RIVER OR LIFE: Defenders

Continuing the series where we vote "River" for players that we want to see DC United cast away and we vote "Life" for players that we hope will return, let's take a look now at DCU's defenders. I have a feeling this group will prove more interesting than the defensive midfielders, who received mostly favorable ratings.

Voted the team's MVP and defensive player of the year, Bryan Namoff had his most productive season for United in 2009 with 2 goals and 4 assists. Losing Namoff to a concussion late in the season may have been the beginning of the end for United's playoff hopes, but we've heard good indications so far that he will be ready for the start of 2010.

poll by twiigs.com

The Canadian/Serbian import Dejan Jakovic was very impressive in his first year with the club, starting every match when healthy and emerging as the leader of our defense. The whole team struggled at times when playing with only 3 in the back, a formation that Jakovic himself expressed some dislike for. It will be interesting to see how he does if given a full season with a running mate in a 4-man back-line.

poll by twiigs.com

Despite being the most frequent scapegoat for the team's defensive failures, Marc Burch was the preferred starter at left back for the entirety of the 2009 season. Before this year, I was fond of saying that Burch's play had improved every year since being converted to a left back. This was true in 2007 and 2008, but I'm not so sure it was true in 2009.

poll by twiigs.com

Julius James had the honor of being traded for Dwayne DeRosario, but he never really caught on in MLS until joining DC late this season. James had some good games and some bad games, which probably puts him better than average on the scale of central defenders we've seen the past few years.

poll by twiigs.com

The acquisition of Avery John was supposed to give Burch some competition at left back, especially since John had done well when playing in a 3-man back-line previously with the Revolution. That competition didn't last long, but John was still able to give the team some veteran defensive depth and fill in when necessary due to injuries.

poll by twiigs.com

A former starter for Chivas USA, Lawson Vaughn joined the team in September, and was called on almost immediately to help fill the void at right back that was left due to Namoff's injury. His play was adequate enough to earn him a roster slot with some MLS team next year. But will it be with DC United?

poll by twiigs.com

Greg Janicki impressed many of us when joining the team on loan from Pittsburgh late in 2008, but his awful 2009 campaign caused him to be benched, and then to be placed on injured reserve for back spasms that were apparently suffered as a result of sitting on the bench too long. Unfortunately for Janicki, his terrible performance at Marathon may have been his last with the club.

poll by twiigs.com

The young and much heralded David Habarugira displayed some quickness and physical ability in his few appearances with United. You would have thought the Burundian International could have earned more appearances for himself when our back-line suffered multiple injuries, but that never materialized. Does anyone else remember the name Ibrahim Koroma? Yeah, I didn't think so.

poll by twiigs.com

The 2009 Benny Awards

The 6th Annual United Awards Reception isn't the only United Awards Reception going on tonight. Because it's also time to announce the winners of the 2009 Benny Awards!

1. The Richie Award for the most underrated player goes to Bryan Namoff


2. The Nelly Award for the best newcomer goes to Dejan Jakovic


3. The Convey Award for the best rookies goes to Chris Pontius


4. The Donnety Award for the biggest disappointment goes to Danny Szetela


5. The Grosy Award for the ballsiest player goes to Ben Olsen


6. The Freddy Award for the biggest story goes to Chris Pontius and Rodney Wallace


7. The Harkesy Award for the greatest leader goes to Ben Olsen


8. The Popie Award for the best defender goes to Dejan Jakovic


9. The Etchy Award for the team's MVP goes to Dejan Jakovic


10. The Benny Award for the highest ADR rating goes to Chris Pontius

Award 9: The Etchy

By defintion, the Etchy Award goes to DC United's most valuable player. The winner of the award should be the player who United can least afford to live without, and who gives the team the best chance of winning. I'm going to present this award a bit differently because I want to give you more choices and less bias.

Last year's rightful winner was Jaime Moreno, whose 10 goals and 10 assists set him apart from the rest of the field. It's much harder to make an argument this season for any player to have set himself apart as much as Moreno did in 2008.

1. Jaime Moreno (8 goals, 3 assists, 23 games)
2. Christian Gomez (6, 4, 26)
3. Chris Pontius (4, 3, 22)
4. Santino Quaranta (2, 6, 22)
5. Ben Olsen (1, 1, 19)
6. Clyde Simms (0, 0, 27)
7. Dejan Jakovic (0, 0, 22)
8. Bryan Namoff (2, 4, 26)

poll by twiigs.com

Please enter your votes now through Monday, and remember to post in the comments section to be eligible for the exciting prizes that I announced last week.

Next up: The Benny - Who has been the best player on average this season, as tracked via this blog? Your chance for voting is done. This one is all on me!

Award 8: The Popie

By definition, the Popie award goes to United's best defensive player in 2009. The award's namesake is former national team defender Eddie Pope. Not only is Pope widely recognized as the best defender in United's history, but he is also responsible for the most important goal in United's history.

Last year's winner was Bryan Namoff with over 50% of the vote. It's also telling of DC's defensive struggles in 2008 that the runner-up for this award last year was Devon McTavish, and he had not started a single game in central defense all year until last night.

1. Bryan Namoff is a strong contender to defend his title in 2009 with another great year. He's also contributed to the team with his most productive offensive year to date, with 2 goals and 4 assists.

2. Dejan Jakovic has been the first central defender in years to solidify his position in DC United's lineup, starting every game while healthy. He has exhibited great vision, anticipation, movement, and strength, placing him among the best central defenders in MLS.

3. Clyde Simms may not be a true defender by trade, but he is the team's best ball-winner, and he won the "Defender of the Year" award at last year's team reception.

4. Josh Wicks started 19 regular season games for DC United this year and earned 5 shutouts. His 1.40 goals against average is not among the best in the league, but he appeared to have locked down the starting goalkeeper position for the team before getting injured.

poll by twiigs.com

Please enter your votes now through the end of the season, and remember to post in the comments section to be eligible for the exciting prizes that I announced last week.

Next up: The Esky - Who is United's most valuable player?

