By – Charles Boehm
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Walk the halls of the YSC Academy, home of the Philadelphia Union’s youth academy and affiliated high school in Wayne, Pennsylvania, and you might spot a photo from a 2013 MLS match between the Union and their I-95 rivals the New York Red Bulls.
It captures a moment in which all 10 of Philly’s field players are congregating to celebrate a goal, while former RBNY Designated Player and global icon Thierry Henry walks away in the foreground. Union minority owner/investor Richie Graham, the architect and primary financier of the YSC project, has been known to point to the pic to illustrate the bedrock principle of Philly’s interpretation of the “Play Your Kids” movement: To build a homegrown-centered club whose entire starting XI costs less to develop than that single DP on the right – and can beat that DP’s team.
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A decade on, the Union’s vision has come full circle as Lionel Messi, already arguably one of the most transcendent DPs MLS has ever seen, leads Inter Miami CF into a packed Subaru Park for Tuesday night’s Leagues Cup semifinal clash (7 pm ET | MLS Season Pass).
“It’s incredible for our league. It’s incredible for our sport,” said Philly head coach Jim Curtin during Monday’s matchday-1 press conference. “We have an opportunity here in Subaru Park to play against the greatest player in the history of our sport, the Michael Jordan, if you will, of our sport, [who’s] still playing in his prime and dominating games.”
While some hoped this game would be moved to Lincoln Financial Field, the NFL-sized future World Cup venue near the city center, to maximize crowd size, the Union prefer the comforts of home in riverside Chester, Pennsylvania’s oldest city (dating back to 1644) and one of the more blue-collar locales in a region that prides itself on industrial grit.
“I never in my life would think that literally the hottest ticket of the summer would be – maybe outside of Taylor Swift, for all the Swifties out there – the hottest ticket of the summer would be in Chester, with the Philadelphia Union playing Lionel Messi,” wisecracked Curtin.
“I don’t want to speak on anyone’s name, but there’s a lot of celebrities that will be in attendance tomorrow,” he added, noting that somewhere around 250 people – “some I haven’t talked to in 20 years” – have asked him for tickets to the match, which sold out in a matter of minutes when sales opened over the weekend. “You’ve seen the LeBrons, the Kardashians showing love to Messi, and the who’s-who in Philly will be out in Chester. And that’s a surreal thing.”
Contrast in styles
As bright a star as Henry was – and he remains one of the best and best-paid performers in MLS history – Messi reportedly stands to make 10 times or more what the Frenchman did over his five seasons with the Red Bulls, and commands worldwide fame that few players in history can match.
Add in the dozens of millions of dollars Miami have plowed into the signings of his old friends Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba and the young South American trio of Diego Gómez, Facundo Farías and Tomás Avilés acquired as U22 Initiative players, and you have what’s most likely the splashiest summer transfer window in MLS’s history, a bold push to reverse the trajectory of the Herons’ heretofore woeful 2023.
So far, it’s working. Miami entered the Leagues Cup break in last place in MLS, carrying a lengthy winless streak; they’d scored just 22 goals in their first 22 league matches. In Messi’s first five games, they’ve gone 4W-0L-1D, averaging 3.4 goals scored per game, and are widely viewed as favorites to kick on and win the 47-team tournament, which concludes this weekend with the championship final on Saturday.
With their frugal, collectivist approach to roster-building, rugged high-pressing style and long, slow climb from also-rans to perennial contenders, Philly are the diametric opposites to that spendy overnight turnaround.
“We have a good team, too. And we’ve built our club in a different way,” said Curtin. “It’s not maybe the glitz and the glamour of Miami. It’s more of the Philadelphia blue-collar grit and homegrown, good young players and really experienced international players that are a team, and they’re together. And we know that all 11 guys have to perform really good for us to have a chance to win.
“It’s a great contrast in styles … you can build however you want in this league. There are unique rules that allow that to happen. And there’s different approaches, and I’m not here to tell you which one is right or wrong, but I know that our way is unique and it’s authentic to the city of Philadelphia.”
League spotlight
The Union’s coach since 2014, Curtin knows Tuesday represents a wholly different kind of spotlight for his club and their defiantly unfancy ethos, which has taken them to the 2020 Supporters’ Shield, last year’s MLS Cup final and two Concacaf Champions League semifinals.
“For those that are maybe tuning in for the first time, over the last five seasons we’ve actually won the most points in this league,” he pointed out. “I don’t think a lot of people realize that from the outside, because maybe we’ve done it in a different way. We’ve gotten to play in really big games. And now after winning our first trophy, which was the Supporters’ Shield, we want to try to win as many trophies as possible and this is an opportunity to get to another final.”
Many of Miami’s post-Messi adversaries have clearly been starstruck by the GOAT, perhaps providing a further psychological advantage to a Herons side already soaring in confidence with him in their colors. That seems less likely with Philly, who relish bruising physical battles and are by now accustomed to high-stakes occasions.
“It’s big time. It’s unbelievable. It’s going to be a great experience and then again, something that we should all enjoy. You don’t get these moments every time,” said goalkeeper Andre Blake, who’s previously faced off against Messi and Argentina with the Jamaica national team.
“But once the whistle goes, it’s work time. It’s game time and you have to flush all of that out, keep a clear head and just go out there and try to give a good performance.”