The Philadelphia Union defeated Defence Force 5-0 on Wednesday in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, in the first leg of their CONCACAF Champions Cup series.
Unless there is a major turnaround in the second leg on Feb. 26 in Chester, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia is set to face Mexican team Club America in the round of 16 next month.
Milan Iloski scored with a free kick in the 30th minute, and Ezekiel Alladoh added a header just two minutes later.
In the 64th minute, Olwethu Makhanya scored with a header from Iloski’s corner kick. Substitute Bruno Damiani then scored twice, first from Cavan Sullivan’s pass in the 69th minute and later with a penalty kick in the 81st.
Philadelphia had eight shots on target compared to Defence Force’s one. Four players from Defence Force received yellow cards, and Joevin Jones was sent off with a straight red card during injury time for fouling Sullivan on a breakaway.
In another match, FC Cincinnati won 4-0 against O&M FC in Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic.
FC Cincinnati will look to secure advancement at home on Feb. 25. The winner will face Tigres UANL, who progressed last week with a 4-0 aggregate win over Forge FC of Hamilton, Ontario.
Ayoub Jabbari, who came on as a substitute, scored twice in the final minutes. He first found the net in the 86th minute with a shot from a tight angle, then added another in the second minute of added time with a half-volley from close range.
Tom Barlow opened the scoring in the 12th minute by converting a rebound with his left foot from distance. Kevin Denkey doubled the lead in the 33rd minute with a 20-yard shot that went through the goalkeeper’s legs.