Benny Award 1: The Richie

By definition, the Richie Award goes to the most underrated player on the United roster. The award's namesake Richie Williams was probably the hardest working player on our championship teams in the 90s, but flew mostly under the radar when compared to the better known players.

Last year’s winner by a wide margin was Clyde Simms, earning over 50% of the vote. This year’s nominees are:

1. Clyde Simms continues to be one of the best defensive midfielders in MLS, while still going virtually unnoticed in the national scene. Simms is a great ball-winner, and this year has even done well when occasionally forced to take on a new role as central defender and leader of the back line.


2. Bryan Namoff was the runner-up for this award last year, and has very quietly had his most productive season ever with two goals and four assists, all while being our most consistent defender. It still makes no sense to me that Namoff is repeatedly passed up for USMNT duty in favor of guys like Marvel Wynne.


3. Marc Burch earns his first Benny Award nomination by virtue of being the lowest rated DC United starter in the eyes of most fans. But does he deserve to be rated higher? Burch has improved defensively every year since being converted to a left back, his left foot continues to be a weapon when serving long crosses in from the back, and let’s not forget the Burchie bomb, which earned him a goal against Dallas just a couple weeks ago.
   
4. Jaime Moreno owns the record for most career goals in MLS, but this year he hasn’t really gotten the respect that he deserves, even from the coaching staff. Moreno has only started 10 games so far this season, but he is still second place on the team with 7 goals (just 2 behind Emilio, who was started 20 games). Sure, some of those goals may have come from penalty kicks, but Moreno has scored 2 more goals than Blanco this year, and has the same number of goals and assists as Ching, yet he only gets a fraction of the national media attention that they get.
   

poll by twiigs.com

Please enter your votes now through the end of the season, and feel free to argue for your choice in the comments section.

Up next: The Nelly – What new addition has made the biggest impact for United this year?

DC United lose to Seattle Sounders, 2-1

Feels like I just wrote that same headline 2 weeks ago. I don't mean to try to use this as an excuse, but it's worth pointing out that the last match Seattle played was here in DC on 9/2. In the mean time, United played two other matches during that week and a half that the Sounders were resting.

After a terrible start from United, I felt similar to the way that BDR felt earlier this week - like this match could have easily gotten out of hand. We were lucky to only be down 1-0 at halftime after a totally lackluster performance where DC had no shots on goal.

The second half was a different story though. The second half appeared to be showcasing two of the better teams in MLS in a fight for home field advantage in the playoffs. That may not be entirely true, but United was getting the better of play, and going into the 70th minute or so, there was a certain sense that this match was not going to end 1-1. It didn't.


1. Rodney Wallace gives the team something out of deep central midfield that Clyde Simms does not. They both bring a lot of aggression and awareness, but Wallace's superior athletic ability was definitely on exhibit tonight. He might not have Simms' ball-winning ability, and doesn't distribute as well either, but Wallace's quickness, athleticism, and scoring touch earned him a goal single-handedly.


1. While the stats haven't been showing it lately besides his poached goal against KC, Luciano Emilio has been fighting hard for us up front the past couple weeks, although he hasn't necessarily shown the greatest touch or speed.


1. Josh Wicks should have done better on the early 1v1 goal by Zakuani, and was beaten high to the near post by Montero for the game winner. When a goalie gets beaten at the near post, he's probably not going to get a very high rating on here.

2. We are continuing to miss Jakovic while learning that Julius James is not the answer we've been looking for at center back. James should not have allowed Montero to get off such a clean shot for the game winner.

3. It's hard to truly blame him for the first goal when he obviously doesn't have the speed of Steve Zakuani, but Bryan Namoff was beaten fair and square for Seattle's first goal.

4. Just not enough attacking flair from Jaime Moreno or Santino Quaranta in this one. Both were more likely to give the ball away than to create a scoring chance all game. I'm ready for Chris Pontius to take over as our regular starter at withdrawn forward. Moreno has been better as a sub most of the season.

And with that, United finishes the week with just 3 points from two home matches. I would have been satisfied with 4, but we sure could have used the full 6. Still, all is not lost with two more winnable home games upcoming against San Jose (family day) and Chivas USA (college night / WCQ deal). The final team to get into the playoffs in 2008 did so with 37 points. And while it looks like it may take more than that this year, United is currently sitting at 36. Toronto's win over Colorado hurt a bit, but we still control our own destiny.

The Fifth Sixth

This is the fifth in a recurring series where we look at the DC United season, five games at a time.

Results: 2-1-2. 4 GF, 4 GA

Standings: Third place in the Eastern Conference

Statistical Leaders: Josh Wicks (3 clean sheets); Namoff, Burch, Moreno, Emilio (1 goal each), Gomez (1 assist)

Most frequent lineup:


What we liked:

• Discovering our starting XI – I’ve often wondered during this season if we’re ever going to have a single consistent lineup that can be used every week. It looks like we’re finally stating to see that, and surprisingly enough, that lineup is going to be a 4-4-2. While I might not necessarily agree with all of the starters in every match, at least the coaching staff is finally starting to decide who they want to count on to be their regular starters, and that is happening at the perfect time with the playoffs just over a month away.
  
• Josh Wicks, the savior – Wicks has come a long way since emerging from the three-man goalkeeper competition to be our starter. And while the team only earned 5 clean sheets in all of 2008, Wicks alone has now earned 5, including 3 in this set of matches. He made a lot of key saves to preserve the scoreless draw late in the Galaxy match. We saw two on-field blowups from Wicks during this period, which is something to look out for, but his play speaks for itself.
  
• United can score on corner kicks – Throughout this team’s history, they have struggled to score from corner kicks. Prior to 2009, I think maybe the only corner kick goal ever scored by United came off the head of Eddie Pope in 1996. But suddenly every corner kick is now a scoring opportunity for United. Bryan Namoff scored his second corner kick goal of the year in United’s win over Chicago, and the winning goal sequence against KC also started with a corner.

What we didn't like:

• Lack of scoring – United did not score in the run of play during these five matches. It’s incredible that we had a winning record during this stretch when the team was only able to score on corners, free kicks, and a penalty kick. With the attacking firepower of the likes of Emilio, Gomez, Quaranta, and Pontius, that’s just not acceptable.
  
