CONCACAF Champions Cup: Alladoh scores on debut, Makhanya finds net as Philadelphia dominate

Ezekiel Alladoh enjoyed a goal-scoring debut on Thursday evening while powerful central defender Olwethu Makhanya also scored in a dominant competitive debut to the 2026 season for the Philadelphia Union in the CONCACAF Champions Cup.

Ezekiel Alladoh up high! 👊 pic.twitter.com/GHc1Qxnk9t

— Concacaf Champions Cup (@TheChampions) February 18, 2026

Ghanaian forward Alladoh rose up to nod in the second goal for the visitors from Major League Soccer, who secured a 5-0 first leg victory in Trinidad & Tobago over hosts Defence Force in the first round of the premier regional club competition for North America, Central America and the Caribbean.

Milan Iloski opened the scoring in the 29th minute from a free kick before Alladoh, a club record signing from Swedish club Brommapojkarna, got on the end of a cross from Francis Westfield and produced a header that was too powerful for goalkeeper Isiah Williams.

A CONCACAF Champions Cup beatdown

The hosts were simply outclassed and failed to produce much going forward. After the hour mark, the scoring resumed for the Union and it was Makhanya who headed in from Iloski’s corner kick in the 64th minute.

A commanding header! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/jU0YV3xeLm

— Concacaf Champions Cup (@TheChampions) February 19, 2026

Two goals from Uruguayan finished the scoring for the MLS club, who are well on their way to a Round of 16 duel against Mexican giants Club America. The two teams will meet back in Philadelphia for the second leg next Friday.

Alladoh’s rise to become the club’s record signing is an incredible story. Having began his professional career with Accra Lions in August 2024, less than two years later the 20-year-old is now in the USA via a productive stop in Swedish football.

He scored 8 goals in 31 matches between action in Sweden’s top flight Allsvenskan and the cup, drawing the interest of many European clubs before electing to move to the Union.

Makhanya, meanwhile, enjoyed a breakthrough 2025 season that saw him make 36 appearances after previously spending a season-and-a-half with the club’s reserve team. The former Stellenbosch FC player has yet to make an appearance for the South Africa national team but a callup from Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos is long overdue at this point.