Ties, ties, ties.
For a city that is known for their use of half and full Windsors it has always been accepted that Washington D.C. loves ties. But this fascination with ties was always thought to be limited to the piece of cloth that was wrapped around one’s neck, not the soccer pitch.
Much like how a tie with a nice suit can win over even the staunchest opposition in Congress or in the board room, United’s nine ties have helped keep their playoff hopes alive. But ties are also misleading. Any person who has sat in a meeting with an individual who looks great but brings nothing to the table knows that a nice tie can only go so far.
The same applies in soccer. While D.C. United’s (7-9-13, 34 points) ties have certainly kept them in the Eastern Conference playoff hunt a tie on Saturday night against Orlando City SC (7-9-13, 34 points) will not be enough.
This will be the first match between the two sides during the 2016 season. In their only match at RFK Stadium last season United came back from a goal down to defeat the Purple Lions by the score of 2-1. In three matches all-time United holds the 2-1 advantage with no ties.
Much like in their first two matches with Orlando last season United have shown a penchant for getting results late this season. Thirteen of the club’s 39 goals this season have come in the final five minutes of the match the most of any side Major League Soccer. In their last ten matches United have come from behind to earn two draws against New York Red Bulls, the Chicago Fire, and the Philadelphia Union.
On the surface those are great results. Good clubs are often able to come from behind and achieve results. But United have also been incredibly lucky, getting outplayed for large portions of each match, and doing just enough to hold their opponents back so that their attacking players can pull off some last minute miracles. As evidenced by their 3-2 loss to New York City F.C. two weeks ago though teams that play a bit more open style have been effective counteracting United’s late heroics. Considering that Orlando has scored 48 goals this season (fifth most in MLS) United will have their hands full for the entire match.
The key for D.C. will be in limiting Cyle Larin’s chances inside of their own eighteen. Without Sean Franklin last week United struggled to prevent the Fire from making deep runs on the outside. Luke Mishu was often beaten easily either by diagonal passes from the outside into David Accam. Given that new Orlando City SC coach Jason Kreis likes to use Brek Shea wide to open up defenses Ben Olsen may look at either Jalen Robinson or Nick De Leon.
Finding some consistency in the midfield will also give D.C. a better chance at earning three points. Luciano Acosta looked a bit rusty last week against the Fire after having served a one game suspension. The Fire defense pressed Acosta high, forcing him into more of a conservative role. Acosta has found his greatest success this season working directly with Marcelo Sarvas. When Sarvas handles the defensive work in the midfield it frees up Acosta to break open defenses and set up Patrick Mullins (five goals with United).
Orlando has conceded nine goals in their past three matches in part to the lack communication between their midfielders and center-backs. That should be music to Acosta’s ears who likes to make diagonal runs in an opponent’s defensive half to set up Mullins. If Acosta can find Mullins and Lloyd Sam in space on Saturday night D.C. will have a chance to add to their season goal total.
The match will be at 7pm and shown live on NewsChannel 8 in the Washington D.C. metro area, TV 27 in Orlando, and MLS Live.
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In Richmond Kicker news the club dropped their second consecutive match on Saturday, losing to the Charleston Battery 2-1. The Kickers took the lead in the 33rd minute thanks to a goal by Yudai Imura. However, the Battery struck twice in the second half with goals by Romario Williams (70′) and Mikael Chang (85′). D.C. United goalkeeper Andrew Dykstra and midfielder Miguel Aguilar played 90 and 45 minutes respectively for the Kickers. The loss was the Kickers’ first at home since May 28th.
Although the Kickers have already secured a playoff spot their loss means that they will not get a home match in October. The club will finish the USL regular season on Saturday against the Wilmington Hammerheads (7pm, YouTube).
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