• Coaching inadequacies – Some of this is due to injury, but Coach Soehn continues to play some of his players outside of their best positions. Simms at CB? Wallace at LB? Olsen at RW? Quaranta at forward while Pontius is in the midfield? And what was Fred doing on the field anyway while Chris Pontius was sitting on the bench? It’s sad to point out that Jaime Moreno only started 1 league match during this stretch, and Pontius only 2.

Defining moment: The moment that sticks out to me most clearly from this five-game stretch is unfortunately the handball by the LA Galaxy that was not called. And that was after Emilio was shoved over in the box earlier in the match. Maybe someone could debate the foul on Emilio, but the handball was indisputable, and it was even used as an example of a bad call by the USSF. We saw so many non-calls in that match that I think we may have won if only a United player could have picked up the ball and ran rugby-style into the goal. Anyways, a penalty kick in the 85th minute of a scoreless game would have virtually guaranteed us a victory, and two extra points in the standings sure would have looked nice about now.

Overall impression: Last time I wrote the following: “United's 1-2-2 record in the fourth Sixth is a bit misleading, because this stretch of the season also included three Open Cup victories to return DC to the Final, and a home-and-home series victory over Firpo to return DC to the Champions League group stage.” This time its exactly the opposite. United had a winning record through the fifth Sixth in MLS action, but while also losing two CCL matches and the Open Cup Final. Despite our current place in the standings, United remains in a precarious position because every other team but one has played fewer matches than us. But with four out of the last five matches at RFK in front of its adoring fans, DC definitely is in control of its own destiny during the final playoff push.

DC United win vs KC Wizards, 1-0

That wasn't exactly how I wanted to see us play against one of the worst teams in the league, but a win is a win, and somehow I still feel like we earned this one. It definitely took this team 30 minutes or so to settle in, and gave up way too many chances during those first 30 minutes, but we looked like the better team in the second half, and ultimately we prevailed.

Thoughts on the surprising back line? A lot of fans have been clamoring for McTavish and Wallace each to get a chance in defense, and they both did tonight. Both were adequate, but probably not spectacular enough to unseat Jakovic and Burch when they return from injuries. I really didn't understand the move of taking off Julius James in favor of Avery John and moving Simms from CDM to CB, but it seemed to work out, because I only counted one scoring opportunity for KC after that change. I think the most likely back line for Saturday's match will be Namoff-James-McTavish-John.


1. It's unfortunate that he doesn't get credited with an assist, because it was the hard work of Chris Pontius that created Emilio's goal. Pontius really put himself in danger and got hit by Hartman and a defender in the process of sending a diving header off the post. Hopefully Soehn is starting to realize also (as I've been saying for months) that our team plays its best when Quaranta and Pontius are on the field at the same time. These two combined for three or four good chances tonight.

2. The predator Luciano Emilio made a return appearance in this match, poaching the winning goal after Pontius's header deflected off the post. Emilio had two great chances to put away the game late too, once on a perfectly timed run to beat an offside trap in the 81st minute, and then again in the 88th minute with a lob over Hartman's head which was clearly goal-bound if not for being cleared off the line by Conrad.

3. Bryan Namoff also deserves credit for an assist, as it was his cross to Pontius that set up the goal. This guy is really turning into a huge asset on corner kicks. He was also our most consistent defender tonight and helped us preserve the shutout.

4. Props to Tom Soehn for a nice and creative starting lineup. He also did well at recognizing how little Gomez was contributing and replaced him with Olsen at the half. And even though I didn't understand the John for James move at the time, that did ultimately seem to shore up the defense. Although that may have been more due to Kansas City running out of gas to attack.


1. The two surprise defenders Devon McTavish and Rodney Wallace each filled in admirably. McTavish demonstrated some Jakovicesque traits, occassionally starting the ball up the field or making runs into the midfield in transition. I might even go as far to say that McTavish looked like the more competent of our two central defenders, making me wonder if he should be the one to start alongside Jakovic when the Canadian returns from injury. Wallace had his ups and downs in his first MLS start as a left back. I questioned whether the best time to try Wallace in defense was in a match where Jakovic was not there to help guide him. Wallace got beat a couple times for some shots on target, but he did look excellent when pushing forward, and also was a big help in killing off the game with his aggression when moved to CDM after John entered.


1. Christian Gomez was largely ineffective and I wasn't surprised to see him subbed out at the half. I think it's time to move on from the days when it used to be a requirement to start Gomez and Moreno at the same time.

Inefficiencies aside, this was exactly the result we needed to kick off our five game home stand. Not just a win, but also a clean sheet to give our defenders some confidence back. And oh look! Suddenly we jumped from out of the playoffs to #3 in the East! Just in time for my Fifth Sixth posting later this week! Even though we've played one more game than just about everyone else, we're still in a very good position to make the playoffs with the schedule remaining, and as I expect New England and Chivas to continue to drop off. Next up: Seattle on Saturday, then another double match week with home games against Marathon and San Jose.

DC United win at Chicago Fire, 1-0

This is the best our team has looked in quite a while. DC United just worked harder in this match, which is great to see. We won most of the 50-50 balls tonight, which has been rare the past few months. The team's first win against an MLS opponent since 7/18 couldn't have come at a better time.

The only thing I didn't like about our performance was the number of fouls given in close range. It continues to be part of Chicago's strategy to go down at the smallest hint of contact near the box. We were a bit lucky that Blanco didn't test Wicks more in his numerous chances.


1. Bryan Namoff continues to have maybe his best season, playing quite well on defense, and adding his second goal of the year on a header from a Gomez free kick.

2. I had my doubts about starting Ben Olsen at right wing against the very underrated Marco Pappa, but he did great, and it turned into a bit of a fluid role as he was moved into central midfield towards the end of the first half. Olsen looked awesome going forward, and came pretty close to scoring on a Burch to Quaranta cross in the 62nd minute. I could almost hear the "YEESSSS!" before the ball went just wide.

3. The reason that the 4-4-2 looked so good in this match was because Clyde Simms was doing the job of two defensive midfielders. Dude was all over the place!

