D.C. United vs. FC Dallas staff and reader predictions

Yes, D.C. United played just a few days ago, and yes, they lost again. Today we’ve got another away game, this time against an FC Dallas team flirting with the top of the Western Conference.

Can the Black-and-Red get a result and make our holiday a little brighter? Our hearts want to say yes, but our brains are mostly saying...yeah, no.

Donald Wine II

After what seems like 500 games in the span of two weeks, the Black-and-Red head off to Big D for a matchup on Independence Day. Hopefully they brought the fireworks they seemingly left at the Canadian border. Will the team break out of this scoring funk that has seen only two goals from the run of play in two months? Will they take it to a Dallas team that plays pretty tough at home? I’d love to say that I’m seeing something of promise that will give me the confidence to say that on America’s birthday the team of the nation’s capital will emerge victorious. But, I just don’t see it. Dallas grabs two quick ones and while United does actually score one, it ends as 2-1 to FCD.

Ben Bromley

D.C. United is playing the one of the best team's in the league on the shortest rest of the season, with this game being the seventh in exactly three weeks. At least, after this game, they get a couple of weeks off. Dallas are coming off a 3-1 win over Toronto, and are such a deep team that it won't matter much the amount of rotation that they require; I just can't see D.C. United beating them right now. 2-0 to Dallas.

Ryan Keefer

Building onto Ben's observation, Dallas beat Toronto, and did so without Kellyn Acosta and Matt Hedges helping them out. I thought D.C. would do something against an Impact side missing their best player, and I'm hard pressed to wonder what they'd do against this group, in a place where they haven't won in almost a decade. 3-0 to Dallas, two from Maximiliano Urruti, one from Javier Morales on a free kick, who will spell Mauro Diaz and look good against this bad midfield in the process.

Jason Anderson

This will be United’s 7th game since playing Christos FC, which was only three weeks ago. It hasn’t gone well for the team, and it has caused me to work myself into a half-mad state writing about soccer. As such, I have this voice in my head that keeps saying this is a classic “MLS is nuts” kind of game. That voice says United shocks Dallas with an early goal (Steve Birnbaum, set piece header), and even when the home team replies through Michael Barrios, the Black-and-Red are undaunted. In a lively game, United somehow escapes with a 2-1 win thanks to Lamar Neagle finishing off a counter.

The rest of my brain says 3-1 Dallas, with DCU scoring after it’s already 3-0.

Adam Taylor

Call me crazy, but I think the Black-and-Red actually grab an unlikely result out of this one. United have played better in recent weeks, even if the finishing hasn't been there and the worrying tendency to switch off for a play or two has continued unabated. It finishes 1-1 after rapid-fire strikes from Ian Harkes and Michael Barrios late in the first half, and los Capitalinos enter the Gold Cup break with the slightest bit of positive momentum.

Leanne Elston

Lol, okay, this one is a solid loss for me as well. I don’t even really have much more to say about it—Dallas are a better team, and a visiting DCU just aren’t going to beat them. Ultimately it’s another 2-0 loss for the Black-and-Red.

What are your predictions for tonight’s game? Share them in the comments, and don’t forget to take today’s silly poll! This one is inspired by the fact that I recently watched Moana for the first time (if you remember my poll a few days ago, it was on my Netflix list!).