Blake thinks elusive MLS title ‘right there’
Published:Thursday | January 18, 2024 | 12:14 AMOrane Buchanan/Staff Reporter
HEADING INTO his 11th Major League Soccer (MLS) season on February 21, Reggae Boyz captain and starting goalkeeper for the Philadelphia Union, Andre Blake, believes that with each passing season, his team is becoming more and more of a threat in the Eastern Conference.
Blake was speaking with Futbol Americas and chalked up the club’s year-on-year improvement down to the hiring of Dutchman Ernie Stewart in 2015.
“When I just got drafted it was more about being a participant in the league, and when Ernie Stewart came in, it was part of the change. He started to bring in different players, and the standards got higher, and he held players accountable, and we decided to be one of the clubs that you talk about first whenever you talk about the Eastern Conference,” said Blake.
Blake, a three-time MLS goalkeeper of the year (2016, 2020, and 2022), added that his team managed to retain their core group this season, which could prove vital.
The 33-year-old added that with familiar faces returning to the team, he is hopeful that experience will help the club lift its first MLS title.
“I feel like we’re right there. We just have to keep pushing as we have the sense of belief that we’re really close. We were able to retain the core group of players, which for me, is very important as you need that continuity. We have to use the experience we’ve gathered, and hopefully, we can make that last step,” said Blake.
The Philadelphia Union have come close in the last two seasons, losing 2-1 against New York City in the 2021 Eastern Conference final, which was followed by a 3-0 defeat to Los Angeles FC in last season’s championship game.
The two losses bring to the fore the question of whether the team has trouble in big games.
“I wouldn’t consider it being a big-game problem. Maybe we’re missing a player or two as depth is very important. With the number of games that you have to play, with the competitiveness of the schedule you need to have a strong bench,” Blake explained.
The highly rated stop-stopper said that while his team might lack ‘big-name’ players, they have ‘winners’ and are a ‘competitive’ unit.
“I would say we overachieve each year as we don’t spend a lot, we don’t have the fancy names, but we have a group of guys that are winners and are competitive, and when we play against the big-name teams, we get fired up.”