LANDOVER, Md. – D.C. United welcomed the Columbus Crew on Saturday evening, playing in a stadium painted in some familiar colors: the burgundy and gold of the D.C. area’s local NFL franchise.
But this wasn’t a game played at RFK Stadium, the former home of that team. There, those colors have faded over the years into varying shades of yellow and orange. United faced the Crew at FedEx field, the nightcap of a doubleheader that also featured an opener between defending World Cup champions Spain and Central American side El Salvador.
D.C. and Columbus played to a 0-0 draw, while Spain cruised to an entertaining 2-0 win over La Selecta, riding a David Villa brace to victory in their last match before departing for the World Cup.
The opener was certainly a tale of two teams headed in distinctly different directions. Spain took the pitch at FedEx just a day away from heading to Brazil, where La Furia Roja will look to win an unprecedented fourth consecutive major tournament. They’d use the match to test the fitness of several key players ahead of their departure.
El Salvador failed to qualify for the World Cup and stepped onto the field less than a year after emerging from a match-fixing scandal that decimated their player pool. They’d hope mainly for a respectable showing in front of what amounted to a home crowd of 53,267. The D.C. metro area, home to over 280,000 Salvadoran-Americans, is actually the fourth largest concentration of Salvadorans in the world — including cities in El Salvador.
Spain were dominant through both halves but struggled to find the back of the net during the game’s opening stanza.
Three minutes in, the Spaniards were handed their first opportunity in the form of a penalty kick. Xabi Alonso played a looping ball over the top to Atletico Madrid forward Diego Costa, who was taken down in the area. FC Barcelona midfielder Cesc Fabregas, however, would miss the ensuing PK, giving the Salvadorans a temporary reprieve.
An overwhelmed El Salvador team fell back and did well enough to defend, rarely advancing the ball past the center stripe but nonetheless keeping Spain off the scoresheet throughout the opening 45. Spain moved the ball at will, stringing together 400 passes in the first half and displaying their trademark “tiki taka” brand of possession-oriented soccer.
Fifteen minutes into the second stanza, La Roja would pull ahead. Real Madrid defender Sergio Ramos nodded a ball across the area to Costa. Newly acquired NYCFC forward Villa, however, headed the ball off of Costa’s foot and into the goal, giving the Spaniards a 1-0 lead, enough to secure the victory. Worn down by the Spanish attack, El Salvador never looked capable of equalizing.
The Spaniards put the game further out of reach in the 87th minute when Villa added his second tally, collecting a cross ten yards from goal, turning and stroking the ball past Hernandez with an impressive, instinctive finish.
The match between D.C. United and the Crew was a bit less entertaining, with both sides struggling to adapt to the pitch at FedEx Field.
“It was slow and thick,” United head coach Ben Olsen told DCist after the match. “It’s not built for soccer. It was built for big boys who run around and tackle each other. We thought it was a little slow but both teams had to deal with it. It didn’t make for the most attractive soccer, but we had our looks.”
Both teams carved out a handful of opportunities in the first half. In the 10th minute, Crew forward Jairo Arrieta’s attempt would skim wide of the goal. Four minutes later, United’s Luis Silva would strike a free kick from 25 yard out that flew inches wide of Crew goalkeeper Steve Clark’s net.
Fellow midfielder Nick Deleon had a golden opportunity in the 39th minute, but failed to connect with a loose ball just six yards from goal. Five minutes later, United midfielder Chris Rolfe would get his chance, but his driven effort from 20 yards out would miss the mark by mere inches.
A back and forth second 45 saw both teams trade fire, though neither side seemed to want to seize control of the match. Deep into second half stoppage time, however, D.C. would be handed a golden opportunity to secure the victory.
United forward Conor Doyle collected the ball at the edge of the area, swiveling and playing a ball back towards a teammate. Columbus defender Bernardo Anor, however, was in the way and was deemed to have handled the ball in the area.
Fabian Espindola stepped up to take the ensuing penalty, coolly and rather mind-bogglingly striking a “Panenka” – right into the hands of a stationary Clark. Woof.
