D.C. United 2, Chivas USA 2: Match Review & Player Ratings
by Martin Shatzer on Sep 21, 2011 10:25 PM EDT
in Match Reviews & Reax
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The good news from this 2-2 draw between DC United and Chivas USA is that United's attack remains a force to be reckoned with. Five goals in two matches against the above average defense of Chivas USA is a pretty solid tally.
The problem is that we needed six.
United's attack isn't what we should be worried about. The boys can finish. That feels good to say after what we saw from United in 2010, and what we saw from Joseph Ngwenya in Seattle.
What we suddenly need to be worried about is the other side of the ball. The defense gave up five goals this week, and was bailed out by their goalkeeper to prevent a few more.
We never thought "heart" would be a problem with a team coached by Ben Olsen, but it was tonight.
There were other signs of danger in this match though that didn't exist in the first matchup between these two teams. For a 5-10 minute period prior to the second Chivas goal, United could not string together more than two touches at a time. That's why no one in RFK Stadium was surprised to see the visitors tie the game. Win the ball, clear it. Win the ball, clear it. That's not a strategy for victory when you're up by only one goal with 20+ minutes remaining.
Four points from two home games was our intention going into this week. Earning only one tonight while utilizing our best healthy lineup means United will have to work even harder to get the full points on Saturday against a Real Salt Lake team that just dominated the New York Red Bulls at RBA.
Full recap here. Player ratings below.
I thought Ethan White was the Man Of The Match for United in this one, and not just because of his clean and competent finish on his first career MLS goal. White won every header in his region and was our best defender on the night.
United's two wingers played a big part in the win, as each of them created a dead ball opportunity and then served up goals as a result. Andy Najar delivered a perfect cross to DeRo for the first goal after generating a free kick, and Santino Quaranta was consistently dangerous in his service from the left, although he'll go uncredited for an assist on the White goal.
Dwayne De Rosario was once again involved in almost every attack for United and always looked likely to score. He did, but only once. De Rosario failed to convert a gift of a penalty kick opportunity that we probably didn't really deserve.
Both of Chivas' goals were well-struck without giving Bill Hamid the opportunity to make a save, but the young goalkeeper made several other stops and was a force behind the defense.
Brandon McDonald was the closest thing we had to a goat tonight, as he was knocked down by Angel far too easily on the tying goal for Chivas. He was also the biggest culprit in the "win the ball, clear it" sweepstakes. Like White, he won all of the headers sent in his direction. Well all except the one that mattered most.
I'm not going to blame McDonald though for slipping while trying to mark Nick LaBrocca on the cross leading up to Juan Pablo Angel's goal. But I am going to place some blame on Daniel Woolard for doing an impression of an orange traffic cone in no man's land in the box while LaBrocca got off the cross without pressure, as well as Perry Kitchen for losing the battle to Angel on the header.
The final pass was what United lacked many times in the second half, and King was the one who missed that pass on two or three occasions. United went long stretches in the second half without sustained possession, and coincidentally or not, those stretches began when King entered the field.
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What?
A 4 for a player that failed to convert a game winning PK? And United’s attack-they were out shot (both overall shots and SOG) by Chivas – CHIVAS.
Yes, the defense was poor but pretty much everyone was (save Najar, although he didn’t really contribute much in second half).
Sorry to say...
Olsen may be the goat. Why push DeRo up top when we’re up? Or any time ever? Granted, his bench was limited, but those subs killed the game.
I disagree about the subs.
We started losing ground to Chivas before Benny made those subs. Granted, the subs didn’t do anything to turn things around, but you could tell the momentum was clearly in Chivas’ favor before we started to switch out our lineup.
by DCUFaninMissouri on Sep 22, 2011 12:10 AM EDT up reply actions
This
The only time United felt really in control were the opening 5 minutes of the second half, which were spent putting really good pressure on the Chivas D. Result: Mr. Ethan White converting our first corner kick goal of the year. The other 85+ minutes, United were disappointing in possession and too content to allow crosses in, particularly from our left side.
