CHESTER, Pa. — For more than four months, Keegan Rosenberry had been waiting to regain his spot in the Philadelphia Union starting lineup.
When his name was announced with the starters before Saturday’s game against Atlanta, it was clear Philly fans didn’t forget what the reigning MLS Rookie of the Year runner-up could do, showering him with a huge round of applause.
That adoration continued for most of the night as Rosenberry delivered a big-time performance in a 2-2 draw at Talen Energy Stadium.
“It’s motivating,” Rosenberry told MLSsoccer.com. “People sticking by me is encouraging. That’s awesome for me to see.”
Rosenberry, who lost his starting right back spot to Ray Gaddis in April, gave the Union some much-needed offensive life early in Saturday’s match. His overlapping run and cross helped set up the team’s first goal from Roland Alberg.
And he also came through with some big defensive plays to limit Atlanta’s chances after the Union went down a man in the 52nd minute on Joshua Yaro’s red card, preserving Philly’s one-goal lead until a stoppage-time equalizer from Tyrone Mears.
“Keegan was very proactive on the night,” Union head coach Jim Curtin said. “He was aggressive with his defending, made early decisions with the ball, and connected his passes. It was a really strong performance for him and we’re happy with him after some time off, a layoff, to bounce back with a game like that. It’s important and something we knew he was capable of and want to see more of.”
While Curtin appreciates Gaddis’ strong 1-v-1 defending, Rosenberry brings other things to the game that the club has been missing. In addition to getting up and down the flanks, he also showed off some nice combo play with midfielder Haris Medunjanin, who Rosenberry said is “fun to play with.”
Medunjanin agreed, and hopes Rosenberry can build off Saturday’s performance.
“It was a difficult moment for him not playing for a long time,” the Bosnian midfielder said. “I think today he had a great game. He was going up and down. And I think if we played with 11 men he would have done more. Every time he goes forward, he can be dangerous. He sees the game very good. He’s a great player.”
Throughout Rosenberry’s long benching, Curtin insisted the second-year right back remained an important part of the club’s future.
For now, though, the 23-year-old right back was simply excited to get back into the lineup, even if the Union giving up a late game-tying goal really hurt.
“It’s exciting for me,” Rosenberry said. “It’s something I’ve been working for ever since I stopped playing. Obviously the team result is disappointing but I thought the team worked hard and deserved a lot better. What every player strives for is to get selected into the 11. So it was good for me.”
