Match Recap: Union Fall 2-1 to Inter Miami Despite Gazdag’s Late Goal

Dániel Gazdag scored the Union’s lone goal, but it wasn’t enough, as Robert Taylor and Lionel Messi scored for the Herons, as the Union lose their second game in three games.

(Credit: Philadelphia Union)

Fort Lauderdale — The Philadelphia Union fell to Inter Miami 2-1, with a first-half goal from Robert Taylor and the game winning goal by Lionel Messi in the second-half for Miami. The Union fought back late, with Dániel Gazdag scoring in the 80th minute—his second goal of the season—but it wasn't enough to salvage a point.

Heading into the match, questions swirled about head coach Bradley Carnell's lineup choices, particularly his selections at forward and center back. Andre Blake started in goal, marking his 250th MLS start for the Union, while Jakob Glesnes made his sixth consecutive start at center back. After scoring the game-winner against St. Louis CITY last week, Ian Glavinovich retained his spot in the starting XI. Nathan Harriel returned to right back after playing as a No. 10 in the previous match, and Frankie Westfield filled in at left back with Kai Wagner sidelined by an abdominal injury. In midfield, Danley Jean Jacques resumed his No. 6 role alongside Jovan Lukić, while Gazdag paired with Quinn Sullivan as dual No. 10s. Up top, Carnell opted for Tai Baribo and Mikael Uhre for the fifth time this season.

(Credit: Philadelphia Union)

Inter Miami struck first in the 5th minute when former Union forward Fafa Picault headed a Robert Taylor cross off the post. They broke through in the 23rd minute, with Taylor scoring his third career goal against Philadelphia off a Benjamin Cremaschi assist. The Union's best first-half chance came in the 37th minute when Uhre fired a left-footed shot from outside the box, but Miami goalkeeper Oscar Ustari saved it comfortably.

At halftime, Miami led 1-0. The Union outshot the herons 6-3 (2-1 on target), but it marked the third time in six games they’d conceded first and the second time they trailed at the break. Carnell made a halftime substitution, bringing on Indiana Vassilev for Lukić.

Messi doubled Miami's lead in the 57th minute, capitalizing on a 3v3 break. Two minutes later, Carnell subbed Bruno Damiani for Uhre—Damiani's fifth appearance of the season. From the 60th to 69th minute, the Union ramped up the pressure, with Baribo, Harriel, and Damiani all generating chances via headers, though none found the net.

In the 75th minute, Carnell made a double switch, introducing Jesús Bueno for Jean Jacques and Chris Donovan for Baribo. The moves paid off in the 80th minute when Gazdag converted a Sullivan cross—Sullivan’s third assist of the season—to cut the deficit to 2-1. Donovan nearly equalized in the 83rd minute after Gazdag found him unmarked in the box, but his shot was blocked. In the 10th minute of stoppage time, Donovan had one final chance, heading another Sullivan cross off target.

The loss dropped the Union to 4-2-0 (12 points), though they remain second in the Eastern Conference. Sullivan, meanwhile, hit two milestones: his 100th MLS appearance—becoming the first Union Homegrown to reach that mark—and the youngest in club history to do so at 21 years and 2 days, surpassing Amobi Okugo (23 years, 3 months, 15 days).

Key Moments

Inter Miami’s first chance of the game would come in the 5th minute, when winger Fafa Picault hit the post with a header. Miami’s Tomás Avilés played a long ball over the top for Robert Taylor, who created enough separation between himself and Union defender Frankie Westfield. Taylor sent a first-time cross into a streaking Fafa Picault, who beat Nathan Harriel in the air for the header, as his effort would bounce off Andre Blake’s left post.

In the 23rd minute, Robert Taylor would give Inter Miami a 1-0 lead with his first-time finish inside the six-yard box. It would be three former Barcelona men combining for the goal on the play. With Jordi Alba passing inside to his right to Sergio Busquets, who then found Luis Suárez, who dropped to the center circle to collect the ball. Suárez would play a return pass to Busquets, who then played the ball into Alba, who had snuck in behind a high Union defensive line. Alba would pass the ball to an unmarked Benjamin Cremaschi at the right post, who would then pick out a pass to Taylor for the first-time finish.