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BlakeBrett
Was he hurt or something? Because I agree with rke that moving DeRo up top didn’t help anything. DC needed to sub in another forward for Davies. Also that’s the second home game I’ve been to where a blown PK cost points. BlakeBrett seems to have fallen off the radar which is a pity. Definitely would pick him over him Ngwenya from now on…
On the plus side DC finally scored on a header and finally scored on a corner kick. Now could we win 2 games in a row?
If I had to guess
I’d say it’s pretty likely that Brettschneider his a combination of the rookie wall and a loss of form after his concussion-caused layoff. Kid’s got a lot of promise, and unlike Ngwenya, I expect he’ll be around next year to build on his pretty strong 2011.
We’ve gotta win one game before we can win two in a row. Ugh.
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Blakebrett was pretty awful in his last start. But I’d still prefer awful from a rookie with potential over awful from a journeyman on the downside of his career.
Managing Editor for BlackAndRedUnited.com. Weekly Columnist for SB Nation D.C..
by Martin Shatzer on Sep 22, 2011 8:12 PM EDT up reply actions
Just like last week,
lack of depth and inconsistent play proved to be our downfall. Also, I think it’s awful that being at home seems to be a disadvantage for us. Does RFK just suck everyone down into the abyss or what?
by DCUFaninMissouri on Sep 22, 2011 12:14 AM EDT reply actions
I dont understand what Olsen sees in King????
Can someone explain this if u know…? Totally agree with ratings… I think Charlie Davies is NOT a starting forward just does not show anything not one shot or a pass to a teammate that i can recall.
by Malva85 on Sep 22, 2011 12:36 AM EDT via iPhone app reply actions
King has his uses.
He’s pretty consistent, doesn’t blow off his defensive responsibilities, and has a very good understanding of off-the-ball movement and attacking development. The fact that he is also technically deficient in all areas (passing, shooting, tackling) is what limits him to a bench role. He looks worse than he is right now b/c he’s generally subbing for DeRo and playing alongside Simms, so he’s forced to be a pure playmaker, which he certainly isn’t. He showed much better alongside Dax.
With the low price tag, he’s a good guy to have on your MLS roster.
by Stunned Duck on Sep 22, 2011 9:48 AM EDT up reply actions
Defensive-minded substitution?
Or just out of attackers? Wolff out and King in looks like you want to buttress your defense. Now, if true, I’d say that was a day late and a dollar short. After their first goal, it seemed pretty clear that we had a whole new set of challenges before us and were unlikely to get away with defensive bunkering for the rest of the night. The King move diminishes the attack. But Wolff’s only got so much gas. Then you look at who Ben’s got at his disposal: After Da Luz comes in, it’s Korb, Barklage, Burch, Ngwenya, plus Willis on the bench. No wonder we used only two subs. It’s not just that we’re missing Pontius. We’re missing Tino off the bench at the hour mark. (And Fred.)
Out of attackers
We lack depth. Like you mentioned, Benny didn’t have many options for attack. He also has to keep in mind that we play again on Saturday.
I understand the substitution. Olsen brought in King to try to get more possession in the center third. That’s been King’s greatest strength in my opinion: finding the open spaces to be his teammates’ outlet pass. So moving Wolff to the bench (which was truly necessary) meant that the only viable reserve forward option was DeRo. Lack of depth is certainly an issue (why wasn’t Blakebrett on the bench?), but I didn’t disagree with the sub from a tactical perspective.
King just had a shitty night.
Managing Editor for BlackAndRedUnited.com. Weekly Columnist for SB Nation D.C..
by Martin Shatzer on Sep 22, 2011 8:10 PM EDT up reply actions
Unfortunately,
On a good night for King the net effect is pretty close to our pre-DeRo attack, with King as understudy for Dax. The possession in the middle third will be more useful construed defensively than for its dangerousness going into the final third.
