The Stats Behind the Philadelphia Union's First 10 Games
Kai Wagner, Quinn Sullivan and Bruno Damiani are among MLS' most productive players in certain categories.
The Philadelphia Union’s identity under head coach Bradley Carnell is clear to the eye.
The numbers through 10 games back it up as well.
The biggest takeaway from diving through all the numbers at FBRef is that the some of the defensive actions line up with what St. Louis City recorded under Carnell in 2023.
Philadelphia leads Major League Soccer in passes blocked (106). That’s 10 more than LAFC in second place.
Two years ago, St. Louis led MLS in passes blocked and was one of two teams that recorded over 300 pass blocks.
St. Louis ranked second in tackles in the defensive third (307), third in midfield third tackles (242) and second in attacking third tackles (93).
After 10 games, the Union are second in midfield third tackles (86) behind the New York Red Bulls, but they are further down in 15th in defensive third tackles (74) and 10th in attacking third tackles (26).
Additionally, the Union are third in interceptions (112). St. Louis had 356 interceptions in 2023. The Union actually led the league in 2023 with 403 interceptions.
Kai Wagner and Quinn Sullivan are the players who show up the most at the top of the individual leaderboards in some of these categories.
Sullivan is eighth in MLS in midfield-third tackles (13). Wagner is 17th with 11 and Jovan Lukic is in 11th with 12.
Wagner ranks in the top 20 in attacking third tackles (5) and he ranks third in pass blocks (17). Wagner is also second to D.C. United’s David Schnegg in tackles won with 22.
Danley Jean Jacques (21) and Lukic (16) both rank inside the top 10 in interceptions.
Those numbers showcase just how important Wagner is to the Union as a whole. He’s always been a strong presser and ball-winner, and in 2025, he has adapted incredibly well to the refreshed style of play.
Danley and Lukic are making the right reads and intercepting passes, but when it comes to purely ball winning, Wagner and Sullivan are the best on the team and among the best in MLS.
As for the attacking numbers, the Union rate in the top five in a bunch of categories.
They are fourth in shots on target per 90 minutes (5.40), third in shots per 90 (14.9) and fourth in non-penalty expected goals (16.1).
Unsurprisingly, Tai Baribo is fourth in MLS in non-penalty xG at 4.9.
But it is a bit surprising to see Bruno Damiani in 18th in non-penalty xG at 3.7. Damiani is also sixth in SOT per 90.
The goals haven’t come in bunches yet for Damiani, but he’s one of six players in MLS with a SOT per 90 over 2. Lionel Messi, Christian Benteke, Evander, Danny Musovski and Josef Martinez are the other five.
If you go into the passing data, Quinn Sullivan stands out in a few spots.
The Homegrown midfielder is 14th in passes into the penalty area (19) and he ranks sixth in key passes (24). Sullivan and Wagner are two of 32 MLS players with an expected assist total over 2. The two players are tied for the second-most crosses into the penalty area with eight each.
Of course there’s so much more you can get into, but that’s just a snippet of where the Union stand as a team and individually now that there’s a decent sample size to work with.
Photo courtesy of Philadelphia Union.
I have no idea why interest in Wagner from European leagues was so lukewarm, but I'm glad to have him for as long we can keep him. I think we are nearing a point where it's not hard to argue for him being the best "field" player (non-goalkeeper) in Union history to date.
Speaking of Europe and lukewarm, it is my understanding that Julian Carranza comes off the bench for Feyenoord. Now, having grown up in the US with dreams of playing pro tennis (pipe dreams, that is), I don't fully get how Europe beckons to soccer players the way the NBA, NFL and MLB do to youths who play that sport. But I feel like if I were Carranza, I'd rather start (and star) in MLS than be a bench player in my prime in one of Europe's second-tier leagues just so I could say I made it to Europe.