4. Julius James and Dejan Jakovic were an excellent combination as the center backs. James broke up several plays, and gave Jakovic the freedom to advance the ball into the midfield, as he often does so calmly. James was the leading offender of commiting fouls near the box though, so that's something to keep our eyes on.


1. Give some credit to some of the other attackers like Christian Gomez, Fred, Santino Quaranta, and Luciano Emilio. These guys worked tirelessly to make sure it wouldn't be easy for the Fire to advance the ball out of the midfield, and made some defensive contributions too. The chemistry among our entire team was clearly evident tonight.


None

Notice the only two starters I'm not rating are Josh Wicks and Marc Burch. The feud between these two guys had me worried for a minute. We already knew that both of these guys are sort of hotheads. But is it really a problem for two passionate guys to go at it like that? I have no doubt that they will work it out in the locker room, but we'll all be watching for comments on the Goffblog.

I've been ragging on referees a lot lately, so let me point out that this was a really well officiated match by Kevin Stott. We probably deserved all of our yellow cards, and he kept control of a match between two teams that have broken into fisticuffs in previous meetings. My only complaint comes from the time keeping. Four minutes of stoppage time when there weren't any injuries?

I don't know if we could have picked a better time to beat a tough Eastern Conference opponent on the road. We've finally broken our long winless streak. But more importantly, now we've got some momentum going into the Open Cup Final on Wednesday. Look for our best eleven to start this match. I've got my tickets. Do you?

DC United tie vs LA Galaxy, 0-0

If I was going to look at our remaining schedule and pick one match that would probably end scoreless, this would not have been it. You know the league has got to hate when two of its marquee teams finish with a scoreless draw. I certainly expected a couple of goals once the match seemed to open up late in the first half, but some good defending combined with quality performances from two of the lesser known goalkeepers in the league preserved clean sheets for each team.

But should it have been a scoreless draw? The offside call which disallowed a goal by Emilio from Fred early on looked too close to call for me. And then there was the shove on Emilio midway through the second half, which could have easily been called a PK. Maybe Geiger didn't have a great view, but if the side judge sees outstretched arms by the defender, he's got to call the penalty. I also rewound the tape a couple of times to confirm that in the 84th minute there was definitely a handball from Miglioranzi in the box. DCU could have scored 2-3 goals with a more lenient referee.


1. Bryan Namoff made two sliding saves, had a couple good steals, and almost scored with his head on a corner kick. He seemed to be in Donovan's head a bit too.

2. A couple good late saves from Josh Wicks to keep this one scoreless. If nothing else, I hope that shutting out Donovan and Beckham gives our defense some confidence.


1. Santino Quaranta looked like the best attacker on the field for most of the match, and that includes Donovan.

2. I have a feeling that some fans are going to criticize Luciano Emilio for this match, but keep in mind that he could have scored 1 goal and set up 1 penalty kick had the referees been watching the game more closely instead of admiring Beckham's good looks.


1. Rodney Wallace was the worst of the 3 national champion Terps on the field tonight. Sullivan said late in the match that Wallace has had a lot of chances from the wing. But very few of those chances resulted in shots on goal.

Speaking of Sullivan, I have to admit that he and Bretos did a pretty good job announcing this match impartially and without blunder, which is a bit rare, but a nice improvement over the terrible Christian Miles from the Marathon match.

So where does that leave us? Still out of the playoffs for now, but I'm not too discouraged quite yet. DC has 29 points, which puts them in 9th place overall. But they are only 1 point behind Toronto, Chivas, and Colorado who each have 30. Toronto is a good team, but I've got to think that Chivas and Colorado are going to fade at some point, and with 5 of our final matches at RFK where we're still undefeated, I still think United has a good chance of making the playoffs. But before we can continue with the regular season, we first have a midweek home match against Toluca, and then of course the Open Cup Final next Wednesday!

The Fourth Sixth

This is the fourth in a recurring series where we look at the DC United season, five games at a time.

Results: 1-2-2. 9 GF, 11 GA

Standings: Third place in the Eastern Conference

Statistical Leaders: Christian Gomez (3 goals, 2 assists), Luciano Emilio (3 goals), Bryan Namoff, Jaime Moreno, and Fred (1 goal, 1 assist each)

Most frequent lineup:

What we liked:

• The Christian Gomez of 2007 - In the first half of the season, there was a wide variety of candidates for DC United's MVP: Quaranta, Pontius, Moreno, Gomez, maybe even Wicks or Jakovic. But at this point, I think Christian Gomez has emerged once again as our all-around best attacker, and the legitimate force that we'll need to stay level with our Eastern Conference competitors who each have dynamic attackers of their own in Chicago (No-neck), Columbus (GBS), and Toronto (DeRo).
  
• The return of the 4-4-2 - One of my New Years' Resolutions for 2009 for the club was to bury the 3-5-2. The club has yet to embrace that recommendation, as our personnel this year has been more appropriately aligned with a three-man backline. But the second half of the Houston match saw the return of the 4-4-2, with surprising success. Only time will tell though whether or not we start using this formation more often than just after giving up three goals in five minutes. I've hypothesized that it might be best to use a four-man backline when playing on the road against a strong attacking team (like maybe against Toronto next week?). Never the less, surely it's a good thing that we now seem to have the ability to play in multiple formations at different times, and that we're able to adjust when necessary.

What we didn't like:

• Where is the star power? – To put things in perspective, during this five game stretch, Jaime Moreno and Santino Quaranta each only started one match, and Luciano Emilio only started two. Those are three of our top scorers who didn’t see nearly enough time on the field. Of course this isn’t entirely the coach’s fault for keeping them away. Quaranta was out fighting for his nation at the Gold Cup and Emilio was suspended for one match due to a certain water bottle incident. I understand the desire to involve the rookies more, but Soehn should look at these disappointing results and take it as a signal that he should be getting Moreno onto the field as much as possible.


• Conceding multiple goals – Not only have we now gone seven straight league matches without posting a shutout, but we also had three multi-goal matches in this stretch of five games. Relinquishing a two goal lead in San Jose is indefensible.
  