Woolard
This is two games in a row where he’s spent too much time chasing plays and not closing down crossers. For a “stay at home” fullback who’s not going to contribute much to the attack, Woolard has to be money defensively. (Though, granted, he did get forward a little bit more than usual last night, but even then, he cut inside instead of providing width and crosses.) At the end of last season, he was the closest thing we had to “money” in that spot, but now, he’s looking less and less so, as opponents realize that we’re weakest defensively down our left flank.
Is there such thing as a USL-call up wall? Because Woolard’s hit it. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but maybe it’s time we got a look at Burch back at left back. (And for the love of Pete, somebody get us a proper left back come the offseason.)
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This.
My EPL team of choice is Aston Villa, so this has become a bit of a sore spot for me. I’m really tired of seeing (general) managers blow off the fullback positions like they don’t matter. Fullbacks who can’t contribute to the attack are a major source of “inconsistency” in team goal scoring… but since their involvement is at the beginning of the goal-scoring process, rather than the end, nobody pays attention. Fullbacks with defensive deficiencies put severe pressure on the rest of the squad by failing to prevent dangerous situations from even occurring. I know good ones don’t grow on trees, but grinding along year after year with guys like Burch and Woolard back there is hurting us badly.
by Stunned Duck on Sep 22, 2011 9:56 AM EDT up reply actions
We had a left fullback who was a good defender and also contributed to the attack
Then we traded him to Portland.
And its ironic that the USMNT is coming up here because this fullback just happened to have scored AGAINST the USMNT earlier this month.
His name is Rodney Wallace.
If we hadn’t turned Dax McCarty into Dwayne De Rosario, I’d really be regretting the McCarty-Wallace trade right about now.
Managing Editor for BlackAndRedUnited.com. Weekly Columnist for SB Nation D.C..
by Martin Shatzer on Sep 22, 2011 8:34 PM EDT up reply actions
OMG
I’d already set Wallace aside in my head as if he had never been here.
But yeah, assuming we get DeRo to come back, even just a couple of years of him is worth having moved Wallace away. DD is that good. Even if, as you note below, nobody on this squad (with the exception of Pontius) has gelled with him in the attack.
by Stunned Duck on Sep 22, 2011 9:00 PM EDT up reply actions
Disagree on Rod Wall being a “good defender,” he’s gotten caught ballwatching a few times leading to conceded Timbers goals.
"My favorite fan base in D.C. Is United's. Period. The end." - Steinberg
"This [job] would be so much easier if it wasn't for the fucking [customers]."
by Bald Pollack on Sep 22, 2011 9:34 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
left backs are hard to find
Just ask the USMNT. I do think Burch is the better option. He actually looked good during the early part of the season. His crosses may not always be on target, but at least he sends them in and he gives us width in the attack. At this point, I don’t know that he’d be any worse defensively than Woolard. I really don’t think Woolard is all that bad, but the common phrase “not good enough” comes to mind. Why not give Burch some minutes?
Because Burch has already amply demonstrated that he is also “not good enough”? He’s a bit more imposing than Woolard physically and at least knows there’s an attacking half of the field to play on, but he’s also clumsy and (IMO) less consistent. On a contending MLS team, there is a word for the quality of play either provides, and that word is: backup.
by Stunned Duck on Sep 22, 2011 5:16 PM EDT up reply actions
Reconfirming an old adage
The adage is that the most dangerous lead to have in a futball match is 2-0. DCU proved that in spades last night.
Fans can write thousands of words today about the second-half collapse, but Ben Olsen’s post-match comments say it best:
"I haven’t seen consistent, game-after-game, high-level performances. The talent is there. Talent is not enough. I’ve been on terrible teams that won games just because you have guys who will do anything — anything — to win a game. . . . That part is missing, and it’s got to stop. I don’t know necessarily how to instill it right now, but certainly I’m going to do my best and try to fix it."
It will be interesting to see how the squad responds in the tough road immediately ahead — Real Salt Lake at RFK and away tests in Philadelphia, Columbus and Vancouver. It’s not hard to envision 0-4 if DCU doesn’t develop the heart Olsen is talking about — and brought to the field during his playing days.
