Philadelphia Union vs New York City FC Prediction, Picks, Odds

• Philadelphia Union and New York City FC clash this weekend with their respective unbeaten streaks on the line
• New York City have won four and drawn one of their last five matches
• Philadelphia Union have just one win with four draws in their last five games

Philadelphia Union vs New York City FC Odds

Philadelphia Union vs New York City FC Prediction

Philadelphia Union have faced New York City FC once this season, and they managed a comfortable 2-0 win. Despite having just 27 percent of the ball, the Union managed to have more shots on target and also make their chances count. Alejandro Bedoya scored the first goal of the game in the 12th minute before Dániel Gazdag doubled the lead in the 33rd minute. Since then, it was all one-sided, but the Union defended well.

New York City took 18 shots at goal but managed just three on target. Moreover, they could not convert any of their big chances nor make any changes to the scoreline despite having nine corners.

Previous meetings

The honors have been shared between these two sides in the last five meetings as each team has won twice, with the fifth game ending in a draw. The last time New York City defeated Philadelphia Union in the league was at the end of last season. They defeated them away from home with a late winner from Talles Magno.

Alexander Callens’ unfortunate own goal saw the Union take the lead right after the hour mark, but Maxi Moralez ensured they did not stay behind for long. He scored just two minutes later to level things up, and the Brazilian winger, Magno, got the final goal of the game in the 88th minute. The late goal was enough to help them hold onto the lead and walk away with all three points.

Philadelphia Union Need To Convert Their Draws Into Wins Quickly

Philadelphia Union have lost the least number of matches in the league this season but are still four points below the leaders, Los Angeles FC. The only reason for that is their eight draws so far this season – the highest in the league – with only Portland Timbers, who have seven draws, coming close to them.

They started off the season in fine fashion with five wins and a draw in their first six matches. The Union looked like the team to beat as they sat on top of the table. They defeated CF Montreal, San Jose Earthquakes, New York City FC, Charlotte FC, and Columbus Crew in the first six games after being held by Minnesota United in the opening weekend.

End of a run

Their winning run came to an end when they traveled to face Toronto FC. Julián Carranza handed them the lead in the 34th minute, but they could not keep hold of it and ended up losing. Jesús Jiménez and Alejandro Pozuelo scored for the Canadian side in either half, and that was enough for them to hand the Union their first and only loss of the season.

Since then, Philadelphia Union have been finding it hard to convert the draws into wins despite playing well. They have drawn seven of their last eight matches – dropping points more often than the others in the top 5.

In the last five games, they drew with Bew York Red Bulls, Inter Miami CF, New England Revolution, and FC Cincinnati. While they conceded just three goals in those matches and did not leak goals, they could not do much in attack as well.

Only one win recently

Their only win in the last few matches has been against Portland Timbers. They won 2-0 at the Providence Park in late May with goals from Dániel Gazdag and Sergio Santos. The first goal of the match came in the 5th minute, while the second came 3 minutes after the second half started. The Union managed just 34% of the possession in the game but had four shots on target – twice as many as Portland Timbers – and the same number of attempts at goal (12).

Their journey in the US Open Cup ended in the first round they participated in. They lost 2-1 to Orlando City, who had taken a 2-0 lead via Ercan Kara and Andrés Perea early in the second half before Stuart Findlay scored in the 77th minute to make it an exciting end. However, that goal did not inspire a comeback, and they were knocked out.

Injuries and suspensions

No players are ruled out this weekend.

New York City FC Have Picked Up Pace Following A Poor Start To The Season

Defending champions New York City FC did not have a great start to the season as they lost their opening match. Javier ‘Chicharito’ Hernandez scored in the dying minutes of the game to help LA Galaxy sneak a 1-0 win.

In the next game week, they drew 0-0 with Vancouver Whitecaps and had to wait until gameweek three to get their first win. They defeated CF Montreal 4-1, but back-to-back defeats followed. They were beaten by Philadelphia Union and Toronto on either side on the March international break, and they were also knocked out of the CONCACAF Champions League a few days later.

Wake-up call

That proved to be a wake-up call for the players, and they have been in stunning form since then. They thrashed Real Salt Lake 6-0 to get their second win of the season and got their revenge on Toronto FC with a 5-4 win at home in the next game.

San Jose Earthquakes could not do much as NYCFC made it a hat trick of wins by beating them 3-0. However, their winning run came to an end as Sporting Kansas City held them to a goalless draw. New York City FC did not let the draw get to their heads, and in the last five league games, they have done exceptionally well. They first defeated Columbus Crew 2-0 and then defeated DC United by the same scoreline. Chicago Fire have been struggling this season, but they managed to make it challenging for NYCFC, who had to sneak a 1-0 win over the rock-bottom side.

Dominant but not always winning

Minnesota United also made things hard for NYCFC, but once again they managed to edge out a win. Alexander Callens scored the lone goal of the match in the 29th minute as the defending champions could not make the most of their other chances and struggled in front of the goal.

Their winning run finally came to a halt as Colorado Rapids held them to a 1-1 draw. Michael Barrios scored the first goal of the game for Rapids in the minute against the run of play. NYCFC did not have to wait long as Talles Magno scored 4 minutes later to level things up. However, despite having 66 percent possession, the reigning champions could not get the win they were looking for.

Injuries and suspensions

Anton Tinnerholm, Gary Mackay-Steven, and Gabriel Pereira are ruled out.

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