Union will be missing six key players against Charlotte FC on Saturday

Update: This story has been updated to reflect that Union midfielder Danley Jean Jacques will also miss the match due to international duty with Haiti.

The Union have been one of MLS’s best teams through the first 17 games of the 34-game regular season. The team is unbeaten in its last 12 matches across MLS, U.S. Open Cup, and exhibition play and holds a four-point lead for first place in the Eastern Conference.

With the first half of the season behind them, the Union (10-3-4) will face Charlotte FC at Subaru Park on Saturday (7:30 p.m., Apple TV).

Bradley Carnell sent out nine different starting lineups for the team’s nine games in May. The manager will have to continue being flexible with his starters, as the Union will be without Nathan Harriel, Quinn Sullivan, Andre Blake, Tai Baribo, Mikael Uhre, and Danley Jean Jacques against Charlotte.

Charlotte (8-8-1) is dealing with absences of its own, as it will be without its top goal scorer, forward Patrick Agyemang, and veteran defender Tim Ream.

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Harriel and Sullivan, along with Agyemang and Ream, are with the U.S. men’s national team for the Concacaf Gold Cup, which starts Sunday. Blake is with Jamaica at the Gold Cup and Baribo, MLS’s leading scorer, is in Israel recovering from an injury he suffered against FC Dallas. Uhre was also injured in that match. Carnell estimates both are “10 to 12 days away” from returning.

With Uhre and Baribo unavailable at forward and the Union’s top attacking midfielder, Sullivan, absent, Carnell will have to look down the bench to shore up his attack. On Thursday, Carnell mentioned that Cavan Sullivan might step into his older brother’s role against Charlotte.

“[Cavan] started in the Cup game,” Carnell said. “Whether that’s the Cup or the league, I think he has the confidence of that group.”

The younger Sullivan, 15, started both of the Union’s U.S. Open Cup matches and has played 54 minutes in four appearances as a substitute in MLS play this season. He has yet to start a regular-season game. Carnell mentioned that Ben Bender, Eddy Davis III, or Markus Anderson may fill in for Quinn.

“We’re not just handing out appearances and starts,” Carnell said. “Everything has to be earned. Everyone’s on a [really] good track and a pathway to getting those successful moments.”

The Union also will need to plug defensive holes left by the absences of Blake and Harriel. Jakob Glesnes and Kai Wagner have anchored the Union’s back line this season, with Wagner a mainstay on the left side and Glesnes at centerback. Glesnes said the Union are used to changes in their lineup.

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“We’ve shown over the whole season, it doesn’t matter too much who we put on the field,” he said after practice Wednesday. “We find ways to manage it anyways. But, it’s not doing it by itself, so we have to be alert. It’s a short way from conceding to winning games and keeping clean sheets.”

Defense has been a key in the Union’s success. In 17 MLS games, they have conceded 18 goals on 63 shots. The only team to allow fewer shots is Vancouver. The Whitecaps lead the race for the Supporters’ Shield and have allowed 12 goals on 46 shots through 16 MLS games.

The Union know they need to keep earning points in the season’s second half.

“The month of May doesn’t matter anymore at the end of the season if you don’t follow it up,” Wagner said. “If you don’t follow it up, everybody knows what will happen in August or September. Our goal is the playoffs. Last month was great, but now we just have to keep going and follow it up.”

That task begins with Charlotte. Even without Ream and Agyemang, the visitors should still pose a threat. Dean Smith’s team features a quality attacking midfielder in Pep Biel. The Spaniard has scored five goals and assisted on seven in 16 MLS games.

Blake, Harriel, and Sullivan could remain at the Gold Cup through the end of June and potentially into July. The U.S. team’s group stage ends on June 22. Jamaica’s last group stage match is June 24. The Union could be without Harriel and Sullivan or Blake until after July 6 if the U.S. or Jamaica advances to the Gold Cup final.

Including Saturday’s match, four Union games fall into the Gold Cup window. Three coincide with the tournament’s knockout stages, so if the U.S. and Jamaica make an unexpected exit in the group stage, the Union could be back to full strength sooner than expected.

The Union visit the Chicago Fire on June 25, which is the first of three road games in an 11-day span. Trips to fifth-place Columbus and fourth-place Nashville make up the rest of the Union’s lone stretch of three straight road games this season.

Spots in Carnell’s lineup will continue to be up for grabs as the shorthanded Union soldier on.

“Everybody knows a lot of starting spots are open for the weekend,” Wagner said. “That made [it] even more fun this week to train. It doesn’t matter who’s here and who’s not here, it’s all about who is there and who we need to win the game.”