MLS Features: Union revival takes a Curtain call

Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - The Major League Soccer season is a long and winding road with twists and turns, ups and downs, but it appears the Philadelphia Union have hit their stride at the perfect time.

By all accounts, the Union had an excellent offseason this past winter, bringing in U.S. international Maurice Edu and Designated Players Cristian Maidana and Vincent Nogueira.

But through the first three-plus months of the season, it wasn't going as planned for Philadelphia as the club struggled out of the gate, developed a disturbing trend of coughing up points late in matches and finished the pre- World Cup portion of their schedule well out of reach of a playoff position.

The Union front office had seen enough of the team's struggles on June 7 as the club squandered a late lead on home soil and drew 3-3 with Vancouver Whitecaps FC, which prompted the dismissal of then-head coach John Hackworth.

Enter interim head coach and former MLS defender Jim Curtin.

Since Curtin was handed the reins, the Union have finally looked like the team everyone thought they would be at the outset of the season.

Curtin's MLS coaching debut came on June 28 and he led the Union to an impressive 3-1 victory over the New England Revolution at Gillette Stadium, which was the driving force behind the impressive run of form that followed.

Under Curtin, Philadelphia has racked up a 10-2-3 record across all competitions, which includes a current three-match winning streak and a run to the U.S. Open Cup final, which will be played next Tuesday at PPL Park against the Seattle Sounders.

How has Curtin, a former hard-nosed defender with no head coaching experience, managed to put the Union in prime playoff position and give the club a chance to win its first trophy in just a few months on the job?

Simple lineup tweaks and playing guys in the correct positions seem to have done wonders.

From the outset of his tenure, Hackworth deployed promising defensive midfielder Amobi Okugo in central defense, next to Jeff Parke last season and Austin Berry early this term. But since the arrival of Curtin, Okugo has moved back into the preferred spot in front of the back four next to Edu.

The move has allowed the club to function more efficiently as Okugo has excellent field vision and can spring a counter-attack with one well-placed pass.

Putting Okugo in midfield also has forced veteran holding player Brian Carroll to the bench, which is a decisive move from Curtin considering Carroll had been consistently in the starting 11 but slowly declining in form.

With Okugo out of the back four finally, Curtin handed an opportunity to former DC United man Ethan White, who was acquired in exchange for Jeff Parke in the offseason but couldn't get on the field under Hackworth.

Slotting White in has been another masterful tactic by Curtin because his size and strength in the back has helped stabilize the Union defense along with World Cup veteran Carlos Valdes, who returned to the club following loan spells in South America.

Further up the pitch, Curtin moved promising Argentine playmaker Maidana from left wing to the center of the park, allowing him to dictate the pace of the Union attack, and slotted Pennsylvania native Andrew Wenger out to the left.

Wenger arrived early in the season in a trade with Montreal Impact for Jack McInerney, and it wasn't looked upon favorably by Union fans. Wenger was a former No. 1 selection by Montreal but had yet to reach his potential.

But he seems to have settled into his role under Curtin and has been an asset on the left side of the pitch, contributing a career-high six goals and four assists.

On the other side of the field, club talisman Sebastien Le Toux has been deployed on the right side of the front three, but Curtin has given him license to get forward and go for goal. It has worked out well as Le Toux has always been at his best as a forward.

Saturday's win over Toronto FC may have been the best win Curtin has engineered during his short stint in charge.

Coming off a 1-0 win over TFC at home just three days earlier, Philadelphia went north of the border to face a desperate and motivated TFC side that needed three points to stay in the playoff hunt.

Despite facing a desperate team, Philadelphia controlled play and never looked uncomfortable for the duration of 90 minutes while collecting goals from Wenger and Conor Casey.

"I actually thought today we were better than on Wednesday to be honest," Curtin said. "I'm happy with the guys' performance. Toronto is a very good team who are missing some pieces right now and we are a little bit fortunate to get them at the time we did."

Curtin has the team firing on all cylinders at the perfect time and brimming with confidence, a sentiment echoed by Wenger following Saturday's win:

"Together we are confident," Wenger said. "Every guy in the locker room is putting together good performance week in and week out. We're just trying to take it one game at a time."

Taking it one game at a time is the perfect approach, which should allow the Union to reach the postseason for the second time in franchise history - something Curtin is largely responsible for.

He has shown an uncanny ability to get the best out of his players and is clearly the man for the job going forward.