The third season of the Earnie Stewart-Jim Curtin partnership at the Philadelphia Union has a clear mandate.
After getting a few big veteran contracts off the books, the Union are going full steam ahead with their youth movement based around a veteran spine.
The leader of the new era in Chester, Pa., is centerback Auston Trusty, a member of the United States under-20 national team. Trusty spent most of his time in preseason starting alongside last season’s unexpected success story and Rookie of the Year contender Jack Elliott.
The 19-year-old Trusty is joined by fellow centerback Mark McKenzie, 19, left back Matthew Real, 18, defensive midfielder Derrick Jones, 20, and midfielder Anthony Fontana, 18 — all Homegrown players looking to make a mark in 2018.
Of course, the Union still possess a tremendous goalkeeper in Andre Blake, 27, who will be counted on to thrive in goal as the young back four works on its chemistry.
Up top, veteran C.J. Sapong should continue to create scoring opportunities after a 16-goal season thrust him into the U.S. men’s national team setup, where he landed a pair of starts against Portugal, Bosnia and Herzegovina from November to January.
The addition of David Accam to the front four of the 4-2-3-1 system allows more productivity from the wings, as the Ghanaian and Fafà Picault provide speed to the pressing system the Union utilize.
After putting together a complete preseason performance in a 5-0 win over the Montreal Impact, the Union lost to the Tampa Bay Rowdies of the United Soccer League in their preseason finale.
With four of the first five Union games at home, including Saturday’s season opener against the New England Revolution, the club has a chance to make a splash early in the Eastern Conference — something they failed to do a year ago.