Jesús Bueno's Winner Lifts Union Past CF Montréal 2-1, Ending Club-Record Losing Streak to Start Season

For six weeks, the Philadelphia Union looked like a band touring its greatest hits with none of the original members. On Saturday afternoon in Montréal, they finally found a new song worth playing.

Japhet Sery Larsen and Jesús Bueno scored in the second half, and the Union came from behind to beat CF Montréal 2-1 at Stade Saputo, ending what the AP called a club-record six-match losing streak to begin the season. It was Montréal's long-awaited home opener after six straight road games to start the year, and a crowd of 14,028 watched the hosts take an early lead before it all slipped away.

Montréal Strikes First

The opening half hour was scrappy, physical and full of stoppages. VAR checked a possible Montréal penalty in the 13th minute and waved it off, and Andre Blake denied Dagur Thórhallsson from the middle of the box in the 19th.

In the 23rd minute, Montréal broke quickly. Efraín Morales found Iván Jaime, and Jaime finished low into the bottom right corner from the center of the box. VAR took another look and confirmed it. The AP said it was Jaime's first goal in his 12th career appearance, and the Union noted it was Montréal's first goal at Stade Saputo this season.

The hosts then lost Wiki Carmona, replaced by Fabian Herbers because of an injury in the 37th minute, and the cards started flying. Thomas Gillier, Prince Owusu and Victor Loturi were all booked for Montréal before the break, while Sery Larsen picked up a yellow for Philadelphia in stoppage time. The fourth official put up eight minutes of added time, and Bueno nearly made them count with a long-range shot that Gillier saved in the fifth of them.

The Set Piece That Changed Everything

Montréal nearly doubled the lead early in the second half. Matty Longstaff got his head to an Iván Jaime cross in the 52nd minute, but Blake saved it. Three minutes later, Philadelphia was level.

Milan Iloski swung in a free kick in the 55th minute, and Sery Larsen redirected it with his head from the center of the box. The Union said it was his first goal for the club, and the AP noted it was Iloski's first assist of the season. Just like that, the momentum flipped.

The Turning Point: Alladoh's Instant Impact

Union head coach Bradley Carnell sent Ezekiel Alladoh on for Ben Bender in the 65th minute. Five minutes later, it paid off. Alladoh, whom the AP described as a 20-year-old rookie forward, flicked a headed pass into the path of Bueno, and the midfielder finished from the right side of the box into the bottom left corner.

The AP said it was Bueno's first goal of the season and Alladoh's first assist, and that Philadelphia had not had a lead this season until that moment. The AP also credited Nathan Harriel with an assist on the goal, though ESPN's data lists Alladoh alone. Either way, it was the first time this MLS season the Union got to defend a lead, and they did it with conviction.

Philadelphia nearly added a third. Olwethu Makhanya had a shot blocked in the 83rd minute and Gillier saved Alejandro Bedoya's header a minute later. Montréal never really pushed back: the hosts did not put a shot on target after the 52nd minute.

Star Watch

Bueno was the difference: two shots, both on target, and the winner. Sery Larsen scored on his only shot, a nice reward for a center back who also committed three fouls and was booked. Iloski delivered the assist and two shots of his own before Bedoya replaced him.

Blake made three saves and was steady when Montréal threatened. Bruno Damiani led all players with four shots and drew five fouls, though he also took a yellow card. Alladoh changed the game off the bench.

For Montréal, Gillier made four saves and kept the margin to one. Jaime scored and supplied crosses for three Montréal attempts, two of them from set pieces.

Carnell sounded like a man who had been holding his breath for six weeks. "We're in a tough moment as a club, as players and coaches and staff and everyone," he said, per MLS. "But it shows what it means now, going down to the locker room and seeing the joy and relief on faces."

Stats That Matter

• Shots: Philadelphia 15, Montréal 7.
• Shots on target: Philadelphia 6, Montréal 4.
• Saves: Gillier 4, Blake 3.
• Possession: A near-perfect split, 50.1 percent for Philadelphia.
• Crosses: Philadelphia attempted 25 to Montréal's 12.

What It Means

Both clubs now sit at 1-0-6 with 3 points. For Philadelphia, which MLS noted won the 2025 Supporters' Shield with a league-best 66 points, the AP added a sobering footnote: the Union became the first team in league history to open with six straight losses after winning the Shield the previous season. Per the AP, the skid had also tied the 2001 New England Revolution for the second-worst start to a season, with Toronto's nine straight defeats in 2012 the record. MLS pointed to an offseason in which Kai Wagner, Jakob Glesnes, Tai Baribo and Mikael Uhre all moved on. That chapter is now closed. "We've been close for so many games now, and we finally got one over the hump," Carnell said. Philadelphia hosts D.C. United on April 18.

For Montréal, this was a fourth straight loss and a deflating home opener. The AP said the club's only points had come from a 3-0 win at the Red Bulls, and Montréal hosts New York on Saturday looking for a repeat.

Closing Take

Carnell, the 2025 Sigi Schmid MLS Coach of the Year according to MLS, kept the celebration in proportion. "It's only three points and it's only a game," he said. True. But after six straight losses, the first win feels less like three points and more like a weight finally lifted off a lot of shoulders. Philly's comeback tour has officially started.

Stats from ESPN's match data and the AP recap via ESPN. Postgame quotes as reported by MLS (mlssoccer.com); additional details from the Philadelphia Union (philadelphiaunion.com).