Gotta love MLS officials. They always have a way to make things interesting week in and week out. Although despite all the “fun” on Sunday night, I won’t go into a tirade against officiating in MLS. I’ll leave that to almost everyone else. In the end, all that matters is the result which was a 1-1 draw with the Philadelphia Union.
Emotionally for fans it’s always tough to go through something like Sunday night. Drama, called-back goals, red cards, and disappointment all contribute to royally piss us off. Not to mention this match was against Philadelphia. It seems every match with the Union get more intense, which for future rivalry purposes isn’t a bad thing. Unfortunately on Sunday, it just didn’t happen and United will now have to pay a price.
That price is the heightened pressure. With just one league win in the last two months, whispers of a late-season collapse similar to 2011 is starting to creep into my ears. I’m not alarmed yet, since United is still in a very good position going into this week, but I’m not laying back in a metaphorical lawn chair sipping an iced tea either. DC has played 23 matches thus far, which is less than every other club above them in the standings. And Montreal, the club just one point behind United, has played 27. So with a couple of matches as a cushion, DC has some breathing room.
Chicago is coming up in the middle of the week which will be a good test for DC United. The Fire have risen up the standings this season and find themselves fourth with 41 points (just 4 more than United). The good news for DC is they’re still playing good enough at home to not lose. The bad news is Chicago hasn’t lost a league match since July 18 and are currently on a three match winning streak. They’re coming into RFK…shall we say…“fiery hot”. Can United cool them down on Wednesday?
That depends on how they play without Emiliano Dudar and Branko Boskovic. In case you forgot, they are suspended from the next match thanks to the red cards they received against Philadelphia. Boskovic is one of our best passers, having completed 16 out of 20 passes in thirty minutes of play during the last match, and Dudar is a tall force on the backline and had finally began to have a good thing going it seemed. The Black and Red will miss both players against another playoff contender in the Eastern Conference. But I have faith in Jakovic and Brandon McDonald to hold the defense steady.
I’ll say one more thing about the Philly match to end it on a positive note. It was a very dominating performance for DC. They created much more shots on target, especially in the second half, than Philadelphia. They also made sure hold the Philly attack after the first goal. While the finishing and match-winning goal didn’t come, the match as a whole wasn’t a complete waste. DC will have another chance soon to take care of business.
The bottom line is these matches against Chicago, Montreal, and New York will all be huge. All three clubs have the possibility of being playoff teams, and DC United needs to come out and get some points. July wasn’t so kind to us, and August has had its ugly moments. But we’re still in it with matches to spare. I’m going to continue to remain positive about this season and what the team has accomplished thus far. The Chicago match will be a great indicator as to how the rest of the month will go.
Until then, Vamos United!
(image courtesy of DC United)
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