• Disappointing reserves - We knew this would be a difficult part of the schedule when Quaranta and Jakovic were called up for Gold Cup duty, and that problem was exacerbated by minor injuries to Moreno, Emilio, and Simms. So we were counting on reserves like Ange N'Silu, Boyzzz Khumalo, Andrew Jacobson, and Greg Janicki to step up while filling in for our regular starters. Some of these players were adequate while on the field, but N'Silu and Janicki were particularly disappointing in their appearances.

Defining moment: I've got two of 'em. Bryan Namoff's own goal, followed later in the same match by his diving header against Colorado at home. These two goals epitomize the back-and-forth nature of four out of the five games we faced in this stretch. Namoff's resiliency was what propelled the team to a win in that match, and we saw that same sort of resiliency two weeks later from Emilio, coming off the bench with a head of steam to bring us one goal away from tying Houston after being down by 3.

Overall impression: United's 1-2-2 record in the fourth Sixth is a bit misleading, because this stretch of the season also included three Open Cup victories to return DC to the Final, and a home-and-home series victory over Firpo to return DC to the Champions League group stage. These wins have now guaranteed that DC United will play more matches within the 2009 season than any other MLS team. DC will play 45 matches (not including preseason), while the most any other team will play is Houston with 39. There's certainly pros and cons to that fact. Fatigue will be an issue during much of the playoff push over the next two months. But when the CCL and Open Cup are all over, our players should be in better shape than anyone else, and the international experience should benefit these guys for years to come. As for making the playoffs though, a lot is going to depend on the form of some other clubs. There is some new competition out there from teams like Toronto, Seattle, and Colorado who aren't normally in the MLS playoff hunt, and if they can maintain consistency, we could be in for a tough fight at the end of the season. I can see already some potential must-win matches in our future (10/3 Chivas, 10/17 Columbus).

DC United lose at Houston Dynamo, 4-3

Two main points learned from this match: 1) Houston is really good. 2) The DC defense isn't.

Can you imagine how great this team would be if Dwayne De Rosario was still on the roster? This is already an all-star midfield, with Stuart Holden, Brad Davis, and Ricardo Clark all playing the best of their careers. I'd say that we really missed Clyde Simms again here, but I'm not sure he even would have made a difference tonight. We were dominated in possession.

But where I was most disappointed was in our defense. With Wicks and Jakovic playing in place of Wells/Crayton and los Gonzalos, our defense was supposed to be better this year. That just doesn't seem to be true though. After 20 matches in 2008, United had allowed 34 goals. Now through the same point of the season in 2009, we've allowed 32.


1. Bringing on Luciano Emilio for Gomez to start the second half turned out to be the most important call of the match for Soehn. Emilio was clearly hungry, and although his first goal was a bit lucky after getting a deflection, his second goal was well deserved after he almost scored on a backheel. Hopefully the best thing we'll take from this match is that Emilio is back in business.

2. This was a Gros-esque performance from Fred, who covered a lot of ground in the first half, and then added a goal in the second after being allowed to roam free a bit more, which was an important result from the formation shift


1. Two of Houston's goals came off Bryan Namoff's side of the field, and he may have been at fault on their third, although I would argue more that it was just an awesome goal. Regardless, Namoff still had some really good defensive plays, and he also earned an assist on Emilio's first.


1. This was the worst match we've seen from Josh Wicks in a United uniform. It seems that just like Crayton, he started off strong, but the fanbase will eventually lose confidence in him. Wicks might be above average by MLS standards, which is something we haven't been able to say since the departure of Perkins, but I just think it's rare to see that type of disappointing performance from the more consistent MLS keepers like Onstad, Busch, and Reis. In order to remain our long term starter, we need to see more consistency from Wicks.

2. Not the best night for Dejan Jakovic. If not for his penalty kick foul, this match may have ended in a 3-3 tie.

3. Santino Quaranta was a total non-factor in this one. He looked like a guy who's only played one match in the past month. You can thank Bob Bradley for that.

4. It was Ben Olsen's fault that Brad Davis had so much space to shoot for Houston's first goal, and he also turned the ball over on the play that led to their second.

The big question that remains though after one of the most exciting MLS matches of the season is whether we should be using a 4-4-2 formation more often. United won the second half 3-1. Now that's not exactly fair to the Dynamo because they weren't pushing as hard since they had a 3 goal lead for the majority of the period. But at the same time, it seemed as if our backline was much stronger after adding a fourth defender, and we didn't lose much in the midfield. As with any other tactical decision, I think it depends on the situation. On the road against a team with several strong attackers might be a good situation for the 4-4-2. Let's see if DC goes to this formation again in their next league match on the road against Toronto in two weeks.

DC United win vs Colorado Rapids, 3-1

After a first half consisting of two major mistakes (Namoff's own goal and Khumalo's terrible chip shot miss), United was a bit unfortunate to be down a goal. The teams looked very evenly matched. But from the moment that the whistle blew to open up the second half, one team was clearly better than the other. What did Tom Soehn say to the players that so inspired that passion? Who knows. But I do know one thing he said: "Jaime - you're in". And that might have been the biggest factor contributing to the victory.


1. Even before the third goal, I was ready to come on here and write about the wonderful interplay between Luciano Emilio and Fred. Emilio did really well with his back to the goal and with multiple defenders on him to hold up the ball and distribute back to teammates. He was frequently getting into dangerous spots, and his goal was well earned by the team. Fred looked the best he's looked on the wing in quite a while, with some good crosses, and even won the ball a couple times in the defensive third. As Fullback suggested, Fred probably deserved to be ejected though.

2. The resident veterans Jaime Moreno and Christian Gomez once again delivered a huge victory for the club. Gomez was instrumental on all three goals, earning the PK that Moreno ultimately converted, sending in the corner kick for Namoff's golazo, and putting Fred through to get the ball rolling on Emilio's goal. Moreno now has a goal in three consecutive MLS appearances.

3. Colorado's goal and pretty much every one of their chances came from long balls over the top. Credit Clyde Simms for shutting down every attempt in the middle.

