Attacking Trio Leads Philadelphia Union To Crucial Three Points

Daniel Gazdag, Mikael Uhre and Julian Carranza scored a goal each in Wednesday's 3-2 win over Atlanta United.

CHESTER — It is hard to call the Philadelphia Union’s 3-2 win over Atlanta United a vintage performance, when you know the past it refers to was just a year ago.

But the Union have been longing for an attacking performance reminiscent of the 2022 Major League Soccer season for a long time, and that drought of dominant showings feels longer with how many games the club played.

Wednesday’s first-half scoring outburst took us back in time to the golden days of 2022.

Daniel Gazdag’s 39th-minute bicycle kick goal ignited the crowd at Subaru Park.

Then Mikael Uhre broke his seven-game scoreless streak.

Julian Carranza finished off the six-minute scoring flurry with a goal right before the halftime whistle.

“I said in the pregame talk that we go as the front two go. They set the tone and if they go, the other eight will follow behind them,” Union manager Jim Curtin said.

“I thought the front three between Uhre, Carranza and Gazdag, when they get going, that’s what they can do. It was an excellent 45 minutes,” Curtin said.

The full 90-minute performance was not up to the Union’s standards, but the first half provided a glimpse into just how high the team’s ceiling truly is.