The Philadelphia Union’s quest for its first Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup title is two wins away, while New York Red Bulls’ first title is at best a year away after the two sides went to extra time in Tuesday’s quarterfinal at Red Bull Arena.
Philadelphia, last year’s runner-up, looked to have a leg up despite being a man down, as Eric Ayuk scored for the second consecutive round (and gave a heck of an acrobatic celebration) to give the 10-man Union a 1-0 lead.
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The Union came within moments of successfully defending the lead and Conor Casey’s red card for cleating the back of RBNY back Connor Lade. But Matt Miazga’s header fell for Lloyd Sam, who swept the ball home for close range for a stoppage time equalizer.
New York, of course, would control play as extra time moved forward, but couldn’t find the winner against Philly’s weary 10 men. Goalkeeper John McCarthy had a lot to do with that, as did Manolo Sanchez’s shot off the left post. When Bradley Wright-Phillips was offside on his 120th minute header, kicks felt inevitable.
BWP’s penalty kick trouble continued, as he blasted the first offering of the shootout off the bar. The next five shots went in, and then McCarthy stopped Sam... barely. He slapped the ball and collected it before it could cross the line.
But Luis Robles stopped Fred on the next shot to keep it 3-2. After Sacha Kljestan netted to make it 3-3, but Fernando Aristeguieta won it with the next opportunity.
