Debriefing for 12.D.01: Aguilas de America

D.C. United 1 : 0 Club America

Six Word Novel Recap

Did enough to make one goal stand.

Photo Gallery

...From Kyle Guftason

Media, Traditional and Otherwise

The Washington Post, Steve Goff: "With a 1-0-1 record, United is tied with Houston for first place in Group B and will visit the Dynamo in its first-round finale Wednesday."
UnitedMania, Jimmy LaRoue: "Yet even as America couldn’t muster a single shot on goal, United had numerous opportunities to score more, but did not, something Soehn said can’t happen against Houston in the last match of Group B play Wednesday."
The Washington Times, John Hayden: "United peppered the opposition all evening, finally giving its nervous fans a win on the back of Rod Dyachenko's early strike. It was a nail-biting victory, though, considering United's recent habit of blowing leads."
MLSNet, Charles Boehm: "Dyachenko ran onto an astute headed layoff from Christian Gomez and lashed home his second goal of the season in the 12th minute, giving United the perfect start and quieting the substantial contingent of America fans among those in attendance."
DCSundevil: "Marc Burch, IMHO, has staked his claim to the left back position. Over his last few starts, he has shown that he can hang with the rest of the guys and not get burned. Having him in a back line of Namoff, Boswell, & Vanney might do us well down the stretch in the MLS season."
The Edgell Supporters: "The first half was excellent. We controlled the game and we were constantly dangerous. We won the loose balls. Gomez looked much better in this match than he has in quite some time. Maybe that is due to the space he was given to work with, or maybe he just wanted it a little more. He certainly looked like he wanted a goal."
QuarterVolley, I-66: "It was good to see DC United hold onto a lead after going up a man this time, though still somewhat disconcerting that they were unable to put America away."
BobbyBoswell.Com, Bobby Boswell: "I think we’re starting to get our fight back, our bite. It feels a lot better. It’s good to finally get an early goal and not let them score one. It shows us, and everyone, that we can get it done with just scoring one."

The Good

1. The Rod Dyachenko Goal: Another pretty goal, from great buildup to catch the America defense and goalkeeper going the wrong way. Unlike Emilio, Rod buried the one chance he got all night off a blistering first time strike.
   
2. Mark Burch: I don't recall having a defender who's such an asset to our attack since Jeff Agoos was here. He came up from the back very well, sent in some dangerous crosses (please teach Josh how you do this), and also switched the attack well.
   
3. Killing the Game: The second half was all about possession, and United showed it could play keep away with any team. It made it a bit boring to watch at times, but you could tell the players did not want a repeat of Wednesdays game, and they managed to keep America without a serious threat on goal.
4. The Return of the Namoff: Woot! Let's hope he gets in game shape right quick.
   

The Bad

1. The Chippiness: The referee for this game started well, but let the America players get away with a lot of chippy fouls and aggressive tackles. You'd think that an early red card would establish control over the match, but he seemed to let it slip as the game wore on.
2. Emilio's Finishing: or lack thereof. We're learning he's a streaky finisher, but we need him to bury the chances he gets. On one of his opportunities, he took an extra step that let the defense recover, instead of hitting it early.
3. Gomez's knock: related to #1 above but the crack he took to his ear seemed to take him out of the match. Hopefully, its nothing serious.
4. The Scheduling of the game: Why didn't we play Houston first, so that the key games to decide this would not be MEX-MEX and USA-USA matchups?
   

Man of the Match

Tough to say, but my vote is for Rod, since he scored. Its the easiest MotM to give.

Karma Bank

Is this a separate Karma pool? +1 for the Red card, -1 for Gomez's shot off the crossbar. Lets call it even.

Final Thoughts

This game saw a return of United's possession game under less than ideal circumstances. Burch has show he can hang at this level, which can alleviate some concerns about our defensive depth. Somehow, with Houston's help, we find ourselves in first place, although I don't think any rational analysis of the teams in our group would conclude with us as the best in form at the moment. I'm liking the SupeLiga, its been a welcome relief from the tedium that the MLS season can be at this point in the summer.

First Impressions - DC United 1 : 0 Club America

If you read some of the other blogs, you'll notice many comments after the Morelia game of "You could feel the equalizer coming for Morelia..." This game, superficially, had the same look. United got an early goal, saw the opposition pick up a red, and for about five minutes even United looked a bit unsettled, as if they were saying to themselves "here we go again..." Yet, after that first five minutes, they settled down, and slowly and inexorably killed the game. After the 60th minute I felt certain United was in complete control of the match. They played football that might have seemed a tad boring, but was exhilarating from the perspective of watching one team shut another down. Club America had only two shots the entire match, and Perkins didn't need to make a save on either. United just dominated, and I felt that the game was going to be won. Yes, even after Emilio missed two shots from close range. Even after Boswell missed his headers. While the Morelia equalizer was unlucky, America grabbing a draw would have been Faustian in the depths of its tragedy. This was a good, solid win.

There's a lot of good to see in this game, but part of it must be balanced against two things: America not looking particularly threatening when they went forward, and the entire "They're in preseason form" thing. Still, United in preseason form during the CCC was better looking than either Morelia or America, so that's something as well. United got a good win tonight. If Houston holds on to the lead they have now, then United will need at least a draw to be sure of advancing to the next round. Works for me.