Philadelphia Union homegrown player Anthony Fontana scored a brace, including a late stoppage-time winner, to give his side a 2-1 win over the New England Revolution who were reduced to 10 men after a hard-fought Eastern Conference battle.
Fontana scored on a stunning blast in the dying minutes of the match to set off the celebrations after his goal in the 73rd minute on a chip over the goalkeeper opened the scoring. The 20-year-old came in as a sub in the 65th minute in place of starter Andrew Wooten.
By the time Fontana was introduced in the game, the Revs were already down to 10 men after New England midfielder Matt Polster was shown his second yellow of the night in the 56th minute. But the shorthanded Revs still found a way to momentarily equalize in the 81st minute with Tajon Buchanan putting away his first MLS goal thanks to a perfect through ball from Gustavo Bou, who came on to play the final 14 minutes.
The Union controlled the proceedings in the first half and put consistent pressure on the Revs. The home team had a few decent looks, tallying seven shots, but only managed to get one on target. New England struggled to get much going in the final third until just before the break, when Kelyn Rowe nearly slotted one far post on Union goalkeeper Andre Blake.
Goals
- 73' - PHI - Anthony Fontana | WATCH
- 81' - NE - Tajon Buchanan | WATCH
- 90'+5' - PHI - Anthony Fontana | WATCH
Three Things
- THE BIG PICTURE: The Philadelphia Union have earned 12 points and have scored 10 goals in their last five games as they continue climbing up the standings, just three points behind Eastern Conference leaders Columbus Crew. The New England Revolution have yet to hit their stride thus far in the 2020 season.
- MOMENT OF THE MATCH: When the Revs’ Matt Polster was shown a second yellow and left the game, Philadelphia increased their intensity and relentlessly attacked until they broke through with Fontana's first of two goals.
- MAN OF THE MATCH: It wasn't enough for Philadelphia's Anthony Fontana to score his first goal of the season tonight, so he added another for the brace to secure the win for the Union.
Next Up:
- PHI: Sunday, September 20 at Montreal Impact (7:30 pm ET | MLS LIVE on ESPN+ in US; TVA Sports in Canada)
- NE: Saturday, September 19 vs. New York City FC (TBD | MLS LIVE on ESPN+ in US; MLS LIVE on DAZN in Canada)
