Red Bulls-Union Preview

Before the Philadelphia Union can worry about the first championship match in team history, they need to focus on a regular-season contest that could go a long way toward putting them in position to reach a second title game.

The club will play for a U.S. Open Cup trophy next week, but it first has a Saturday date at PPL Park with the New York Red Bulls, one of the teams the Union are trying to track down in the Eastern Conference playoff race.

The important stretch comes with Philadelphia (9-9-9) playing possibly the best soccer in club history, having won three straight league games for the first time since 2012 and just the second time in its five MLS seasons.

Including the Open Cup, the Union have lost once in 11 matches since July 8. They've never won four straight matches of any kind.

The Union's last two victories came against Toronto, one of the clubs ahead of them in the East. Both were shutouts with last Saturday's 2-0 win coming on the road and extending the club's shutout streak to 200 minutes.

Conor Casey gave the Union the lead in the eighth minute, and Andrew Wenger struck just before halftime. Wenger has three goals in as many games, and Casey scored in both Toronto matches.

"When you have the defense playing as well as they are, with two shutouts it gives the team a lot of confidence," Casey told the club's official website. "We've had a good run of results and we've also been playing well. Sometimes you play well but don't get the results, but we've had both. Every guy on our roster right now is pulling in the right direction and we just want to keep improving and getting points."

Philadelphia has been especially strong at home, with a 7-0-2 record across all competitions since June 7. That run includes a franchise-best four straight league victories, which began with a 3-1 win over New York on July 16.

Casey, Fred and Sebastien Le Toux handled the scoring, and Le Toux also scored in a 2-1 loss at New York on April 16.

Saturday's decisive match in the season series comes a year after nothing was resolved in the three-match set with each club taking four points.

The Red Bulls (9-8-10) have also won recent matches against teams they're chasing. Wednesday's 1-0 home win over conference-leading D.C. followed a 2-1 home victory against Kansas City, the top two teams in the East.

Lloyd Sam's stoppage-time goal on an assist from Thierry Henry was the difference against United. The European duo provided the goals in the April win over the Union.

New York, the 2013 Supporters' Shield winner, enters the weekend fourth in the East with 37 points, one clear of Columbus and Philadelphia and two behind New England.

"It's the money time in the season," Sam told the club's official website. "It feels great to get back-to-back wins, and obviously we're going to Philly this weekend. It doesn't get any easier - that's always a tough game over there - but we owe them one, too, from the last time."

MLS top scorer Bradley Wright-Phillips scored in that July loss, and he's produced 20 goals in his last 20 matches while never going consecutive games without one.

But it's unclear if he'll play in this one. Wright-Phillips missed Friday's training session due to a hamstring injury that forced him out of Wednesday's win early in the second half.

"Precautionary. Precautionary, right now," coach Mike Petke told the league's official website Friday. "His hamstring is feeling a little something in there. It's not pulled. It's not torn. Precautionary, at this moment."