United 2, Chivas 1
By Dan Steinberg
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, September 27, 2007
D.C. United had been on the wrong end of enough trips to Latin America, its players said this week. With storied Mexican club CD Chivas Guadalajara coming to the District to open a Copa Sudamericana round of 16 series last night, United set its sights on building a comfortable lead before next week's return trip to Mexico.
It surely wasn't comfortable, but after a wild night at RFK Stadium, United has its lead. Despite playing a man down for the second half, United held off an unrelenting Chivas attack to emerge with a 2-1 advantage in front of a split crowd of 21,022.
United went ahead on a Ben Olsen tally in the first half and, despite losing left back Marc Burch to a second yellow card just before halftime, pushed its lead to 2-0 on a Clyde Simms strike in the 55th minute. From there on, United attempted to survive. After three defensive substitutions and several diving stops by goalkeeper Troy Perkins, who finished with five saves, United ensured that a draw in the return leg would be enough to move into the Copa Sudamericana quarterfinals.
"We said, 'Let's see some smiles, and in 45 minutes it'll all be worth it,' " Olsen said of the team's mind-set after Burch was sent off. "Guys helped out, and even guys who aren't our defensive specialists put some work in. . . . And on the back they just gutted it out."
As players emphasized in the run-up to this South American club tournament, last night's opener was vital to United's chances. After a league game on Saturday, United will depart for Mexico on Sunday and face Chivas again Tuesday night at Jalisco Stadium, the site of United's elimination from the CONCACAF Champions Cup this spring. The club is 0-5 against Mexican teams away from RFK Stadium, suffering a 15-4 goal differential in those games.
United and Chivas squared off in a similar home-and-home series in the Champions Cup; the teams drew at RFK before Chivas recorded a 2-1 victory in Mexico.
The lineups were substantially different last night, but once again the stands were filled with chanting and whistling Chivas fans, waving both their club's red-white-and-blue flags and the Mexican tri-colors. United's supporters responded with similar passion. "Can you smell what United is cooking" read one banner, referring to Chivas's nickname, the "Goats."
But it was the visitors who enlivened the early moments, testing the flanks of United's defense again and again with hopeful passes to the elusive Omar Bravo and Alberto Medina. United's first dangerous chance came in the 19th minute, when Burch's swooping cross just missed a diving Luciano Emilio.
But United's possession gradually improved, and the hosts were rewarded when midfielder Christian Gomez took the ball nearly the length of the field before leaving it wide for Fred, whose cross to Jaime Moreno fizzled.
As Moreno lay on the ground in frustration, a failed clearance sent the ball to Olsen. He pounded a bouncing shot into the left corner of the net, past a diving Luis Michel, putting United on top in the 23rd minute.
The throaty Chivas contingent finally had reason to celebrate when Burch received a second yellow card from referee Hector Baldaffi for a late tackle in the 44th minute. The ejection also means Burch will not be available for United's trip to Mexico. "I thought the red card was a bit soft," Coach Tom Soehn said, "but it was a situation Burch should have never gotten into."
The Mexican club's onslaught commenced immediately after the second half began. United still countered when possible, and managed the crucial second goal in the 55th minute after Gomez earned a free kick outside the box. Gomez's ensuing blast deflected to the waiting Simms, a defensive stalwart, who unleashed a low strike.
"It felt great when it came off [my foot], and I looked up and it was in the back of the net," Simms said. "I didn't really know what to do. I can't even remember what I did, I just started running."
Immediately, midfielder Josh Gros replaced Moreno in a defense-for-offense substitution, but Chivas continued to flood the attacking zone and finally broke through in the 61st minute. Halftime substitute Xavier Ivan Baez guided a cross to the unmarked Sergio Santana, who easily slotted the ball past Perkins to draw the visitors within a goal. They would get no closer.
"We were getting chances but we weren't scoring goals, it's that simple," Chivas Coach Jose Manuel de La Torre said through an interpreter.
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