Anyone that follows European football knows that trash talk as seen through the pages of the attention-seeking press is simply part and parcel of the game. Usually, though, claims like, “Rooney: Toffees can gimme hell,” “Walcott: Teams are running scared of us,” or “SUPER CALEY GO BALLISTIC, CELTIC ARE ATROCIOUS” are simply the media convenient disregard of context in favor of dry sensationalism. On the other hand, the American game, still comparatively in its infancy, has not quite experienced such abortions of media — of course, us reporters don’t have to do much when assistant coaches around the league are spewing out things like this:
DC keeper Louis Crayton is poor and New England would be well advised to test him as often as possible…DC United really only has one or two players that would start for the Revolution, which is sometimes how I judge a team…Gomez seems to be unable to free himself from close marking and it is clearly affecting his side’s game….Oh, and I figured out what Fred does during a match. He kicks people. That is it. Really….DC United, lacking in quality on the pitch, will try to stifle and slow down the Revolution by any means.
That, spewed from the mind of Houston goalkeepers coach Tim Hanley, can’t be decontextualized — he just thinks United stinks. (Though it could just be amnesia: Mr. Hanley probably just forgot about his side’s 1-0 loss to the Black-and-Red just 13 days ago.)
“Lacking in quality?” Well, thanks for trying, Mr. Hanley. Despite your assessment, D.C. thoroughly outplayed New England, and a display of sheer guts and tenacity from Ben Olsen overcame the club’s poor luck to earn United a point with a 1-1 draw with the Revolution yesterday evening.
United fielded what is likely their choice XI: Jaime Moreno returned to the fray after his red card-forced suspension last week at Real Salt Lake; Olsen also returned after missing the 2-1 loss in Utah. While United boasted a rare clean bill of health, New England was dealing with a multitude of injuries, including striker Taylor Twellman, who scored twice against United last season.
United’s verve certainly showed on both fronts. With Moreno and Olsen in the lineup, the home side bossed the field throughout the game, earning a 20-4 advantage in shots. But a few fine saves from keeper Brad Knighton, combined with some rough finishing, kept New England in the thick of things. Coach Tom Soehn later admitted that the team was “disappointed that [they] didn’t take the three points” — but while the bottom line might not have been what they were hoping for against the Eastern Conference-leading Revs, there was plenty to be pleased about for the Black-and-Red.