4. Not the greatest starting lineup, but Tom Soehn sure did use his substitutes effectively. I didn't quite understand the decision to start Khumalo on the wing ahead of Wallace. But the team made adjustments when necessary, and maybe Moreno is best these days when coming off the bench.


1. This was obviously an up-and-down emotional match for Bryan Namoff. After the huge mistake of an own goal and a few other giveaways in the first half, Namoff unleashed the redemption on a beautiful diving header goal.


1. Really a poor decision by Boyzzz Khumalo to try to chip the ball over the keeper (and over the bar too as it turned out) instead of just taking a low placed shot at either corner. Luckily, this miss didn't change the result of the match, but it sure felt like it would at half time.

So after a well deserved and well needed week off, DC United now sets out on a very compacted portion of the schedule that will see us playing two matches per week for the next three consecutive weeks, including the US Open Cup semifinal on Tuesday (with tickets now discounted through dcunited.com), a home-and-home series in the Champions' League against Firpo, a couple trips to the MLS Western Conference (San Jose and Houston) mixed in, and of course the big matchup against Real Madrid on August 9th.

The Third Sixth

This is the third in a recurring series where we look at the DC United season, five games at a time.

Results: 2-1-2. 8 GF, 6 GA

Standings: First place in the Eastern Conference

Statistical Leaders: Christian Gomez (2 goals), Jaime Moreno (2 goals), Fred(1 goal, 1 assists), Santino Quaranta (1 goal, 1 assist), Luciano Emilio (2 assists),

Most frequent lineup:

What we liked:

• Goalkeeper controversy resolved - The only low point that I wrote about in both of my first two posts in this series is an issue no longer. Starting Josh Wicks ahead of Louis Crayton has earned us 4 points to date, and it's really nice to have a keeper that we can count on to come up big when we need him the most.


• Rotating attackers - The biggest different so far between 2008 and 2009 is our wealth of attacking depth. Last year, if just one player was injured, we suffered major setbacks. But now, hearing the news that Moreno or Fred will be out for a couple weeks doesn't even seem to phase the United community. Because between Christian Gomez's surprising return to form and the versatility of Quaranta, Pontius, and Wallace, we've got plenty of players who can fill in without skipping a beat. This year, our bigger problem has been trying to find enough playing time for all these talented guys, which is a good problem to have.


• Defensive progress - Bryan Namoff has consistently been one of the best and most underrated outside backs in MLS over the past several years. It's looking like you might be able to add Dejan Jakovic to that list also. He continues to fly under the radar, while emerging as one of the league's best center backs.

What we didn't like:

• Stupid fouls - In reaction to the two penalty kicks we gave up in these five games, the team needs to be a bit more careful when defending in the box. Clearly the MLS officials have been directed to award penalties at the slightest hint of contact (reference Namoff on Twellman, and Jakovic on Nyarko), so we need to make sure that we don't give them any reason to think about calling fouls in the box.

Defining moment: Josh Wicks' penalty kick save on Brian McBride to preserve United's lead against Chicago and move back into our rightful position in first place. A major theme of this sixth of the season would have to be Wicks' heroics, including several spectacular saves and two clean sheets.

Overall impression: After the second sixth of the season when we finished tied for first place, it didn't really feel right. United wasn't playing like the best team in the Eastern Conference at that time. Now though, I think we deserve it. Closing out the first half of the season with a huge victory over Chicago and a tie at Seattle should provide the team with steady momentum as we head into a rough portion of the year that includes Open Cup and Champions League matches in addition to the regular season

DC United win vs Red Bulls, 2-0

Ah, the elusive 90 minute performance. Now I remember what a true victory feels like! It was easy to expect United to let up a late goal after clearly being the better team for the entire game, but instead they added another, thanks to our two veteran super subs.

All that glitters might not be gold here. This wasn't necessarily a domination, because New York had some chances. Luckily for us, they only have one player who knows how to finish those chances, and he was thwarted by Wicks on his only good opportunity. If we give the same chances to Chicago next week though, we might be looking at something closer to a 2-2 scoreline. Brian McBride is no John Wolyniec, and Chris Rolfe is no Danleigh Borman.

1. The best player on the field on this night was Fred. His set up to Santino Quaranta on the first goal was great. And he had at least two good tackles to help on the defensive side when moved out to the wing in the second half.

2. Some credit goes to Tom Soehn for rolling out maybe the best lineup of the year. The 3-5-2 worked well last night, and I liked him mixing things up with Wallace in the middle and Pontius playing, um, wherever. Also, Soehn proved that he's a better coach than Luciano Emilio, because even though the striker clearly disagreed with the move, inserting Gomez preserved the victory.

3. And how about those veteran super subs Jaime Moreno and Christian Gomez? Within five minutes of entering the match, Gomez is wreaking havoc and hitting crossbars. These two combined to earn the final goal with Moreno's pass to Gomez in space, then Gomez initiating contact to draw the penalty, which Moreno of course had no problem putting away.

4. Santino Quaranta continues to have a quietly fantastic season. He probably deserves consideration for the All Star game. His finish on the goal didn't seem like much, but he made that run from just across midfield to get in the perfect position on the near side of the box to get on the end of Fred's pass.

5. That would be the second clean sheet in three matches for Josh Wicks. He was up to the task to stop everything thrown his way, including one great save on JP Angel late in the match. What would have happened had Louis Crayton been in net? He might have made that save, but there's also a good chance it would have gotten by him. However, none of us would have blamed him, because the shot from Angel was tough, and we'd instead be pointing fingers at one of the defenders. None of that has to happen now though. Wicks is a game changer.

1. Another solid defensive performance from our outside backs Bryan Namoff and Marc Burch, but not their best outings when it came to crossing the ball. With the 3-5-2 formation, when Namoff and/or Burch join the attack but miss on a cross, they leave the team susceptible to a quick counterattack from the opponents.

1. His play on the field was adequate, but I'm disappointed in Luciano Emilio for the water bottle incident. Was that really necessary? Emilio needs to understand that he's not going to play 90 minutes of every match this year. Our offense is just too deep for that right now. Some of the best players in the world sit on the bench because their teams have so much depth. Didier Drogba doesn't throw water bottles, so why should Emilio? It will be a real shame for him to miss the 1 versus 2 match against the Fire next week.

