oliver Mbaizo, Francis Westfield, Nathan Harriel

Midfield: Indiana Vassilev, Jesus Bueno, Alejandro Bedoya, Cavan Sullivan

Forwards: Bruno Damiani, Christopher Donovan

Game Info

Who: Philadelphia Union vs Pittsburgh Riverhounds

Where: Subaru Park, Chester, PA (Philadelphia Metro Area)

When: Wednesday, May 21st, at 7:30 pm

TV/Streaming: Paramount Plus/CBS Sports.

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* No idea what the prayer that he recites might be. Despite being an observant Jew for 25 years, I have yet to encounter the ‘blessing upon scoring a goal in a league match’ in any traditional Jewish prayerbook.