Philadelphia Union head coach Bradley Carnell insisted his side will not give too much focus to Tai Baribo, who could make his first return to Subaru Park with D.C. United this weekend.

Baribo spent two-and-a-half years with Philadelphia, scoring 18 goals in 32 MLS games last season as they won the Supporters' Shield.

The 28-year-old made the switch to D.C. earlier this year, already scoring three goals in six games for the club.

The first of those goals came against the Union in the opening MLS game of the season, which D.C. won 1-0 on home soil.

Baribo has missed D.C.'s last two games with a thigh injury, though he could return to face his former side on Saturday.

Carnell revealed Philadelphia are not overly concerned about Baribo's presence, despite his goalscoring prowess.

"We always want to face the best opponents, and a D.C. United with Tai Baribo is certainly a force to be reckoned with," Carnell said in his Thursday press conference. 

"We are preparing and planning accordingly, but we cannot control what we cannot control.

"Whether he’s in the building, travelling or not, that’s a narrative we cannot drive and control, so we’re only focused on us and the team that we think will play."

D.C. have struggled recently, with back-to-back defeats against FC Dallas and the New England Revolution followed by a U.S. Open Cup loss to One Knoxville.

The tie finished 3-3 after extra time, but D.C. lost 6-5 on penalties, while they are ninth in the Eastern Conference after seven games.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Philadelphia Union – Japhet Sery Larsen

Philadelphia have scored six goals this season with 11 different players having been involved in at least one of those.

Sery Larsen (goal), Jesus Bueno (goal) and Ezekiel Alladoh (assist) all contributed to their first goal of the season in the Union’s 2-1 win at CF Montreal last week.

D.C. United – Peglow

Peglow (three shots, five chances created) was involved in eight of D.C. United’s 14 shot attempts against the New England Revolution last Saturday.

Peglow has been involved in a team-high 22 shots this season (nine shots, 13 chances created), six more than any other D.C. player.

MATCH PREDICTION – PHILADELPHIA UNION WIN

Philadelphia are unbeaten in 14 straight home matches against D.C. in all competitions (W12 D2) dating back to 2015. The Union have outscored D.C. 34-6 in those matches, including keeping clean sheets in five straight.

Philadelphia earned their first points of the season against Montreal last weekend. The Union have lost their last four home matches in all competitions, equalling the longest home losing run in club history (April to May 2024).

D.C., meanwhile, have failed to score in three straight regular-season matches following their 1-0 loss at New England last time out in MLS.

This is the third time since the start of last season that D.C. have gone three or more straight games in league play without a goal.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Philadelphia Union – 64.3%

Draw – 19.1%

D.C. United – 16.6%