Cruz Azul will play the Philadelphia Union at Subaru Park on Sunday. Cruz Azul has to win to move on to the Leagues Cup knockout stage.
After playing to a 0-0 stalemate with the Crown and losing on penalties, Philly defeated Charlotte FC 1-0 in their first game to move on to the next round.
The Union has advanced to the tournament's knockout round for the second straight year, giving them an opportunity to improve on their third-place result from the previous year.
This team has won their past three games played in all competitions and has a perfect record in the tournament's group stage.
The Union's first-ever clean sheet in a Leagues Cup group match came from their first triumph, and they haven't let up in consecutive competitive games.
The team led by Jim Curtin has won its past three competitive games at Subaru Park and has gone four games without a loss at home in all competitions.
On Sunday, they will play its ninth Leagues Cup match in Chester. Of those matches, Philadelphia has only suffered one loss—to Inter Miami 4-1 in the 2023 semifinals.
The U had defeated Liga MX teams in all four of their prior Leagues Cup matches, winning 13-3 overall.
Cruz Azul is in danger of leaving the competition early after losing in a shootout in their first Leagues Cup match of the season.
In the East 4 standings, Martin Anselmi's team is one point behind Charlotte for second place. The Crown, however, has the first tiebreaker advantage due to their shootout victory over the Mexicans.
That implies that in order for the Mexico City club to go to the tournament's knockout round for a second straight year, they have to win this game either in regulation time or on penalties.
They were goalless in their second consecutive Leagues Cup match since 2023 on Wednesday, but they did manage to record their first-ever clean sheet during the tournament's group stage.
This team's defense has been incredibly strong; in their previous six games across all competitions, they have only given up one goal (a 1-1 tie against Toluca on matchday four of the 2024 Apertura).
It has been ninety minutes since Los Maquina defeated Tigres 2-1 in the 2019 Leagues Cup final, and since then, the team has not won a competitive match on American territory.
Isiah LeFlore missed Philly's opening game due to a right knee injury, and the three newcomers who did not start were Alejandro Bedoya, Sam Adeniran, and Jack Elliott. Philly beat Nashville SC 3-0 without LeFlore.
Both Nathan Harriel and Jack McGlynn are competing for the United States in the 2024 Olympics in Paris, therefore they won't be accessible.
Tai Baribo's goal in the 33rd minute was all the Union needed to overcome Charlotte, as Andre Blake recorded his first clean sheet of the tournament without needing to make a single stop.
In their first game, Cruz Azul was without defender Carlos Vargas due to a fractured foot, while Gabriel Fernandez was out due to a cruciate ligament injury.
Andres Montano, who took Alexis Gutierrez's place in the starting lineup against the Crown, was the only new player who did not start their Liga MX match against Toluca.
On Wednesday, Kevin Mier recorded his fourth clean sheet in as many competitive games; nonetheless, the result of their defeat came from Carlos Rodriguez's and Luis Romo's inability to convert their penalty kicks.
