The 2012 Philadelphia Union season was the third season of the team's existence, competing in Major League Soccer, the top flight of American soccer. The team was initially managed by former MLS player Peter Nowak, in his third season with the club. In June, Nowak resigned and assistant coach John Hackworth was promoted to manager on an interim basis. Hackworth was officially made permanent head coach in August, making him the second head coach in the club's history.

2012 roster As of August 28, 2012.

Match results

Preseason friendlies

MLS regular season

The Union finished 10-18-6 overall, 7-8-2 at home, 3-10-4 on the road.

U.S. Open Cup

Friendlies

MLS Reserve League

The Union Reserves are 4-4-2 overall, 3-1-1 at home, 1-3-1 on the road.

League table

Conference

Overall

Results summary

Coaching staff Position StaffNationManagerJohn Hackworth United StatesAssistant coach/Goalkeeper CoachRob Vartughian United StatesAssistant coach/Reserve Team Head CoachBrendan Burke IrelandHead Athletic TrainerPaul Rushing United StatesAssistant Athletic TrainerSteve Hudyma United StatesStrength and conditioning CoachKevin Miller United StatesTeam CoordinatorJosh Gros United StatesEquipment DirectorTim Cook United States

Squad information

Squad breakdown

Ages are as of April 16, 2012 (the date of their season opener).

No. Name Nationality Position Date of birth (age) Signed From Goalkeepers 1 Chris Konopka GK MLS Goalkeeper Pool 18 Zac MacMath GK University of Maryland 32 Chase Harrison GK Harrisburg City Islanders Defenders 2 Carlos Valdés CB Santa Fe 3 Chris Albright RB New York Red Bulls 4 Bakary Soumaré CB US Boulogne 24 Porfirio López LB Dalian Shide 25 Sheanon Williams RB/RW Harrisburg City Islanders 28 Ray Gaddis RB West Virginia University Midfielders 5 Greg Jordan CM/DM Creighton University 6 Gabriel Gómez CM Indios 7 Brian Carroll DM Columbus Crew 8 Roger Torres AM América de Cali 11 Freddy Adu AM/RW Benfica 13 Michael Lahoud MF Chivas USA 14 Amobi Okugo DM/CB UCLA 15 Gabriel Farfan LW/LB Club América 20 Jimmy McLaughlin LW/RW Colgate University 21 Michael Farfan LW/RW/AM University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 26 Keon Daniel LW/RW Puerto Rico Islanders 27 Zach Pfeffer AM FC Delco 29 Antoine Hoppenot MF/ST Princeton University 30 Krystian Witkowski MF Marist College 44 Danny Cruz MF D.C. United Forwards 9 Jack McInerney ST Cobb Futbol Club 12 Chandler Hoffman ST UCLA 17 Josué Martínez ST/RW Saprissa 31 Cristhian Hernández ST/LW Players Development Academy

Statistics

Statistics are from all MLS league matches.

Nat.No.PlayerPos.AppsStartsGAAcquiredSalaryCap Number 2 ValdésCarlos ValdésDF 34 34 2 0 4 0 Signed$268,000$268,000 3 AlbrightChris AlbrightDF 9 4 0 0 0 0 Signed$55,000$55,000 4 SoumaréBakary SoumaréDF 1 1 0 0 0 0 Signed$280,000 $280,000 4 CaliffDanny Califf*DF 4 4 0 0 0 0 Signed$275,000$275,000 5 JordanGreg JordanMF 0 0 0 0 0 0 SuperDraft$44,000$0 (off-budget) 6 GomezGabriel GómezMF 24 18 6 0 5 0 Signed$294,702.50$294,702.50 7 CarrollBrian CarrollMF 34 33 1 1 4 0 Trade$168,000$168,000 8 TorresRoger TorresMF 11 1 0 2 2 0 Signed$119,285$119,285 9 McInerneyJack McInerneyFW 26 19 8 3 4 1 SuperDraft$140,166.67$0 (GA) 10 MwangaDanny Mwanga*FW 9 5 0 1 0 0 SuperDraft$356,250$350,000 11 AduFreddy AduMF 24 20 5 1 2 1 Signed$519,000$200,000 (DP) 12 HoffmanChandler HoffmanFW 7 2 0 0 0 0 SuperDraft$91,000$0 (GA) 13 LahoudMichael LahoudMF 23 20 0 0 4 0 Trade$84,571$84,571 14 OkugoAmobi OkugoMF/DF 28 25 0 1 4 0 SuperDraft$173,000$0 (GA) 15 FarfanGabriel FarfanMF/DF 23 22 0 1 5 1 Signed$46,200$46,200 16 PerlazaJorge Perlaza*FW 2 1 0 0 0 0 Trade $115,000 $115,000 17 MartínezJosué MartínezFW 18 6 1 0 1 0 Signed$71,062.50$71,062.50 20 McLaughlinJimmy McLaughlinMF 1 0 0 0 0 0 Signed$57,000$0 (HG) 21 FarfanMichael FarfanMF 33 32 1 5 7 0 SuperDraft$94,700$94,700 23 PajoyLionard Pajoy*FW 20 16 5 2 4 0 Signed$195,000$195,000 24 LópezPorfirio LópezDF 5 4 0 0 0 0 Signed$125,087.50$125,087.50 25 WilliamsSheanon WilliamsDF 28 28 1 2 4 1 Signed$90,500$90,500 26 DanielKeon DanielMF 23 18 1 1 1 1 Signed$59,410$59,410 27 PfefferZach PfefferMF 2 0 0 0 0 0 Signed$70,000$0 (HG) 28 GaddisRay GaddisDF 19 18 0 1 2 0 SuperDraft$33,750$0 (off budget) 29 HoppenotAntoine HoppenotMF 26 3 4 1 2 0 Supplemental Draft$44,000$0 (off budget) 30 WitkowskiKrystian WitkowskiMF 0 0 0 0 0 0 Supplemental Draft$44,000.04$44,000.04 31 HernándezCristhian HernándezFW 2 0 0 0 0 0 Signed$54,375$0 (HG) 38 HerdlingKai Herdling*MF 4 3 0 0 0 0 Loan$94,002$94,002 44 CruzDanny CruzMF 13 13 1 1 0 0 Trade$106,500 $106,500 36 23 55 5 * = Not currently part of team.

