New York City FC's hopes for an MLS Cup repeat were dashed by the Philadelphia Union, who came from behind for a 3-1 win Sunday night at Subaru Park in the Eastern Conference Final.
Maxi Moralez gave the defending champs a 1-0 lead early in the second half by putting the finishing touches on a lovely team goal. But it would soon come crashing down for NYC, who conceded three goals within a span of 11 minutes to bid farewell to the Audi 2022 MLS Cup Playoffs.
Here's how Nick Cushing's side fared on their final match day of the season.
Johnson did not have much of a chance on any of the Union’s goals, but conceding three on just 1.67 xGA was not how he would’ve envisioned this one going. A pending free agent, could this have been Johnson's last game as an NYCFC player?
Tinnerholm covered a ton of ground and put in a sound shift, but lost possession too cheaply at times – including on a failed clearance prior to Cory Burke’s goal.
Thiago Martins had a game-high six clearances, but defended poorly on Philadelphia’s second and third goals.
Callens was an important figure for NYCFC, evidenced by the fact he had the second-most touches in the game. However, his overall performance will be overshadowed by getting caught napping on Julian Carranza’s equalizer.
Making his first career playoff start, Haak did well through the first 60 minutes before it all began to unravel for NYCFC. He got caught ball-watching on Daniel Gazdag’s go-ahead marker and gave the ball away on Philadelphia's third goal.
Paired with Moralez in the middle of the park, Acevedo did a lot of the dirty work and was sharp in possession. Unfortunately, Gazdag got the better of him on too many occasions.
Rodríguez’s performance was a bright spot in a rather dull day for New York City. His ability to hold up play was a nuisance all evening for Philadelphia and his deft layoff set up Moralez’s goal.
Pereira showed flashes of his ability to be NYC's most dangerous player moving forward, but was unable to take over the match like we’ve seen him do in the past.
No NYCFC player has scored more postseason goals than Moralez, and he added to that tally on Sunday with a clinical first-time strike from outside the box – his third goal in as many games. Moralez operated as a deep-lying playmaker and still managed to find the back of the net.
It was just O’Toole’s sixth MLS match, but he looks like he could be a really good player moving forward. The 23-year-old led the team with three key passes and five crosses.
Héber was in fantastic form heading into Sunday's match, but essentially looked invisible, failing to register a shot on target or a key pass.
Missing a few starters, picking up a result at Subaru Park was always going to be a tall task for Cushing. But the fashion in which the Cityzens gave up their precious lead – by switching off during a substitution – certainly has to sting. However, it has to be said New York were in the driver’s seat until that moment, and Cushing had them in that position.
Substitutes
Parks was brought on to help preserve a lead. Unfortunately, the team conceded three times within his first 11 minutes on the pitch.
Andrade was brought into the match late to provide a spark for New York City, but was unable to make a difference.
