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Union, TFC clash at PPL

May 1, 2015 - 8:50 PM Chester, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - A pair of Eastern Conference rivals in desperate need of points will clash on Saturday when the Philadelphia Union host Toronto FC at PPL Park.

Philadelphia has struggled mightily this season, earning just one win from their first nine games. Jim Curtin's team enters Saturday second from the bottom in the Eastern Conference and coming off a 4-1 thrashing at the hands of Columbus Crew SC last time out.

The home side opened the scoring after 21 minutes when Tony Tchani sprayed a long ball down the right flank for Ethan Finlay to chase. Finlay sent a looping cross to the back post where Kamara controlled with one touch and slotted it past Union goalkeeper John McCarthy.

Crew SC then doubled the lead in the 32nd minute when Waylon Francis sent a cross into the box that fell between Union defenders Steven Vitoria and Fabinho, allowing Finlay to sneak in and knock it home.

Columbus then put an exclamation point on a stellar first half in stoppage time when Meram collected the ball on the left flank, drove into the box and let one go that bounced off McCarthy and rolled into the net.

Philadelphia pulled one back in the 64th minute as C.J. Sapong did well to beat his mark to the end line and send a cross into the box where rookie Eric Ayuk Mbu was there to nod it home for his first goal in MLS.

But the Crew continued to seek offensive opportunities and made it 4-1 in the 73rd minute as Kamara fed it through in behind the Union defense and Finlay was there to slide it past McCarthy to the far post for his second tally of the night.

"I actually thought the first 15 minutes, our guys came out and played very well," Curtin said. "From that point on, we got embarrassed for the rest of the first half. We came in at halftime and talked about guys showing more commitment, showing me who wants to stay on the field, and I thought we actually pushed the game a little bit and had a decent second half. But credit to Columbus, they're a great team. I think they're a top team in our league."

Toronto, meanwhile, will be aiming for a second consecutive victory following a much-needed 2-0 result over Orlando City SC at the Citrus Bowl.

Jozy Altidore netted both goals for TFC to help them claim all three points.

Altidore opened the scoring for TFC in the 50th minute when he danced around the Orlando defense and placed the ball in the corner of the goal to give Toronto FC a 1-0 lead.

He struck again as he made three moves in front of Orlando City goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts and placed the ball in the corner of the net for his second goal of the night.

Toronto FC will also be without midfielder Steven Caldwell due to an Achilles injury and could also be without the services of Mark Bloom due to a quad strain.

Last time the teams met, Philadelphia took a 2-0 win over Toronto FC at BMO Field on Sept. 6.