Goalkeepers Nat.No.PlayerAppsStartsRecordGAGAASOAcquiredSalaryCap Number 1 KonopkaChris Konopka1 1 0–1–0 1 1.00 0 0 0 Signed$44,000$44,000 18 MacMathZac MacMath32 32 10–17–5 43 1.34 8 20 SuperDraft$135,000$0 (GA) 32 HarrisonChase Harrison1 1 0–0–1 1 1.00 0 1 0 Signed$44,000$44,000 88 RoweBrian Rowe*0 0 0–0–0 0 N/A 0 0 0 Emergency Loan (MLS GK Pool)$33,750$0 34 34 10-18–645 1.32 8 3 0 * = Not currently part of team.

Honors and awards

MLS Goal of the Week WeekPlayerReport18 Jack McInerney

MLS Team of the Week WeekPlayerReport7 Michael Farfan Carlos Valdés 10 Lionard Pajoy 15 Amobi Okugo 16 Carlos ValdésHead coach: John Hackworth 18 Freddy Adu Michael Farfan Jack McInerneyHead coach: John Hackworth 19 Amobi Okugo 21 Carlos Valdés 24 Carlos Valdés 26 Brian Carroll 29 Freddy Adu Amobi Okugo

MLS All-Stars 2012 PositionPlayerNotesDF Carlos ValdésDon Garber's PickMF Michael FarfanBen Olsen's Pick

Player movement

Transfers

In DatePlayerNumberPositionPrevious clubFee/notesRef November 23, 2011 Nizar Khalfan 22 MF Vancouver Whitecaps FC Acquired in 2011 MLS Waiver Draft December 7, 2011 Josué Martínez 17 FW Saprissa Free December 12, 2011 Jimmy McLaughlin 20 MF Colgate University Signed As Home Grown Player December 21, 2011 Gabriel Gómez 6 MF Indios Free December 22, 2011 Porfirio López 24 DF Dalian Shide Free January 12, 2012 Chandler Hoffman 12 FW UCLA 2012 MLS SuperDraft, 1st Round January 12, 2012 Greg Jordan 5 MF Creighton University 2012 MLS SuperDraft, 2nd round January 12, 2012 Ray Gaddis 28 DF West Virginia University 2012 MLS SuperDraft, 2nd round January 17, 2012 Tom Brandt DF University of Pennsylvania 2012 MLS Supplemental Draft, 1st Round January 17, 2012 Krystian Witkowski 30 FW Marist College 2012 MLS Supplemental Draft, 2nd round January 17, 2012 Antoine Hoppenot 29 FW Princeton University 2012 MLS Supplemental Draft, 3rd round January 17, 2012 Brandon Zimmerman MF Santa Clara University 2012 MLS Supplemental Draft, 4th round January 31, 2012 Roger Torres 8 MF America de Cali Loan made permanent February 8, 2012 Lionard Pajoy 23 FW Itagüí Ditaires Free February 13, 2012 Chris Albright 3 DF New York Red Bulls Free February 21, 2012 Chase Harrison 32 GK Philadelphia Union Free March 2, 2012 Chris Konopka 1 GK MLS Goalkeeper Pool Free March 5, 2012 Cristhian Hernández 31 FW Players Development Academy Signed as Home Grown Player May 17, 2012 Michael Lahoud 13 MF C.D. Chivas USA Traded along with allocation money for Danny Califf June 6, 2012 Jorge Perlaza 16 FW Portland Timbers Traded for Danny Mwanga June 26, 2012 Bakary Soumaré 4 DF US Boulogne Free, acquired via the MLS allocation process August 16, 2012 Danny Cruz 44 MF D.C. United Traded for Lionard Pajoy and an international roster slot

