Union's historic run built on 'dirty work', says Richter

The Philadelphia Union will attempt to stretch a club-record Major League Soccer unbeaten run to 15 games when they host Charlotte FC on Saturday, and interim head coach Ryan Richter insists the streak has been earned rather than gifted.

Philadelphia are unbeaten across their last 14 MLS matches (W12 D2) — a new club record — after beating the Chicago Fire 3-1 on Wednesday. Milan Iloski and Bruno Damiani both found the net in a 3-1 victory in which Chicago were reduced to 10 men in first-half stoppage time.

"It's a great run, something that we're proud of," Richter said. "It's something that the guys have earned because of the way that they work every single day, the way that they're focused, the way that they approach games, the dirty work that they're willing to commit to during the games."

Sullivan's teenage record and a message to doubters

Teenager Cavan Sullivan registered an assist in the win over Chicago, taking his tally to a remarkable 21 direct goal contributions this season (seven goals, 14 assists) — the most ever by a teenager in a single MLS campaign. The 17-year-old has also been directly involved in a goal in each of his last eight MLS matches either side of the international break.

Sullivan, who has heard the skeptics, is determined to keep proving them wrong. "People doubt the Philadelphia Union," Sullivan said. "They want to say that we're only beating bottom-of-the-table teams. But we were once at the bottom of the table. So we're just proving it week in and week out and hoping to keep this thing rolling."

Charlotte arrive wounded after Columbus rout

Charlotte FC will arrive at Subaru Park on the back of a 3-1 defeat to the Columbus Crew in midweek. Dean Smith's side took the lead through Idan Toklomati but were overrun by an in-form Crew, with the head coach describing the display "as bad as I've seen in a long time."

The setback leaves Charlotte one point and one place above Philadelphia in the Eastern Conference standings, with the Union sixth and the visitors fifth.

Players to watch

Philadelphia Union – Cavan Sullivan: The 17-year-old's assist against Chicago marked his 21st direct goal contribution of the season, a standalone MLS teenage record.

Charlotte FC – Idan Toklomati: The 22-year-old is Charlotte's joint-top scorer in MLS this season with 12 goals, level with Pep Biel, and has already equalled his 2025 campaign tally despite featuring in five fewer matches.

History and the Opta verdict

Charlotte won the previous meeting between the sides this season, with Wilfried Zaha scoring the winner in a 2-1 victory back in April. Philadelphia, however, have won their last two home meetings with Charlotte — once in MLS (2-1) and once in the Leagues Cup — and have taken eight straight league wins, scoring 28 goals across that span including 5-0 routs of San Diego FC and FC Cincinnati.

Opta's win probability favours the home side: Philadelphia Union 54.3%, Draw 23.5%, Charlotte FC 22.2%.

How the run was built

The Union's surge up the Eastern Conference has been a season-defining turnaround. Prior coverage on September 24 noted Richter hailing an "outrageous" mentality after an 11-game unbeaten run was preserved by a comeback from 3-0 down against Sporting Kansas City, while a report on October 13 framed the trip to face Robert Lewandowski's Chicago Fire as a test of a run that had stretched to 13 games since the World Cup break.