PSP Phan Pheedback: Philadelphia Union

Written by: Chris Sherman



Signs point to a bright future for the Philadelphia Union

The Philadelphia Union may not be a sports team you’ve heard about frequently or perhaps at all, but they’re the newest professional sports franchise for this city and they’re shaping up to be a real force within Major League Soccer. I’m keeping my expectations low for the 2010 season because, after all, the Union is an expansion team, but the team is packed full of talented youth and savvy veterans to provide guidance. This leads me to have a very positive outlook on this team’s long-term future and sustainability.

In my opinion, the number one reason why this team’s future is so bright is the ownership’s choice of Team Manager in Peter Nowack. In addition to his impressive resume as both a player and coach, including captaining the Polish national team, assistant coaching the USMNT, and being the only person to have won an MLS championship both as a player (Chicago) and as a coach (D.C.), he appears to be a very crafty GM. The expansion draft and the subsequent acquisitions of US Men’s National Team veteran defender Danny Califf and a second goaltender for competition/depth saw a great blend of young athletes and veteran leadership begin to fill up this team’s roster.

Of course, the days leading up to the MLS Superdraft are where Nowack really showed us his teambuilding skills. He obtained for the Union two additional 1st round draft picks (7th & 8th overall, plus a veteran midfielder), in what is considered the most talented MLS draft ever, while only giving up allocation money and swapping the #1 allocation ranking for #6. Aside: The allocation ranking is sort of like a waiver wire position for obtaining USMNT players who are joining the MLS from elsewhere. Every draft analysis I could find gave the Union an ‘A+’ ranking, not merely for its three first-round selections, but for the specific uses of each of their other three picks as well.

Perhaps the most promising advantage Peter Nowack brings to Philadelphia is his reputation and allure to young footballers. In every interview with Union players, they talk about how excited they are for the opportunity to play for him. Danny Mwanga, Philadelphia’s first ever draft pick (#1 overall and a tremendous talent), wasn’t even planning on playing in the MLS until Nowack convinced Mwanga to come play for him. This reputation could make it easier to bring Europe-bound talent into our beloved city. It is a lot easier to like a team when you trust the people making the personnel moves, so there is a lot with this team to get excited about. I hope you join me in my eager anticipation of the Union’s debut on March 25th.