Related items

• New York City FC v Philadelphia Union: Playoff push continues says Curtin despite Messi setback

  Philadelphia Union head coach Jim Curtin is confident his side can reach the playoffs despite their 3-1 defeat to Inter Miami last time out.

  Mikael Uhre had given the Union the lead in the first minute against the Eastern Conference leaders, only for Lionel Messi to score twice on his return to MLS action as Luis Suarez confirmed the triumph in injury time.

  The result leaves Philadelphia in ninth heading into the final six games of the season, three points behind D.C. United, while the Union also have a game in hand.

  Curtin acknowledged his side can only have themselves to blame for the position they are currently in, but he is sure that his players are showing positive signs in their quest for the playoffs.

  “We have a tough schedule. The rest of the way, it's in our hands, but if the team can regroup and perform like that, we can certainly make a push,” Curtin said.

  "It's no easy task to go to New York City and win, but it's something we've done before, and it's not impossible. Then, obviously, for the two home games, we have to be at our very best and those have to be wins.

  “We've put ourselves in this hole, but I agree with you, we are playing much better, and we have created a lot of opportunities. We were close tonight to taking points back to Philly, which isn't easy against this team.”

  NYCFC, meanwhile, were held to a 1-1 draw with D.C. in their last encounter, extending their winless MLS run to seven matches.

  Their form, however, has not affected their league position, with the Pigeons currently occupying sixth place in the Eastern Conference table.

  Head coach Nick Cushing left Audi Field disappointed about getting just a point, but in hindsight, knew it was another step closer to achieving their ambitions for the season.

  "The mentality of our team, the hunger and desire of our team, it definitely feels like two points dropped," said head coach Nick Cushing after the game.

  "We want to win and solidify our league position, we want to continue to show improvement, like we have all year. We played really well in the first half.

  “So it does feel like two points dropped but we have got to be realistic, it's difficult to come to a place like DC."

  PLAYERS TO WATCH

  NYCFC – Alonso Martinez

  Martinez has scored two goals in each of the Pigeons’ last two home matches.

  No NYCFC player has recorded three straight multi-goal games at home, while Nashville SC’s Hany Mukhtar in 2022 was the last player to do so in MLS.

  Philadelphia Union – Mikael Uhre

  Uhre scored the Union’s only goal on Saturday, his 30th career regular season goal since joining MLS in 2022.

  The Union, with three players (Uhre, Daniel Gazdag – 50 and the since-departed Julian Carranza – 34), are the only team with multiple players to score 30 or more goals since the start of the 2022 season.

  MATCH PREDICTION: NYCFC WIN

  NYCFC ended a five-match losing streak against the Union in all competitions with a 2-1 victory in May. The Pigeons have not defeated the Union twice in a single season since winning both meetings during the 2019 campaign.

  The hosts drew their last match on home soil with Chicago Fire last time out, and have not gone winless in two straight home matches in a year, since draws with the Vancouver Whitecaps and the New York Red Bulls in September 2023.

  Philadelphia’s defeat to Inter Miami was the club’s fifth loss in their last six regular season away games. The Union had lost only one of their previous 11 away league matches, dating back to September 2023.

  OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

  NYCFC – 43.6%

  Draw – 26.8%

  Philadelphia Union – 29.6%

• Birmingham 3-1 Wrexham: Stansfield brace hands hosts Hollywood derby bragging rights

  Jay Stansfield struck either side of half-time to give 10-man Birimingham a huge 3-1 victory over fellow promotion hopefuls Wrexham on Monday. 

  A game dubbed the 'Hollywood derby' was given a blockbuster start when Jack Marriot smashed home the opening goal for the visitors with just two minutes on the clock. 

  But Birmingham's £10million recruit Stansfield soon levelled the scores, being the first to react to Alfie May's effort that was parried into his path by Arthur Okonkwo. 

  The hosts then took hold of the encounter as May and Taylor Gardner-Hickman went close, but the game entered the break finely poised at St. Andrew's.

  However, Blues' dominance prevailed seven minutes after the restart with Stansfield's header picking out the far corner following Alex Cochrane's pinpoint cross. 

  And the points were sealed just before the hour-mark in stunning fashion as Tomoki Iwata's strike from distance smashed in off the post, much to the delight of minority owner Tom Brady in the stands.

  A fiesty conclusion to proceedings saw Chris Davies' side end the game with a man less after Krystian Bielik was shown a second yellow card for a late tackle on Andrew Cannon, but Birmingham were able to hold on for the win. 

  Data Debrief: The American dream

  Much was made of Birmingham's approach to the transfer window after spending £25m in their attempts to return the Championship at the first time of asking, but their biggest investment proved his worth on Monday.

  Stansfield notched his first two goals for the club since his permanent switch from Fulham, but the Blues striker also played a starring role in the encounter. 

  He registered an expected goals (xG) tally of 1.12 to Birmingham's 1.3 total, while he also produced more shots on target (three) and touches in the opposition box (six) than any other player. 

• Al-Riyadh 0-3 Al-Hilal: Mitrovic double sends hosts top

  Aleksandar Mitrovic scored twice late on to secure Al-Hilal a 3-0 win over Al-Riyadh, sending them top of the Saudi Pro League on Saturday.

  Salem Al-Dawsari orchestrated the victory though, scoring one and assisting both of Mitrovic's goals, while Marcos Leonardo was denied a strike of his own.

  Al-Hilal dominated the first half, managing 10 shots as they smothered the hosts, but they could not find a breakthrough, only testing Milan Borjan twice.

  Both sides moved through the gears in the second half though, with Ibrahim Bayesh rifling a powerful effort against the woodwork minutes after the break for the hosts.

  Al-Dawsari found a way through shortly after – he made a sensational run down the left before cutting inside and dinking a lovely shot over Borjan and in off the far post.

  Leonardo ran off the back of Al-Riyadh's defence and scored a chip of his own, only to have the goal ruled out as he started his run too early.

  Mitrovic made sure of the three points after 80 minutes as he slotted in from a tight angle and got his second in the 100th minute to round off a good day for Al-Hilal. 

  Data Debrief: Al-Dawsari steals the show

  After struggling to find their shooting boots in the first half, Al-Hilal can be thankful for their left-winger, who caused all sorts of problems for Al-Riyadh.

  He had the most touches in the opposition box (seven), and created the most chances (four), while only Ruben Neves (27) made more passes than him in the final third (22).