2015 Philadelphia Union season

Philadelphia Union

2015 season
Owner	Jay Sugarman
Head Coach	Jim Curtin
Stadium	PPL Park (Capacity: 18,500)
MLS	Conference: 9th Overall: 19th
MLS Cup Playoffs	TBD
U.S. Open Cup	TBD
Suncoast Pro Classic	Champions
Highest home attendance	18,603 (Apr. 11 vs. New York City)
Lowest home attendance	16,031 (Mar. 21 vs. Dallas)
Average home league attendance	17,545
Home colors Away colors
← 2014 2016 →

The 2015 Philadelphia Union season will be the clubs sixth season of existence, and their sixth consecutive season in Major League Soccer, the top flight of American soccer.

Background

2014 MLS Regular Season

The 2014 Philadelphia Union MLS Regular Season saw the team go 10-12-12 finishing 6th in the Eastern Conference and 12th overall. The Union had a slow first half of the season, winning only 3 of their 16 games. Because of this, head coach John Hackworth was fired and Jim Curtin was named the club's interim head coach. Following the summer break, the Union saw better results, and were in a position to reach the 2014 MLS Cup Playoffs. However, a loss to the Columbus Crew SC on October 11, 2014 put them out of the playoff race. After the season was over, the title "interim" was taken removed from Jim Curtin's title and is now the permanent head coach.

2014 Lamar Hunt US Open Cup

The 2014 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup was the most successful Open Cup in the club's history. The Union entered the competition in the fourth round along with the other 18 MLS clubs. In that round, the Union defeated the Harrisburg City Islanders, a team in the third tier of the American soccer pyramid, 3-1 after extra time. In the next round, the Union defeated the NASL team the New York Cosmos 2-1 after extra time. The Union then defeated the New England Revolution 2-0 in the quarterfinals and FC Dallas 4-3 on penalty kicks after a 1-1 tie in the semifinals. In the final, the Union lost to the Seattle Sounders 3-1 after extra time.

Roster

Current roster

As of February 9, 2015.^[1]

No.	Position	Player	Nation
1	Goalkeeper	Blake, AndreAndre Blake (GA)	Jamaica
3	Defender	Lee, RaymondRaymond Lee	United States
5	Midfielder	Nogueira, VincentVincent Nogueira	France
6	Forward	Casey, ConorConor Casey	United States
7	Midfielder	Carroll, BrianBrian Carroll	United States
8	Midfielder	Edu, MauriceMaurice Edu (DP)	United States
9	Forward	Le Toux, SébastienSébastien Le Toux	France
10	Midfielder	Maidana, CristianCristian Maidana	Argentina
11	Forward	Wenger, AndrewAndrew Wenger	United States
13	Midfielder	Lahoud, MichaelMichael Lahoud	Sierra Leone
14	Midfielder	Ayuk Mbu, EricEric Ayuk Mbu	Cameroon
15	Defender	White, EthanEthan White	United States
16	Defender	Marquez, RichieRichie Marquez	United States
17	Forward	Sapong, C. J.C. J. Sapong	United States
18	Forward	Aristeguieta, FernandoFernando Aristeguieta (DP; on loan from Nantes)	Venezuela
19	Forward	Catic, DzenanDzenan Catic	Bosnia and Herzegovina
20	Midfielder	McLaughlin, JimmyJimmy McLaughlin (HGP)	United States
23	Defender	Vitória, StevenSteven Vitória (on loan from Benfica)	Portugal
25	Defender	Williams, SheanonSheanon Williams	United States
27	Midfielder	Pfeffer, ZachZach Pfeffer (HGP)	United States
28	Defender	Gaddis, RayRay Gaddis	United States
29	Forward	Hoppenot, AntoineAntoine Hoppenot	United States
33	Defender	Fabinho, Fabinho	Brazil
55	Goalkeeper	McCarthy, JohnJohn McCarthy	United States
77	Midfielder	Fred, Fred	Brazil
92	Goalkeeper	M'Bolhi, RaïsRaïs M'Bolhi	Algeria

Out on loan

No.	Position	Player	Nation
2	Defender	Valdés, CarlosCarlos Valdés (on loan to Nacional)	Colombia
4	Defender	Berry, AustinAustin Berry (on loan to FC Anyang)	United States
18	Goalkeeper	MacMath, ZacZac MacMath (on loan to Colorado Rapids)	United States
22	Midfielder	Fernandes, LeoLeo Fernandes (on loan to New York Cosmos)	Brazil
44	Midfielder	Cruz, DannyDanny Cruz (on loan to Bodø/Glimt)	United States

