CHESTER, Pa. – Zac MacMath will temporarily regain his spot as the Philadelphia Union’s starting goalkeeper.
Again.
In what’s becoming a trend due to Rais Mbolhi’s commitments with the Algerian national team, MacMath will get the keys to the net for Saturday’s critical contest against the Columbus Crew on Saturday at PPL Park (7 pm ET; MLS Live) – in what practically amounts to an elimination game for Philly’s flickering playoff hopes.
“I’m looking forward to it,” MacMath told MLSsoccer.com following Tuesday’s training session. “Obviously it’s been a couple of weeks since I played. I’m excited to get back on the field and give the team a chance of making the playoffs.”
MacMath – the team’s starter until Mbolhi was signed during the summer transfer window – previously started three straight league games while Mbolhi was with Algeria, before then sitting out the last three.
MacMath will get the chance again now that Mbolhi has been called up for two more 2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers with Algeria playing Malawi on Oct. 11 and Oct. 15.
“It’s an easy transition,” Union interim manager Jim Curtin said. “Guys are very familiar with Zac. With Rais on international duty, Zac will step right in. He had a very good day today, made a ton of saves, and was vocal and confident. That’s what you hope for in a goalkeeper, especially in an important game.”
Mbolhi, a two-time World Cup veteran, has only played in four games for the Union since getting signed in late July and has yet to make any big saves. His last game was especially brutal as the Algerian’s shanked clearance attempt and poor positioning in the final minutes allowed Chicago to tie the game and steal two critical points.
“That happens,” MacMath said. “You see the best goalkeepers in the world make mistakes. That’s a mistake he probably hopefully won’t make again in his career, and hopefully I will never make.”
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Now, MacMath – who led the Union to back-to-back shutouts the last time he came off the bench to start – is hoping to pick his team up and help them snap a four-game winless streak.
And, as always, he’ll continue to use his place on the team’s goalkeeping pecking order as motivation.
“It’s been like that for the last couple of months,” he said. “You use it as a chip on your shoulder and more reason to prove people wrong and prove that you deserve to be a starter.”
Dave Zeitlin covers the Union for MLSsoccer.com. Email him at djzeitlin@gmail.com.
