Luis Silva scored a brace and Fabian Espindola made a spirited return to the starting lineup, as D.C. United halted a two-game losing streak with a thrilling 4-2 victory over the Colorado Rapids before 12,814 fans at RFK Stadium on Sunday night.
With D.C. Councilmember and mayoral candidate Muriel Bowser (D-Ward 4) on hand to tout plans for a new stadium, it was the kind of evening that may someday make fans nostalgic for United’s current home; the Black and Red delivered a vintage performance that had the house rocking throughout.
United’s offense—stagnant in recent losses in Houston and Salt Lake City—came to life early on, as Silva received a through-ball from Taylor Kemp just inside the box, juked Colorado defender Drew Moor, and beat goalkeeper Clint Irwin with a nifty right-footed shot to make it 1-0 in the 12th minute.
That score held until the 52nd minute, when the Rapids’ Dillon Serna equalized with a spectacular 30-yard strike, even sticking the landing on his acrobatic run of celebratory backflips.
Having literally taken Colorado’s best shot, United steadied themselves and responded in kind. Their attack—spearheaded by Espindola’s aggressiveness and creativity—put waves of pressure on the Rapids’ defense. In the 67th minute, Sean Franklin’s chipped pass into the box punctuated a clever buildup along the right wing, and a completely unmarked Silva once again was there to put away the finish. It was his 7th goal of the season; a career-high for the 4th year pro.
From there, the floodgates opened as Colorado threw numbers forward, leaving themselves vulnerable to United’s counterattacks. Kemp notched his second assist of the game during the 81st minute, making a strong run up the left wing before delivering a deft cross to a streaking Chris Rolfe, who banged it into the back of the net on his first touch.
Though Colorado would later pull one back, Espindola put the game out of reach in the 86th minute, taking a pass from newly signed forward David Estrada and confidently drilling a left-footed shot from 15 yards to cap United’s scoring flourish.
With the win, D.C. now sits two points behind Sporting Kansas City in MLS’ Eastern Conference, with a game in hand. The two clubs will square off in Kansas City this Saturday. Before then, the Black and Red return to action at RFK on Wednesday night, facing Jamaican club Waterhouse FC in their first match of the CONCACAF Champions League.
