D.C. United versus Philadelphia Union lineup: Will Wayne Rooney start?

D.C. United is the in the can’t stop won’t stop part of their season, and so they take on the Philadelphia Union later tonight at Audi Field. After a frustrating but also decent performance against the New York Red Bulls, the team will have to make some changes on short rest; the changes are also complicated by the injury to Yamil Asad. But points are key, and especially points at home, so Ben Olsen will have to make it work on the fly.

The injury to Yamil Asad would traditionally mean that Zoltan Stieber would slot immediately in from the bench to take over, but his last appearance was less than stellar. Ulises Segura, on the other hand, has come back from injury and put together a quiet but solid tenure coming off the bench. I still think that Olsen will go with Stieber tomorrow night, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Segura gets the call either (perhaps even to spell Paul Arriola, if Olsen wants to give more players some rest).

Up the spine of the team, there is no one who can really currently spell Luciano Acosta and, while I think that Darren Mattocks can do it, I do not think that Olsen will rest Wayne Rooney from the start for this game. Hopefully, United can get a couple of goals early and they can pull both of them by the 70th minute or so. The team has been closely monitoring their biometrics, so they should have a good idea of how far they can go.

Tonight’s game would also be the perfect time to get Chris Durkin some minutes next to Russell Canouse, who has been excellent as the more advanced of the two defensive midfielders. Durkin’s long passes from deep could compliment Canouse’s game well, and Canouse’s disruption of the passing lanes will put Durkin under less pressure. Similarly, this could be a good chance to get Vytas some in-game minutes and to see how he integrates with the rest of the normal back line.

What do you want to see Ben Olsen do tonight?