The Union’s pursuit of their first trophy will have to proceed without goalkeeper Andre Blake. He fractured a bone in his hand in Wednesday’s win over Chicago, and Jim Curtin has ruled him out for Sunday’s trip to Columbus (3:30 p.m., PHL17).
The prognosis beyond that is unclear for Blake, who is playing at an all-star level this season for the first-place Union (13-3-5, 44 points). A win in either of their last two games will guarantee them the Supporters’ Shield for the best regular-season record, which would be the franchise’s first.
“The hope is if things go well, there’s a possibility that it is not a season-ending injury, but there is a fracture in there,” Curtin said via Zoom Friday. “We’re exploring the best possible way to get him back as quickly as possible. Our doctors are going through some consultations on what the next steps and the best steps will be to get him healthy … and back. He’s been the goalkeeper of the year certainly, should even be mentioned in the MVP race. He means a lot to our group.”
The numbers back that up. According to Football Reference, Blake is plus-5.8 in the ratio of expected goals allowed (xGA) to goals allowed. It means that given the shots he has faced, an average goalie would’ve allowed 5.8 more goals than Blake has.
He’ll be replaced by Joe Bendik, who hadn’t played since July 2019 for, appropriately enough, Columbus. A veteran of 177 MLS games, the 31-year-old has a 43-84-49 record, backstopping bad teams in Toronto and Orlando. He was 0-5-1 with the Crew last year, his last MLS win coming May 6, 2018.
Before Wednesday, he was winless in his last 22 appearances (21 starts), with a record of 0-20-2. He’s also never played a playoff game in nine seasons, five as a full-time starter.
“Ultimately, Joe has almost 200 games of MLS experience,” Curtin said. “He knows what this league is like. He knows what it’s like on the road. We have full confidence in him to get the job done. He’s a guy that’s played in big games and won big games. … He’s been excellent in training. He’s been a leader in our locker room. He does a lot of things that maybe you guys don’t get to see and is a great goalkeeper.”
On the bright side, Ray Gaddis (quad/hip) trained to the side Friday. Curtin expects him to train fully Saturday and he could travel to Columbus. Warren Creavalle (ankle) is also available for the first time in four games. Jose Martinez remains in COVID-19 protocol after testing positive Tuesday. Curtin said that if all goes well, he could clear protocols for the season finale Nov. 8 against New England.
That’s a lot of tumult given what’s on the line and a tricky trip to face the third-place Crew (10-5-5, 35 points). But Curtin is careful to point out that the Union control their destiny, and every other team is dealing with their own adversity.
Most importantly, Curtin has sought to embed resilience into the Union’s DNA. Time and again this year, they’ve risen to the occasion to cope with absences and sub-optimal circumstances. With a first trophy in their grasp, they have to go to that well one more time.
“Seeing the finish line is something we haven’t seen a lot,” midfielder Brenden Aaronson said. “Three stops and starts, you could even say it’s been three preseasons, it’s definitely been a weird year. But having that finish line, being able to see that there’s something we’re looking at and we’re looking at a trophy right now, it’s something that’s special and we’re all really, really excited to take the field on Sunday and perform.”
“Everybody’s just been taking the approach of, do our job each and every week,” Curtin said. “This week is no different. Do the games have a little bit more pressure at the end? Of course, that’s natural. Everybody’s fighting for points right now. We know every possible scenario, the teams that can help us, the teams that can hurt us, the three teams that can mathematically catch us.
“But most importantly, we’re in a position where we control our own destiny and if we win one of our last two, we know what that means.”