Squad breakdown

Current squad

No.	Name	Nationality	Position	Date of Birth (Age)	Signed From
Goalkeepers
92	Rais M'Bolhi		GK	(1986-04-25) April 25, 1986	CSKA Sofia
1	Andre Blake		GK	(1990-11-20) November 20, 1990	UConn
55	John McCarthy		GK	(1992-07-04) July 4, 1992	Rochester Rhinos
Defenders
3	Raymond Lee		LB	(1993-04-26) April 26, 1993	Saint Louis University
15	Ethan White		CB	(1991-01-01) January 1, 1991	D.C. United
16	Richie Marquez		CB	(1992-05-26) May 26, 1992	Redlands
23	Steven Vitória		CB	(1987-01-11) January 11, 1987	Benfica
25	Sheanon Williams		RB	(1990-03-17) March 17, 1990	Harrisburg City Islanders
28	Ray Gaddis		RB	(1990-01-13) January 13, 1990	West Virginia University
33	Fabinho		LB	(1985-03-16) March 16, 1985	Sydney FC
Midfielders
5	Vincent Nogueira		MF	(1988-01-16) January 16, 1988	Sochaux
7	Brian Carroll		DM	(1981-07-20) July 20, 1981	Columbus Crew SC
8	Maurice Edu		DM/CB	(1986-04-18) April 18, 1986	Stoke City
10	Cristian Maidana		AM/LW	(1987-01-24) January 24, 1987	Argentinos Juniors
13	Michael Lahoud		MF/DM	(1986-09-15) September 15, 1986	Chivas USA
14	Eric Ayuk Mbu		MF/RW/LW	(1997-02-17) February 17, 1997	Rainbow FC Bamenda
20	Jimmy McLaughlin		LW/RW	(1993-04-30) April 30, 1993	Colgate University
27	Zach Pfeffer		MF	(1995-01-06) January 6, 1995	IMG Soccer Academy
77	Fred		MF	(1979-08-18) August 18, 1979	Melbourne Heart
Forwards
6	Conor Casey		ST	(1981-07-25) July 25, 1981	Colorado Rapids
11	Andrew Wenger		LW/ST	(1990-12-25) December 25, 1990	Montreal Impact
9	Sebastien Le Toux		ST	(1984-01-10) January 10, 1984	New York Red Bulls
17	C.J. Sapong		ST/RW	(1988-12-27) December 27, 1988	Sporting Kansas City
18	Fernando Aristeguieta		ST	(1992-04-09) April 9, 1992	Nantes
19	Dzenan Catic		ST	(1992-05-26) May 26, 1992	Davenport University
29	Antoine Hoppenot		ST	(1990-11-23) November 23, 1990	Princeton University

Last updated: March 6, 2015.
Source: Philadelphia Union

Competitions

Preseason

Intersquad Scrimmage February 4, 2015	Red Team	1–3	Gray Team	Clearwater, Florida
	Sapong  7'	Report	Catic  5' Pfeffer  12' Wenger	Stadium: Joe DiMaggio Complex
Note: 30-minute match

Intersquad Scrimmage February 4, 2015	Red Team	1–0	Gray Team	Clearwater, Florida
	Cruz	Report		Stadium: Joe DiMaggio Complex
Note: 30-minute match

Preseason February 7, 2015	Jacksonville Armada FC	3–1	Philadelphia Union	Jacksonville, Florida
5:30 p.m. EDT	Ortiz  8' Keita  11' Scaglia  43' Trejo  45' (pen.)	Report	Wenger  23' Konate  52' Fabinho  89'	Stadium: EverBank Field Attendance: 13,934

Preseason February 10, 2015	Tampa Bay Rowdies	1–0	Philadelphia Union	Clearwater, Florida
6:00 p.m. EDT	Herzog  67' (pen.)	Report	Hoppenot  53' Pfeffer  78'	Stadium: Joe DiMaggio Complex[2] Attendance: 2,000

Suncoast Pro Classic February 18, 2015	Philadelphia Union	3–0	Costa Rica U-23	Bradenton, Florida
2:30 p.m. EDT	Le Toux  10' (pen.), 51' Maidana  22'	Report		Stadium: IMG Academy

Suncoast Pro Classic February 21, 2015	Philadelphia Union	6–0	London United	Bradenton, Florida
7:30 p.m. EDT	Marquez  9' Cruz  20' Fred  28' Aristequieta  69', 85' Wenger  71' Maidana  79'	Report	Totesaut  49',  51'	Stadium: IMG Academy
Note: London United are composed of players who are currently out of contract and are searching for professional clubs. They replace Congolese side TP Mazembe in the tournament.

