United's Collapse Late in Opening Half Proves Costly
Ching's Pair Leads Houston's 3-Goal Burst Over 3:49: Dynamo 4, United 3
United midfielder Christian Gómez tries to put a foot on a high ball between Dynamo teammates Ricardo Clark, left, and Brian Ching in the opening half.
(By Julio Cortez -- Associated Press)
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Sunday, August 2, 2009
HOUSTON, Aug. 1 -- D.C. United's 4-3 loss to the Houston Dynamo on Saturday night was all but decided in a brief stretch late in the first half, a ghastly three-goal downfall that emerged without warning and kept the club on a troubling pace heading into the final third of MLS's regular season.
United did offer an admirable response after halftime with three goals, including Luciano Emilio's second of the evening that sliced the margin to one in the 87th minute before 14,694 at steamy Robertson Stadium. But the Western Conference leaders sweated out four minutes of added time to add to United's week of woes.
"It was so embarrassing, so in the second half, we just tried to prove to ourselves that we still believe in each other," United captain Jaime Moreno said. "We learned another hard lesson. We're still making mistakes and we're getting punished."
The Dynamo (10-5-5) scored in the 36th minute, then in the 38th and again in the 39th to break open an uneventful match -- three goals conceded in a disastrous 3 minutes 49 seconds for United (6-4-10), which has never won in Houston in five visits.
United didn't buckle, however. After Emilio and Houston's Stuart Holden traded goals, Fred closed the gap to two and Emilio added his second.
"To come back from three goals is just not easy to do," D.C. Coach Tom Soehn said. "I credit our guys for at least fighting through."
The early breakdown was United's third disappointing display in eight days, but at least it managed ties in the previous two outings: a league draw at lowly San Jose and a home deadlock with Salvadoran club Firpo in the CONCACAF Champions League.
United's situation doesn't get any easier. On Tuesday, the club faces Firpo in the second leg of the series in San Salvador and then returns home for an Aug. 9 friendly against world power Real Madrid at FedEx Field.
"After something like this where we feel like we let ourselves down, it's important to get back on the field and we're excited it comes early," Soehn said.
After resting several starters in the first Firpo game, Soehn turned to his regulars against the Dynamo. Santino Quaranta was back in the lineup after returning from U.S. Gold Cup duty, while the Dynamo welcomed back striker Brian Ching and midfielder Stuart Holden from the same tournament.
Both clubs generated modest opportunities the first 35 minutes before Houston awakened with a fury. The first goal was preventable as Brad Davis lashed a 20-yard shot from the top corner of the penalty area. Goalie Josh Wicks might've been distracted by Geoff Cameron making a back-post run and never reacted as the ball buzzed past him and into the far corner.
"I was a little screened but not too much," Wicks said after his poorest performance of an otherwise breakout season. "I saw it from a good 10 yards out and just got caught frozen."