Two brief observations: Pontius’ heart is sorely missed, and justice was served when DeRo missed the PK.
Chivas
We should talk about them a bit as well. For me, the turning point in the match was when Justin Braun came on. He completely energized Chivas on the attack and brought some speed (of all things) into their game. I agree that we weren’t so hot for most of the first half, but the Goats just weren’t dangerous. We had fewer chances, but a couple of ours had plausibility as goal-scoring opportunities in a way theirs didn’t. Braun comes on, and we are still in complacency mode, missing the shift in tempo he brings until the ball is in our net two minutes later. Comptois was also a very good sub for them. Obviously Angel was their MOTM, but I’d say Braun’s entry was decisive. Good for the Goats for pouring it on, very disappointing for us in failing to adjust.
No two ways about it
We played poorly last night. I’m glad we got some set pieces to go our way, but in the run of play we didn’t look good. Chivas outplayed us for pretty much the entire match, and certainly in the second half. Benny is right about us having the talent, but not doing enough to win. Not making the post season will be a disappointment, even with the injuries to Boskovic and Pontius. Given the lackluster state of the Eastern Conference, there is no excuse to not get enough points to make the 10 team field with our talent.
I’m not sure what to make of Davies. I think some of the criticism he gets comes from the fact that he can’t create his own shot, but he hasn’t been able to do that all year. He needs to be set up or clean up a rebound. But that’s an important intangible, being at the right place at the right time. Charlie also makes plenty of good runs, but there are plenty of times where his teammates can’t get him the ball. If he holds up to receive the ball, he’s good enough to turn and make some jukes, but it usually only gets him to the end line, not a good shot on goal. I’m not sure if Charlie is still struggling to be the player he was, or if this is as good as he can be post fatal car accident. Form is not easy to regain for a striker (just ask Fernando Torres), but even at the level Charlie is at now is good enough to be a starter on this team. He and Wolff are our best options up top.
Oh, and DeRo did flop on that PK call. That was pretty obvious. I wonder if the league will take action. I would have loved a 3-2 win, but it would have felt a little dirty. But, hey, we needed the 3 points so I could have lived with it.
I'm worried that there isn't really any chemistry between DeRo and Davies
They’re both great players in their own right, but they have different styles. Davies needs service. DeRo likes to do things himself.
Managing Editor for BlackAndRedUnited.com. Weekly Columnist for SB Nation D.C..
by Martin Shatzer on Sep 22, 2011 8:46 PM EDT up reply actions
Another way
in which the loss of Pontius really kills us.
by Stunned Duck on Sep 22, 2011 9:01 PM EDT up reply actions
Davies and DeRo
Its true from what we have seen that these two dont seem to connect at all… I feel davies should come in as a last 25- 30 min sub ( for either wolff or brettschnieder), not a starter from what i have seen from him…and would also rather see barklage instead of king(just cant mantain possesion or make a positive pass.
by Malva85 on Sep 23, 2011 12:15 AM EDT via iPhone app reply actions
STARTING LINEUP VS RSL
Hamid
kitchen white ( jakovic??) Mcd wolrd
Quart Simms DeRo(AM) Da luz
Wolff. Najar
by Malva85 on Sep 23, 2011 12:22 AM EDT via iPhone app reply actions
Najar
I think olsen should put najar up at forward like he did with pontius, and bring davies on as a second half sub for wolff..I doubt olsen will do this but i feel like it might work..we must get 3 points on saturday. VAMOS UNITED!!!
by Malva85 on Sep 23, 2011 12:27 AM EDT via iPhone app reply actions
I think part of the reason that the team has never really used Najar up top is that he has more defensive skills than any other winger. Those skills are less effective as a forward. From Najar to Da Luz is a major dropoff on the wing.
Managing Editor for BlackAndRedUnited.com. Weekly Columnist for SB Nation D.C..
by Martin Shatzer on Sep 24, 2011 7:38 AM EDT up reply actions
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