Suncoast Pro Classic February 25, 2015	Philadelphia Union	1–1 (5–3 p)	Columbus Crew SC	Bradenton, Florida
5:00 p.m. EDT	Aristeguieta  27' Williams  39'	Report	Steindórsson  39' Meram  68'	Stadium: IMG Academy
		Penalties
	Fabinho Fred Carroll Casey Lahoud		Wahl Schoenfeld Meram Speas	|

Suncoast Pro Classic Championship Match March 1, 2015	Philadelphia Union	3–1	New York Red Bulls	Bradenton, Florida
7:30 p.m. EDT	Wenger  2'  44' Gaddis  22' Aristeguieta  32' Williams  38'	Report	Sam  22' Wright-Phillips  80'	Stadium: IMG Academy

MLS season

Regular Season March 7, 2015	Philadelphia Union	0–0	Colorado Rapids	Chester, Pennsylvania
4:00 p.m. EDT	Vitória  25' Aristeguieta  90+7'	Report	Burling  24'  68' Sjöberg  45' Serna  73' Pittinari  90+7'	Stadium: PPL Park Attendance: 18,002 Referee: Silviu Petrescu

Regular Season March 14, 2015	Real Salt Lake	3–3	Philadelphia Union	Sandy, Utah
9:30 p.m. EDT	Garcia  4' Morales  29' Beckerman  50' Mulholland  74' Saborio  86' (pen.)	Report	Vitória  23' Aristeguieta  34', 38' Edu  52' Olave  58' (o.g.) White  62' Aristeguieta  86'	Stadium: Rio Tinto Stadium Attendance: 20,281 Referee: Allen Chapman

Regular Season March 21, 2015	Philadelphia Union	0–2	FC Dallas	Chester, Pennsylvania
4:00 p.m. EDT	Nogueira  23' Fabinho  32' Pfeffer  42' Le Toux  86'	Report	Michel  26' Ulloa  31' Akindele  49' Hollingshead  59' Hollingshead  90+1'	Stadium: PPL Park Attendance: 16,031 Referee: Jose Carlos Rivero
Note: Game originally scheduled for March 20 at 7pm Eastern, but was moved due to snowy weather in the Philadelphia area.

Regular Season March 29, 2015	Chicago Fire	1–0	Philadelphia Union	Bridgeview, Illinois
5:00 p.m. EDT	Adaílton  37' Johnson  80'	Report	Fred  72' Edu  90'	Stadium: Toyota Park Attendance: 12,815 Referee: David Gantar

Regular Season April 5, 2015	Sporting Kansas City	3–2	Philadelphia Union	Kansas City, Kansas
7:00 p.m. EDT	Dwyer  16' de Jong  18' Anibaba  90+1' Németh  90+4'	Report	Peterson  3' (o.g.) Aristeguieta  19' Edu  62' Carroll  68'	Stadium: Sporting Park Attendance: 19,545 Referee: Ismail Elfath

Regular Season April 11, 2015	Philadelphia Union	2–1	New York City FC	Chester, Pennsylvania
4:00 p.m. EDT	Pfeffer  27' Lahoud  81' Nogueira  90+2'	Report	Villa  55' Watson-Siriboe  85'	Stadium: PPL Park Attendance: 18,603 Referee: Jair Marrufo

Regular Season April 16, 2015	New York City FC	1–1	Philadelphia Union	New York City, New York
7:00 p.m. EDT	Grabavoy  25' Calle  32' Ballouchy  57',  58' Watson-Siriboe  73' Jacobson  87'	Report	Nogueira  22' Williams  41' Sapong  67',  86'	Stadium: Yankee Stadium Attendance: 20,461 Referee: Baldomero Toledo

Regular Season April 19, 2015	Philadelphia Union	1–2	New England Revolution	Chester, Pennsylvania
5:00 p.m. EDT	Gaddis  41' Maidana  42' Casey  84' Williams  90'	Report	Nguyen  37' Davies  64' Bunbury  76',  90+1'	Stadium: PPL Park Attendance: 18,106 Referee: Mark Geiger

Regular Season April 25, 2015	Columbus Crew SC	4–1	Philadelphia Union	Columbus, Ohio
7:30 p.m. EDT	Kamara  21' Finlay  32', 73' Meram  44'	Report	Edu  24' Lahoud  46' Ayuk  64'	Stadium: Mapfre Stadium Attendance: 15,553 Referee: Chris Penso

Standings

Eastern Conference standings

Overall standings

Statistics

Statistics are from all MLS league matches.

