Last week, DC United did something that no other team had accomplished thus far in the MLS: beat Portland at JELD-WEN Field. Now, DC looks to accomplish another feat: beat the Los Angeles Galaxy at the Home Depot Center, something that has also not happened this season. It doesn’t seem so bleak for this young team thanks to the Gold Cup. Galaxy star Landon Donovan and keeper Donovan Ricketts will both be away for their national team. Donovan has been on fire lately, and Ricketts has been stellar in goal during the last few seasons. Even without those two, LA is packed with star talent and is still a threat.
DC will be without one of their own as well. Dejan Jakovic will be out for a few weeks due to being called up for Canada’s national team during the Gold Cup. While DC fans have to be happy for him, this could negatively affect a defense that has seemed to find consistency and comfort during the undefeated month of May. Josh Wolff looks to be coming back for more minutes after suffering a groin strain, Dax McCarty may be back, and Charlie Davies will be probable for the LA match recovering from a hamstring strain.
United will have to watch out for the midfield of LA. With David Beckham and Juninho on the wings, Chris Pontius and Andy Najar will need to do their best to keep them contained. Both are game changing players, and cutting them out of the picture is a must. Beckham’s free kicks will also require another great performance on set-piece defense.
With Davies still on the mend, DC fans can expect Blake Brettschneider and Wolff to be up top. Brettschneider has become a swell surprise and Wolff is the smart veteran. I think this is a great combination. A midfield with Pontius-Simms-McCarty-Najar would be ideal, but with McCarty possibly sitting until the second half, Ben Olsen has many other options he can use. With the defense, Woolard, White, and Kitchen are all set in stone. It’s up in the air with whoever plays right back. On DC United’s site, I went with a 3-5-2 (choosing to play 3 defenders and 5 midfielders), instead of the usual 4-4-2.
Los Angeles is currently the best team in MLS right now. While they are the favorite, they should not expect an easy match considering that this DC United team is hungry for some legit success this season. The match starts at 11 PM eastern tonight on FoxSoccer. Unfortunately, I don’t have the channel so I’ll be forced to watch from the MLS website via matchtracker. Oh joy.
(image courtesy of dcunited.com)
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