CHESTER, Pa. -- Philadelphia Union head coach Jim Curtin usually has a good idea how to prepare for opposing teams.
But with Orlando City still mathematically alive for the Audi 2015 MLS Cup Playoffs but needing to win by a ridiculously huge margin in 1791996478" tabindex="0">Sunday’s regular-season finale at PPL Park (1791996479" tabindex="0">5 pm ET, MLS Live) to have a chance, he isn’t quite as sure.
The Lions need to win and have New England lose to New York City FC on Decision Day -- and have the margin of victories total eight goals or more in the two games.
“On our home field, we’d like to play the game on our own terms,” Curtin said. “There’s only so much they can do -- I believe they need eight goals. You don’t know how they’re going to approach it, to be honest. Do they play with a one-man backline? I don’t know.”
Despite their extremely long odds to make the playoffs, Orlando are in a better position than the Union, who have long since been eliminated from postseason contention and currently own the league’s second-worst record.
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And anything other than a win Sunday would ensure the club finishes with its worst points-per-game average in its six-year history.
All the Union are thinking about right now, though, is having one final opportunity to put forth a good performance in front of their own fans.
“They’re competitors, they want to win, and they want to send the fans home happy,” Curtin said. “At PPL Park, it’ll be a celebration for them because they were behind us in a difficult year in what was a lot of highs, a lot of lows. They stood by us and we would like to end on a positive note and give them a win.”
The Union were hoping to take solace in something similarly positive in their final road game last week. Instead, they gave up four goals in the first half en route to an ugly 4-1 loss to the New York Red Bulls.
That left a bad taste in their mouth that they’d like to get rid of heading into the offseason.
“For whatever reason, on the weekend, it wasn’t a true reflection of us,” Curtin said of last week’s defeat at Red Bull Arena. “Yes, we’ve been beat this year, we’ve lost games, but we’ve done it in ways where we’ve fought hard. That first half was not a good example of that.”
Another first half like that would actually give Orlando a little bit of hope as the Lions try to do the impossible. But the Union are planning to be more like the team that played Orlando to a scoreless draw at the Citrus Bowl in August than the one that gave up four goals before halftime last week.
And if the visitors do push crazy numbers forward, Philadelphia will try to be prepared for that too.
“They’re a team that’s in very good form, so it’ll be a tough test for us,” Curtin said. “I thought we did a good job at their place in a hostile environment of limiting their chances, so we’ll have to do that same thing here. And hopefully if we play the game on our terms, then the score doesn’t factor in.
“If we’re composed and defend well, we’ll be able to hit them on the counter if they are throwing numbers forward recklessly to push for the goals.”
Dave Zeitlin covers the Union for MLSsoccer.com. Email him at djzeitlin@gmail.com.
