D.C. United entered the 2012 season as underdogs. Picked by many to finish near the bottom of the table, United have used their doubters as fuel for their fire. Players and coaches alike have talked consistently throughout the year about the lack of respect that’s been afforded to them by their opponents. After the club’s emotional 1-0 win over New York last Thursday, goalkeeper Bill Hamid marched up and down the halls of Red Bull Arena, pounding his chest and loudly proclaiming the team’s new mantra: “They can’t hold us back.”
Well, United will need to have that same attitude next weekend, because the hill they’re climbing just got much steeper. After a 3-1 loss to the Houston Dynamo that saw United lose three players to injury, them team finds itself down two goals on aggregate heading into next Sunday’s return leg at RFK Stadium (4 p.m., NBC Sports Network, Tickets.) Having lost for the first time in nine games, United will need to dig deep.
“These are stakes we haven’t had in a while, so hopefully we can fix that for next week.” Head Coach Ben Olsen said after the loss. “But in no way are we out of this. The beauty of it is we can score two goals, especially knowing that we need to score two goals. So next week should be a lot of fun.”
Houston relied on goals from Andre Hainault, Will Bruin and Kofi Sarkodie, but there were plenty of other factors that worked against United as well. Already missing starters Andy Najar and Bill Hamid to suspension, Chris Pontius was forced out of the game in the 12th minute after aggravating a groin injury that he’d been playing through for several weeks. Midfielder Marcelo Saragosa was the next to go, leaving in the 40th minute with a hamstring strain. By the time Brandon McDonald exited with a calf ailment early in the second half, the team Ben Olsen was forced to field looked more like one in a reserve league game.
The defining moment , however, wasn’t a goal or an injury—it was a missed call. Moving in alone on the Dynamo’s net, United midfielder Rafael Augusto—seeing his first MLS action after replacing Saragosa—was hauled down from behind by Hainault. It was a clear foul and a clear denial of a goal-scoring opportunity that should have been an automatic red card. Match referee Ricardo Salazar saw things differently, and allowed play to continue.
“Everybody in the stadium, everybody on our bench, everybody on their bench, everybody at home saw that that was a red card,” Olsen told The Washington Post.
D.C.’s lone strike came in the 27th minute when Nick DeLeon netted his second goal of the playoffs. Lionard Pajoy ran onto a feed from the rookie, and slotted the ball around Houston Goalkeeper Tally Hall—hitting the far post. DeLeon, who’d followed the play, was there to finish the rebound. It was the lone bright spot in a largely frustrating day for United.
So, how improbable would it be for United to come back from a two-goal deficit next Sunday? It depends on whom you ask. Ask a statistician or an analyst (like me), and they’ll tell you that the numbers don’t add up well for United. While the team has won by three goals or more four times this season, only one of those victories (a 4-1 drubbing of New York) came against a playoff team. And while Houston has been fairly dreadful on the road, they haven’t lost a game by three goals or more all year. Factor in the potential that United could once again be without the services of several regular starters, and their chances don’t look particularly bright.
Ask a D.C. United player, however, and you’ll get a compeltely different answer. “It’s fine.” goalkeeper Joe Willis said after the match. “We’re down two goals in the series; it’s halftime. We’re going back home, it hurts but it’s not the end of the world. It’s definitely something we can overcome.”
DeLeon sounded equally confident: “We can’t sit back, we’ve got to press. RFK is a fortress, we always seem to be on top of our game there so I don’t have any worries. I know we can win by two or more goals against this team.”
As a fan, I want to say that the team will roar back to life, vanquishing the Dynamo. Realistically, though, I think there’s a far greater chance that United will bow out of the playoffs on Sunday. I also think that the team has been proving people like me wrong all year, and I look forward to being pleasantly surprised.
Game Notes: Earlier in the week, the MLS Disciplinary Committee suspended Andy Najar for an additional two games for his ball-throwing incident. He’ll be available for MLS Cup, should the team qualify … As for the injuries sustained during the Houston match, Pontius, McDonald and Saragosa will be evaluated today by the team’s medical staff. All three players were walking under their own power after the match … In the Western Conference finals, defending MLS Champions LA Galaxy cruised to a commanding 3-0 win over Seattle, putting them in prime position to advance and—possibly—setting up a rematch with Houston, their opponent in the 2011 cup.
