Rate The U: Accam strikes twice, Union pick up three points from Columbus

The Philadelphia Union and head coach Jim Curtin received a much needed first win of the 2019 MLS season on Saturday night. Unable to put together a full 18-man roster after losing several players to international call-ups, Injuries and an additional suspension to Marco Fabian.

David Accam was the highlight throughout the night, recording his first goal of the season in the 31st minute after a beautiful progression of play starting from the back of the formation. Accam was able to get behind the back line of the Crew’s defense and slide the ball to the left of Crews goal keeper, Joe Bendik. Accam would go on to finish the game with another goal and an assist.

This was a huge moment and game for Accam. Struggling last year and dealing with a sports hernia that ended his season early, he found it hard to make the starting XI. Following the game last night, Accam revealed he lost his father last week from a long battle of cancer. It was clear to everyone in the stands Saturday night that the goal in the 31st minute meant everything to him and his family after Accam fell to his knees and pointed to the sky while being embraced by his fellow team mates.

We didn’t see the standout performance from Brenden Aaronson this week like we saw last weekend in Atlanta. He had a few missed touches but continued to show continuous hustle on the press against Columbus. Aaronson had to be subbed off toward the end of the match after suffering a cramp, and might need to work on keeping some gas in the tank toward the end of matches. Anthony Fontana came in for Brenden, for his first appearance for the Union this season showing similar hustle.

After struggling in the first three weeks of the season, Haris Medunjanin was able to put in the best performance of the season so far for the midfielder. Defensively, Haris was able to win battles for the ball and track his defensive marks on the field. He played beautiful balls to Accam and Picault, creating scoring chances throughout the night.

The Union played in a hybrid formation, resulting back to the 4-2-3-1 wide formation that the fans have been accustomed to seeing throughout the last few years under Curtin. They were able to change this formation in the attack, moving Accam from the outside wing position to a striker position during a transition of play, after the high pressure on the Crew resulted in a turnover.

How do you rate the players and the manager from the win over the Columbus Crew? Fill out our Community Player Rating Survey for this week.