Nat.	No.	Player	Pos.	Apps	Starts	G	A			Acquired
	3	LeeRaymond Lee	DF	1	0	0	0	0	0	SuperDraft
	5	NogueiraVincent Nogueira	MF	5	5	1	0	1	0	Signed
	6	CaseyConor Casey	FW	3	0	0	0	0	0	Re-Entry Draft
	7	CarrollBrian Carroll	MF	1	1	0	0	1	0	Trade
	8	EduMaurice Edu	MF	6	6	0	0	3	0	Signed
	9	Le TouxSebastien Le Toux	MF	6	6	0	1	1	0	Trade
	10	MaidanaCristian Maidana	MF	3	1	0	0	0	0	Signed
	11	WengerAndrew Wenger	MF	6	6	0	0	0	0	Trade
	13	LahoudMichael Lahoud	MF	4	2	0	0	1	0	Trade
	14	Ayuk MbuEric Ayuk Mbu	MF	4	2	0	1	0	0	Signed
	15	WhiteEthan White	DF	4	4	0	0	1	0	Trade
	16	MarquezRichie Marquez	DF	0	0	0	0	0	0	SuperDraft
	17	SapongCJ Sapong	FW	3	1	0	0	0	0	Trade
	18	AristeguietaFernando Aristeguieta	FW	5	5	3	0	2	0	Loan
	19	CaticDzenan Catic	FW	0	0	0	0	0	0	SuperDraft
	20	McLaughlinJimmy McLaughlin	MF	0	0	0	0	0	0	Signed
	23	VitóriaSteven Vitória	DF	6	6	0	0	2	0	Loan
	25	WilliamsSheanon Williams	DF	4	4	0	0	0	0	Signed
	27	PfefferZach Pfeffer	MF	4	2	1	0	0	1	Signed
	28	GaddisRay Gaddis	DF	6	6	0	0	0	0	SuperDraft
	29	HoppenotAntoine Hoppenot	MF	1	0	0	0	0	0	Supplemental Draft
	33	FabinhoFabinho	DF	3	2	0	0	1	0	Signed
	77	FredFred	MF	0	0	0	0	0	1	Signed
						7	2	15	2

Goalkeepers

Nat.	No.	Player	Apps	Starts	Record	GA	GAA	SO			Acquired
	1	BlakeAndre Blake	0	0	0–0–0	0	0.00	0	0	0	SuperDraft
	55	McCarthyJohn McCarthy	3	3	1–1–1	4	1.33	0	0	0	Signed
	92	M'BolhiRais M'Bolhi	5	5	0-3-2	9	1.80	1	0	0	Signed
					1-4-3	13	1.63	1	0	0

Transfers

In

Date	Player	Number	Position	Previous Club	Fee/Notes
December 8, 2014	CJ Sapong	17	ST/RW	Sporting Kansas City	Traded for allocation money and a 2015 SuperDraft pick
January 16, 2015	Dzenan Catic	19	ST	Davenport University	2015 MLS SuperDraft
January 16, 2015	Eric Bird		MF	University of Virginia	2015 MLS SuperDraft
January 16, 2015	Raymond Lee	3	LB	Saint Louis University	2015 MLS SuperDraft
March 3, 2015	Eric Ayuk Mbu	14	MF	Rainbow FC	Free

Out

Date	Player	Number	Position	New Club	Fee/Notes
December 8, 2014	Amobi Okugo	14	MF/CB	Orlando City SC	Traded for allocation money and a 2016 SuperDraft pick
December 8, 2014	Corben Bone	19	MF	Wilmington Hammerheads	Waived
December 8, 2014	Brian Brown	17	ST	Indy Eleven	Waived
December 8, 2014	Cristhian Hernández	23	MF/FW		Waived
December 10, 2014	Pedro Ribeiro	30	MF/FW	Orlando City SC	2014 MLS Expansion Draft
February 14, 2014	Aaron Wheeler	12	ST/CB	Wilmington Hammerheads	Released

Loan in

Date	Player	Number	Position	Loaned From
February 9, 2015	Steven Vitória	23	CB	Benfica
February 20, 2015	Fernando Aristeguieta	18	FW	Nantes

Loan out

Date	Player	Number	Position	Loaned To
January 6, 2015	Zac MacMath	18	GK	Colorado Rapids
January 15, 2015	Leo Fernandes	22	MF	New York Cosmos
February 6, 2015	Carlos Valdes	3	CB	Nacional
March 2, 2015	Austin Berry	4	CB	FC Anyang
March 18, 2015	Danny Cruz	44	MF	Bodø/Glimt

References