DC United tie vs Toronto FC, 3-3

What an incredible contrast from the previous match. Even though they both ended in ties, this was a much more inspired DC United club, playing against a much more inspired opponent. The match against Kansas City earlier in the week saw two offensive subs (Gomez and Emilio) enter the match and have no impact. This match saw two offensive subs (Moreno and Pontius) enter the match and score two goals.

I watched this match online at the same time as I was the watching the Capitals on mute. Funny coincidence that both games ended regulation at almost exactly the same time, and the score of each at that time was 3-3. Unfortunately for the Caps, it couldn't end that way. But for United, a tie seemed like a fair result to a really exciting match.


1. That was a real nice team setup on the opening goal by Ange N'Silu. His first goal of his MLS career, and a good overall match.

2. Jaime Moreno and Chris Pontius should have started. I'm still trying to figure out who was playing where when we had Moreno, Pontius, Emilio, Gomez, and Quaranta in the match. That's some firepower!


1. Milos Kocic and Dejan Jakovic each had their best halves of the season in the first. Kocic looked comfortable grabbing every cross that entered the box. And Jakovic had several nice tackles, and was calm in distributing out of the back. But their total lack of communication led to the first goal.

2. Bryan Namoff looked good wearing the captain's armband (which was a bit of a surprise since Gomez, Simms, and Emilio have all worn it ahead of him in the past). Namoff is having a fantastic season so far, but his failed toe poke on Toronto's third goal just isn't going to cut it against DeRo.

3. I liked Devon McTavish in central midfield. His left-footed cross helped set up the opening goal. I love how we have competition at just about every position right now. Olsen and Simms are the unquestioned starters at defensive midfield right now, but McTavish put in a strong challenge against Jacobson for the first backup in that slot.


1. This may have been out of character, but I saw too many giveaways by Clyde Simms in this match. And where was he on the last goal?

2. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, but I do believe that Serioux was Rodney Wallace's man to mark on the second goal. Which would mean that's the second time this year he's given up a goal on a free kick.

Five points from three matches in eight days was a couple short of our goal. But this stretch of matches was a huge credit to our early season depth. DC started 19 different players between the two matches this week. Only Namoff, Simms, and Wallace started both. And with KC falling today, and Chicago tying New England, we were still able to hold onto sole possession of first place for at least another week.

DC United win vs FC Dallas, 2-1

DC United looked like the better team for all 90 minutes tonight, but the first 60 sure were scary. Even though they had threatened to score so many times, and it seemed hard to believe that they would end the night with a bagel, it was hard not to be nervous about witnessing another lost point or 3. But ultimately the better team prevailed, thanks mainly to the greatest player in league history.


1. Even before he scored, Jaime Moreno was clearly the best player on the field. And even before he scored AGAIN, there was no question that Moreno is back in top form.

2. Christian Gomez was constantly dangerous in his 30 minutes of action, including an awesome assist on the willing goal.

3. Bryan Namoff continues to be one of the best and most consistent defenders in the league. Screw the talk about Barklage, I think Namoff could be a candidate for our next #10 with now three assists on the season.


1. After missing the Open Cup victory, I understand now why so many fans were unsure about Milos Kocic, despite his clean sheet. Not much Kocic could have done about the goal tonight, but he misses balls that he should punch, and he punches balls that he should catch. Increased experience will help as he continues to gain more chemistry with his back line, but I'm not willing to crown him as our Varlamov quite yet.

2. That wasn't quite as productive of a match as Chris Pontius is used to, but I just like the fact that we've got a guy who can fill in at central holding midfield when necessary, in addition to also playing on the wing, CAM, and withdrawn forward.


1. That's at least two goals this year that I think can be blamed on Rodney Wallace. I'm ready for Fred to return to the starting lineup.

This match was interesting in that we went in thinking that we had a big advantage on the wings, but both of our goals came right up the middle of the park. Credit our veterans Gomez and Moreno for that, showing the rookies how its done.

Another interesting piece mentioning: In the FSC pre-game show, Chris Sullivan said that he had spoke to Will Chang earlier, and Chang said that he'd had conversations with Tom Soehn about a three-year plan that involved rebuilding with youth. That comment probably raises more questions than answers. Did the three-year plan start this year or last? Because this is the first year that we've made much of an attempt to rebuild with youth. So does that mean that Soehn is pretty much guaranteed two more years? It makes a lot of sense to me that the team is making a concerted effort to rebuild this year with their collection of aging superstars.

DC United win at NY Red Bulls, 3-2

This certainly felt like another one of those games where we outplay our opponent, but settle for a tie, or worse. Yet somehow, for the second week in a row, DC scores in stoppage time to secure the victory. That's four points that we've earned now in the final five minutes.


1. Great to see Santino Quaranta back to form. Each of his two assists in this match were among the best I've seen from a DC player.

2. For the second time this year, Bryan Namoff single-handedly saved a goal by clearing a ball off the line, and was solid throughout the match.

3. Chris Pontius looked good in the central attacking midfield role, but he was most productive when switching over to right midfield after Barklage entered the match. Pontius made up for all his misses the previous few weeks by burying the game winner.


1. Pardon the cliche, but it was a tale of two halves for Marc Burch and Dejan Jakovic. Burch handled Richards and Oduro very well in the first half without giving up any opportunities, but struggled at times against Kandji in the second. Jakovic kept Angel from having any effect on the match in the first half, but was outmuscled by JPA for a goal in the second.

2. I would have started Pontius at forward and Quaranta at CAM, Tom Soehn did the opposite, and it seemed to work out perfectly. Two of his substitutes Barklage and Khumalo made a big impact. But we gave up two goals during the fifteen minutes that Soehn switched the team from a 3-5-2 to a 4-4-2. In that formation, with Burch at LCB and Wallace at LB, and without Olsen on the field anymore, DC was at its weakest.

