February 1, 2026; Austin, Texas, USA; New York City FC coach Pascal Jansen looks on after the team’s MLS preseason win over Austin FC at Q2 Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Jefferson-Imagn Image The Philadelphia Union and New York City FC will both meet in Chester, Pennsylvania on Sunday as they look to respond to disappointing away results.
Union (0-1-0, 0 points), winners of the 2025 Supporters’ Shield, awarded to the team with the best performance in the regular season, suffered one of the most shocking results of MLS’ opening weekend when they lost 1-0 last Saturday to a D.C. United team that finished 2025 with the worst MLS record.
Former Union striker Tai Baribo scored the lone goal for his new club late in the first half. And United’s chances of a comeback were damaged when Philadelphia Ezekiel Alladoh was shown a red card on the hour mark for obscene behavior towards an opponent. This also means Alladoh will be suspended on Sunday.
But after kicking off the 2026 schedule with a 5-0 win over Defense Force in a Concacaf Champions Cup match three days before the league opener, Philadelphia coach Bradley Cannell was able to rest several regulars in Thursday’s home return game (a 7-0 win).
“It’s only as good as we want it to be, right?” Carnell spoke of the rest. “What I mean is that you have to apply it in the right way. Just because you’ve rested doesn’t mean you’re a factor for success. It doesn’t mean the success is there. So we have to work really hard to make it count.”
New York City (0-0-1, 1 point) was held to a 1-1 draw in its opener against the LA Galaxy last Sunday, but it felt like a loss as they failed to capitalize on their man advantage in the final 26 minutes and overtime.
Nicolas Fernandez Mercau had led NYCFC in scoring the previous two seasons, but scored the visitors’ only goal from the penalty spot as they began the season without Alonso Martinez, who suffered a torn ACL while on international duty last November.
But Cityzens manager Pascal Jansen insisted the performance showed his side were still capable of attacking production.
He said, “We are fully aware that numbers 1 and 9 are missing.” But the truth is… if you can get 20% more quality and make better decisions, you’ll get there…”
–Field level media
–Field level media
