In case you missed last night's 1-0 Union Loss to Vancouver Whitecaps FC, the highlights are below. Not sure you'll find a whole lot of interest after the first two minutes of video though. The U weren't able to generate any offense, and an early Vancouver goal was the only marker of the night. It was a hell of a play and shot that earned the Whitecaps their three points.
Watch (goal starts right around 0:55):
Hats off to Davide Chiumiento for a brilliant run up the sideline and slice through toward the goal, and the blast from Alain Rochat was simply a thing of beauty. Nothing Faryd Mondragon could have done about that one.
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The loss is particularly disappointing given that Vancouver is an expansion side, and also that they have only won one match all season before last night.
Peter Nowak's decisions on which players to start and sit have some fans scratching their heads this morning. Keon Daniel has had an excellent couple of games recently, including scoring against Real Salt Lake, and Michael Farfan was emerging as well, yet neither drew the start. Veljko Paunovic got the start over Danny Mwanga in the Serb's first action since officially signing with the club. Maybe Nowak just wanted to get the guys who haven't played, like Stefani Miglioranzi, some action against a team the Union should have been able to handle. Mwanga would come on for Miglioranzi at the half, and Marfan and Roger Torres later joined the action, but the U just couldn't get much going offensively.
Vancouver narrowly missed a few opportunities to extend their lead. Had it not been for a few near misses and some opportunistic defensive play by the U, the Philadelphia side might have been downright embarrassed in the Pacific Northwest.
The good news is, it won't be a long wait before the Union have an opportunity to get things back on track after two straight disappointing outings. They host Sporting KC on Wednesday night and Chivas USA on Saturday.