Coming into Saturday’s game against the Vancouver Whitecaps, much of the attention surrounding the Philadelphia Union concentrated around their rocky goalkeeping situation.
But with two ’keepers (Andre Blake and John McCarthy) hurt and another (Rais Mbolhi) being held out, new acquisition Brian Sylvestre actually helped stabilize the position with an excellent performance in his MLS debut.
The problem was that Sylvestre didn’t get nearly enough help from his teammates as his seven-save effort was spoiled in Philly’s ugly 3-0 loss to the Whitecaps at BC Place.
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“He actually had a very good game, all things considered,” Union head coach Jim Curtin said. “We hung him out to dry on the first two [goals] -- and the third one as well. Point-blank shots on all of them. He made some good saves for us. He did everything we could have asked for.”
Sylvestre certainly was thrown directly into the deep end by the Union. Just days after Philly brought him from the NASL’s Carolina RailHawks via a short-term loan, the 22-year-old goalkeeper was faced with some brutally tough tests early in his debut, including two breakaways that led to goals - the first from Pedro Morales in the 32nd minute and the second from Octavio Rivero in the 44th.
In both cases, the Union thought they had a case with the refs as Morales was close to being offside and Rivero made contact with Union center back Ethan White before his goal but there was no foul called. But rather than criticize the officiating, Curtin blamed the silly back passes that led to their debutant goalkeeper being left alone with such dangerous attacking players.
“After a good 30 minutes, it was disappointing to have a letdown like we did,” the Union head coach said. “You can’t gift two goals to a good team.”
Sylvestre also didn’t get much defensive help on Vancouver’s third goal as Darren Mattocks twisted Union captain Maurice Edu before firing one into the back of the net from just a few yards out to seal the win and send the freefalling Union to their fourth straight loss.
But in between, the new Philly goalkeeper showed good control of his box and flashed some excellent shot-stopping in the process, including a big foot-save on Kekuta Manneh early in the second alf. His seven saves were a season-high by a Union goalkeeper and tied for the fifth-most by an MLS ’keeper this year.
Afterwards, Sylvestre -- who was brought up through the Whitecaps' system as a homegrown player from 2011-2012, and trained with the Union this preseason -- said he was disappointed by the result but excited to have gotten the opportunity to not only play in his first MLS game but also do so against his former team.
“It was a blessing to get back in MLS,” Sylvestre said. “I’ve been through a tough road for the last three years - three meniscus surgeries. It’s a blessing to come back to my first club.”
Dave Zeitlin covers the Union for MLSsoccer.com. Email him at djzeitlin@gmail.com.