3. Rodney Wallace scored his first MLS goal, was an Emilio miss away from adding an assist, and was a goal line clearance by his former Terp teammate Jeremy Hall away from a second goal. But Wallace continues to be a bit of a liability on defense.


1. I would have liked to see more out of Fred, who had little impact on this match.

Now for some quick housekeeping from the 2-0 Open Cup win over FC Dallas:
Top Shelf: Barklage, Fred, Kocic, Burch
Call: Quaranta, Janicki
Rail: None

Summing up, a 2-2 tie felt like it would have been the right result. But fortunately, DC grabbed a couple extra points thanks to more oustanding play from their rookies. Between Chris Pontius and Rodney Wallace starting every match this season, Brandon Barklage emerging as a fan favorite, and Milos Kocic potentially being the starting keeper in waiting, is it possible that the 2009 draft class is our greatest ever?

What I missed

I've been pretty busy with house additions and family functions the past couple weeks, so without the capability to DVR matches that frustatingly are not on television, my reactions to these past two matches are coming only from video highlights and the written opinions of other fans, bloggers, and reporters. But I promise to resume my normal weekly match discussions Friday night. In the meantime, here's some quick thoughts...

April 4: 1-0 Win over Houston
Top Shelf: Bryan Namoff (An assist and a game-saving clearance off the goalline to preserve the win and the clean sheet), Louis Crayton (Didn't have to do too much, but a shutout in week 3 is much better than waiting until week 17 like last year), and Luciano Emilio (Nice touch on the goal.
Call: Chris Pontius (Earned himself many good opportunities, but needs to convert).
Rail: Jamie Moreno (A sliding tackle from behind at midfield is a highly unnecessary reason to play the remainder of the match down a man).

April 10: 2-1 Loss to Real Salt Lake
Top Shelf: Luciano Emilio and Chris Pontius (Continue to be the stars of the 2009 season for us)
Call: Andrew Jacobson (A lot of mixed opinions on Jacobson in his first start as he did well on the ball, but maybe failed in some of his defensive responsibilities) and Dejan Jakovic (BDR touted a couple of nice pokes by Jakovic to extinguish opportunities, but a couple scary moments from him as well).
Rail: Louis Crayton (He is allowed exactly one blown save per season - this needs to be the only one), Christian Gomez (Third game in a row that I have not seen him appear in the highlights even once), and Devon McTavish (Did very little in his return).

The best analysis so far goes to D with this expert analogy:

So we arrive at United's first loss of the year, and it feels as if an annoying acquaintance has shown up to your party, but an hour late, just as you were hoping that he might not remember the invitation you extended out of some strange social obligation. But in your heart, you knew he was coming, and he'd tell his bad jokes, and hit on your friends, and double-dip into the guacamole. All we can hope is that he didn't bring a sleeping bag, and leaves next week at RFK.

New Years Resolutions for 2009

Open Cup victory aside, 2008 was not a very memorable year for DC United. Surely there's something that the front office and coaching staff can learn from their mistakes during that forgettable year. So in stealing a page from Fullback's playbook, here's a little holiday themed post. The following are my recommendations for new year's resolutions for 2009:

1. Don't let good players get away. Last offseason saw the departure of three consistent starters from our roster, all of whom went on to better things after leaving DC. Troy Perkins, Bobby Boswell, and Brian Carroll were all impact players for their new teams in 2008. And let's not forget our former MVP Christian Gomez! The DC front office has already made strides to correct this issue by re-signing Clyde Simms, and extending the contracts of McTavish, Burch, and Quaranta. But they still need to finalize a deal with Bryan Namoff, and the club should also make a strong attempt to bring Francis Doe back next year as well.

2. Stay out of South America. The biggest story last offseason was our acquisition of five new players from South America. Well only one remains under contract today. Even though the continent has delivered us some great players in the past, the front office should learn that you can't just take a soccer player from abroad and drop him into your lineup and hope for the best. That's not to say that DC shouldn't acquire ANYONE from a foreign league this offseason. We just need to make sure he fits into our system. There was a willy-nilly feel to our foreign approach last season, and that needs to be corrected through additional scouting and interviewing.

3. Use your DPs wisely. Marcelo Gallardo and Luciano Emilio are both set to return as Designated Players in 2009. Each has the talent to be among the top players in MLS, but that didn't show in 2008. It will be Tom Soehn's task to find a way to bring the best out of both of them. Maybe that's by changing the formation, maybe that's by upgrading or shifting around the supporting cast. If Soehn can't find a way to translate our upper echelon talent into upper echelon results, he might be looking for another job in 2010.

4. Utilize the draft. As my previous post revealed, only 24% of United's roster was drafted by the team, as opposed to 45% of players in Houston and 44% of players in New England. In MLS, as in many other professional sports leagues, a key to victory can be to draft quality talent, raise them in your system, and retain them. As we've seen, that method has worked out very well for the Dynamo and Revolution, but United has instead opted to build through international acquisitions. It's fine that we pride ourselves in discovering players from foreign nations and bringing them to the league, but that doesn't mean that we can't also get more out of our draft picks. With two selections in the first round, and with an apparently strong draft class, including a trio of Genaration Adidas Terps, DC should absolutely be able to draft a couple guys who can contribute in 2009 and for years to come.

5. Bury the 3-5-2. Sure, this formation has worked occasionally for some MLS teams. But unfortunately no one who plays defense for DC will be confused for Michael Parkhurst anytime soon. The 3-5-2 isn't an altogether horrible formation, but without speedy defenders who can stay organized and won't get beaten easily, and without a group of wingers who can contribute on both sides of the ball, we just don't have the personnel to make it work. Early in the 2008 season, DC attempted a 3-5-2 formation far too often, and I don't want to see it in 2009.

6. Roster stability is the key. As most of the above points have shown us, it's tough to win when you're constantly bringing in new players without an eye for the system, failing to retain proven players, and not building around the guys who you've already got in place. In 2009, I'd like to see DC United return all of their starters, add at least two college players who we can count on for occassional minutes, and maybe one or two foreign acquisitions with a specific target role in mind.

Here's to a happy 2009! May it be full of wins, shields, and cups!