Photo by SDCorumD.C. United takes a break from a seemingly endless string of stalemates in league play to continue their Open Cup defense tonight at RFK. The country’s oldest soccer tournament, the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup, unfortunately doesn’t save places for defending champs — despite bringing home the cup last season, DCU have to play in the early qualifying rounds this year because of their poor league finish last year. Up to speed? The Black-and-Red dispatched of FC Dallas with ease in qualifying round one, and tonight their rivals, the New York Red Bulls, make the trek down I-95 to battle for a spot in the Round of 16.
Unfortunately, the home side will be without Ben Olsen, out with a “grade 2” hamstring strain he suffered at Chivas over the weekend. With Real Salt Lake awaiting in MLS play on Saturday, it should be interesting to see which stars Coach Tom Soehn decides to play tonight. If they get in, be sure to keep an eye on the performance of Brandon Barklage and Andrew Jacobson, two youngsters who controlled the midfield in that 2-0 Cup win over Dallas. Plenty of tickets are still available. The game won’t be televised, but you can pick it up on the radio (English 1050 AM, Spanish 1540, 1600 AM).
Speaking of DCU radio, check out our recent interview with the club’s play-by-play man, Tony Limarzi.