Out DatePlayerNumberPositionDestination clubFee/notesRef November 23, 2011 Justin Mapp 22 MF Montreal Impact Expansion Draft November 23, 2011 Juan Diego González 3 DF Waived November 23, 2011 Thorne Holder 24 GK Waived November 30, 2011 Stefani Miglioranzi 6 MF None Contract option declined / Retired November 30, 2011 Chase Harrison 31 GK Philadelphia Union Contract option declined January 19, 2012 Levi Houapeu 12 FW Contract option declined January 19, 2012 Ryan Richter 23 MF Charleston Battery Contract option declined January 19, 2012 Morgan Langley 26 MF Harrisburg City Islanders Contract option declined January 19, 2012 Joe Tait 2 DF Darlington 1883 Contract option declined January 19, 2012 Veljko Paunović 16 FW None Retired January 30, 2012 Faryd Mondragón 1 GK Deportivo Cali Released; free transfer January 31, 2012 Sebastien Le Toux 9 FW Vancouver Whitecaps FC Traded for allocation money February 1, 2012 Kyle Nakazawa 13 MF Los Angeles Galaxy Traded with a 2nd round 2013 MLS SuperDraft pick for a 2012 international roster slot February 6, 2012 Tom Brandt DF Harrisburg City Islanders Not offered a contract February 6, 2012 Brandon Zimmerman MF Not offered a contract February 22, 2012 Nizar Khalfan 22 MF Young Africans SC Waived May 17, 2012 Danny Califf 4 DF Chivas USA Traded for Michael Lahoud and allocation money. June 6, 2012 Danny Mwanga 10 FW Portland Timbers Traded for Jorge Perlaza August 16, 2012 Lionard Pajoy 23 FW D.C. United Traded with an international roster slot for Danny Cruz August 28, 2012 Jorge Perlaza 16 FW Millonarios Released; free transfer

Loans

In Start DateEnd DatePlayerNumberPositionLoaned fromFee/notesRef April 16, 2012 June 19, 2012 Kai Herdling 38 MF TSG 1899 Hoffenheim II Loan until June 30, with option to extend until December 31. Terminated early. May 26, 2012 May 27, 2012 Brian Rowe 88 GK MLS Goalkeeper Pool Emergency loan

Out Start DateEnd DatePlayerPositionLoaned toFee/notesRef April 19, 2012 April 22, 2012 Chandler Hoffman FW Harrisburg City Islanders Made appearances in 2 games April 19, 2012 April 22, 2012 Antoine Hoppenot FW Harrisburg City Islanders Made appearances in 2 games June 22, 2012 August 26, 2012 Greg Jordan MF Harrisburg City Islanders Loan extended to end of USL PRO season on July 19. June 22, 2012 August 26, 2012 Jimmy McLaughlin MF Harrisburg City Islanders Loan extended to end of USL PRO season on July 19.

Miscellany

Allocation ranking Philadelphia came into the 2012 season thirteenth in the MLS Allocation Ranking. The allocation ranking is the mechanism used to determine which MLS club has first priority to acquire a U.S. National Team player who signs with MLS after playing abroad, or a former MLS player who returns to the league after having gone to a club abroad for a transfer fee. A ranking can be traded, provided that part of the compensation received in return is another club's ranking.2012 MLS Roster Rules

On June 25, the Union traded their position in the allocation ranking plus allocation money and their first-round pick in the 2013 MLS SuperDraft to Vancouver Whitecaps FC for the top position in the allocation rankings and a second-round pick in the 2013 Draft. The Union then used the Allocation ranking to sign Bakary Soumaré.

International roster slots

The Union have nine MLS International Roster Slots for use in the 2012 season. Each club in Major League Soccer is allocated eight international roster spots per season, but the Union acquired a ninth from Los Angeles in exchange for Kyle Nakazawa. This ninth slot would eventually be traded to D.C. United along with Lionard Pajoy for Danny Cruz and reverts to the Galaxy at the end of 2012.

+Philadelphia Union International slotsSlot PlayerNationality1Roger Torres Colombia2Carlos Valdés Colombia3Keon Daniel Trinidad & Tobago4Josué Martínez Costa Rica5Gabriel Gómez Panama6Porfirio López Costa Rica7Cristhian Hernández Mexico8 VACANT

NOTES:

Bakary Soumaré was born in Mali but is not considered an international player as he is a permanent resident of the US. Freddy Adu, Antoine Hoppenot, and Michael Lahoud were born in Ghana, France and Sierra Leone, respectively, but are all American citizens.

Future draft pick trades Future picks acquired: *2013 MLS SuperDraft second-round pick (natural selection) from FC Dallas for Andrew Jacobson. Future picks traded: *2013 MLS SuperDraft second-round pick (natural selection) and Kyle Nakazawa to Los Angeles Galaxy for an international roster slot.