Miami would get their second goal of the game, this time in the 57th minute, as Lionel Messi would score to make it 2-0 Miami. Luis Suárez would lead the attack for Miami in their own half, after they had just won back possession of the ball. Miami would then break with a 3v3 against the Union, with Fafa Picault streaking down the left side of the field and Messi to Suárez’s right. Suárez would pass to his left for Picault, who played the return pass back to Suárez, who then found Messi 1v1 against Ian Glavinovich. Messi would slow down the play and eventually cut to his right, as he unleashed a low-driven right-footed shot past a diving Andre Blake.

The Union would finally grow into the game with Tai Baribo seeing his header saved by Inter Miami goalkeeper Oscar Ustari in the 60th minute. Quinn Sullivan would take a corner kick quickly and find Indiana Vassilev. With Miami not in position to defend the set piece, Vassilev was able to pick up an unmarked Tai Baribo in the center of the goal, but his header would be denied, and the game remained at 2-0.

The Union found their breakthrough in the 80th minute, thanks to Dániel Gazdag’s strong finish. Quinn Sullivan would pick up the run of Gazdag inside the penalty area. Gazdag went unmarked, with Fafa Picault arriving late—Gazdag could take a touch and put his right-footed shot past Ustari to cut Inter Miami’s score in half to make it 2-1.

Chris Donovan would have an outstanding chance in the 83rd minute to make it 2-2, but he saw his effort blocked by Miami. Jakob Glesnes would play a long ball up top for second-half substitute Bruno Damiani. Miami poorly gave the ball away in their own half, with Quinn Sullivan keeping the ball alive with a sliding challenge against Maxi Falcon. Damiani would find the ball at his feet, but he was dispossessed by Miami; however, the ball fell kindly to Dániel Gazdag, who then found an unmarked Donovan, who eventually had his chance blocked.

Chris Donovan would get one more chance to score the equalizing goal for the Union in the 100th minute, with Quinn Sullivan picking out Donovan with a cross. Donovan would win the header but put his attempt off target.

Union Had Multiple Chances To Get A Point

Bradley Carnell called it a “game of two halves” during his post-game press conference, and that sums up what this game was perfectly. The Union had limited chances in the first half, with Mikael Uhre having the best chance, but his effort was comfortably saved. Carnell changed things up at halftime, bringing in Indiana Vassilev for Jovan Lukić, which was only the second time this season that Lukić hasn’t played all 90 minutes.

Carnell wanted to progress the ball through the midfield better than they did in the first half, and that’s exactly what Indiana Vassilev brought the Union in the second half. The Union generated 13 shots in the second half, compared to their six in the first half. Five of those 13 shots were classified by FotMob as “big chances,” and the Union were only able to convert one of those five chances.

Tai Baribo, Nathan Harriel, and Bruno Damiani all had chances with headers in a nine-minute span in the second half, with either their shots being saved or completely missing the target altogether. Though the Union couldn’t capitalize on all their chances in the second half, Bradley Carnell was proud of the effort that his team showed.

“Credit to the boys for turning the page in the second half and making a game of it,” said Carnell. “We gave away two big moments and conceded two goals; on another day, I think we could have walked away here with at least a point or could have walked away with three points. So, a little bit frustrating. I think the guys knew there was a little bit more here tonight.”

“But [I’m] proud of the way they turned the page and gave everything in that second half. And yeah, not sure what the stats are, but I think 19 or 20 shots away from home, dominated in many phases, and really enjoyed the game in the second half.”

It would be one thing if the Union weren’t creating any chances, but that’s not been the case at all this season. Just like the Nashville, St. Louis CITY, and now Inter Miami games, they’ve created plenty of chances. They’ve just failed to capitalize on those chances due to good goalkeeping or not putting shots on target.

It’s still early in the season, and the Union are still in the top 10 in terms of converting their shots on target into goals, with 35% of their shots on target resulting in goals. But it is worth paying attention to that number as we approach the next couple of weeks.

What’s Next?

The Union return to Subaru Park next Saturday (4/5) to take on Orlando City (3-2-1, 10 pts) for the second time this season. The Lions are coming off a 2-1 come from behind win against LA Galaxy over the weekend, with two late goals in the second half from Martín Ojeda and Luis Muriel.