The voting for attacking midfielders has gone pretty much as anticipated so far, with heavy support for three fan favorites in Quaranta, Pontius, and Barklage, and an obvious dissatisfaction with Fred and Allen. The only moderate surprise to me has been that Gomez and Szetela are not both closer to the 50/50 mark. Click to continue reading...

1) I've updated the home/away records for each MLS team in each season through 2009:
Check them out here.
2) If Omar Gonzalez wins the Rookie of the Year award, he'll be the youngest winner ever. He was 20.72 years of age as of July 1st. The current record-holder is Carlos Bocanegra in 2000, at 21. Click to continue reading...

Contrary to popular belief, I don't give player ratings each game just for fun. I also use these ratings to formulate the yearly Annual DCUMD Ratings, or ADRs. Each Top Shelf is worth 5 points, each Call is worth 3, and each Rail is worth 1.
Soehn C R C C R T T R T R C R R R T R R (2. Click to continue reading...

The CONCACAF Champions League began its final week of group stage matches on Tuesday, October 20, 2009. Toluca faced DC United, the Columbus Crew traveled to play the Puerto Rico Islanders, and Cruz Azul faced Saprissa. Here's a recap of these matches along with video highlights.

Toluca draws with DC United 1-1 Video Highlights

DC United took an early lead with a great shot from Christ Pontius in the 5th minute but conceded a penalty as the two teams played to a draw.

Click to continue reading...

D.C. United gained in improbable 1-1 draw in Toluca tonight to temporarily put the Black and Red into second place in their CONCACAF Champions League final group stage match. Now they must wait until Thursday where Marathon now needs a win to advance to the knockout phase next winter. Click to continue reading...

I'm not going to spend a lot of time discussing a game we should of won big that we did win big. I saw some good things. And here we go...
Good Stuff!
- Christian Gomez. Every time I think that DC should cut ties with Gomez, he'll play like he dad last night. He definitely elevates his game in tournament play, and teams need players that can do that.

Click to continue reading...

As some have heard at this point, Josh Wicks is going to be out 4-6 weeks because of a dislocated shoulder and torn MCL. Milos Kocic is the next in line for goalkeeper. Bill Hamid is not available for league matches, only CONCACAF Champions League.

With Kocic in goal, how does DC work with this?

Click to continue reading...

D.C. United coughed up yet another lead and allowed the previously winless on the road San Jose Earthquakes to come into RFK and take away a potential playoff killing win over the Black and Red. United has now lost two consecutive home matches after going the first 11 matches of the season without allowing a loss. Click to continue reading...

DC United hosts Marathon on Sept 24 at RFK Stadium for CONCACAF Champions League. Last night Marathon took on Toluca. Toluca just helped United have a chance to go further in the Champions League by beating Marathon, by 7 goals! This could be the best opportunity DC has had since competing in the Champions League in the last 2 seasons.

Click to continue reading...

With DC United in the process of finalizing a loan for Tiyi Shipalane from the Harrisburg City Islanders, I was pretty darn confused as to the status of our roster, since we'll now have 27 players listed on our first team roster when the league maximum is 24. Sounds like a good time for a late season roster reset!

Click to continue reading...

Never before that I can think of has DC United made so many roster moves so late in the season. It's obvious that the team is trying to make a strong push for the playoffs, and trying to put together the best roster possible before the acquisition window closes for the season.
Since we last spoke, the team has made a couple new moves, including the signing of Lawson Vaughn. Click to continue reading...

You may have seen Luciano Emilio's goal last night in the team's 1-0 win over the visiting Wizards, but did you really take note of the hustle and awareness seen on the play from the Brazilian?

Jump ahead to the 2:05 mark to watch the goal again:

Take a look at who Christian Gomez plays the short corner - Senõr Emilio.

Click to continue reading...

Were there regulation in MLS, this would be called a relegation 6 pointer. DC United stinks on the road, but FC Dallas stinks everywhere. Dallas sits second to last in the Western Conference with 23 points, and DCU has 32 points which puts them in 4th in the East. Rapidly losing ground in the playoff race, with teams above them with games in hand, DC United needs to take care of business on the road and come back with all three points.

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We win trophies. But not all the time.

Great atmosphere at the stadium. My section was in between the Barra Brava and the Seattle supporters, and it was cool listening to the fans trying to out-sing each other. The fans in the sections who don't normally stand and sing were all standing and singing a lot more than usual.

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The last 10-15 minutes of regular time and stoppage time was amazing. It was totally frantic and United supporters were rewarded with a goal at the end of regulation. I was actually telling my wife that the set play off of that free kick should have been to fake it at goal and just slot it to Simms who was faking that run anyway. Click to continue reading...

Tonight's US Open Cup final showed yet again that DC United is quite simply a club in decline. An organization that once prided itself on winning MLSCups and succeeding abroad now pounds its chest about consolation trophies and about its increasingly distant successful past.
Tonight, United looked like a team that both was not as good as its opposition and one that simply is not listening to its coach anymore. Click to continue reading...

Greetings from the nation's capital. It's been what seems like months of build up to this evening. Barbs have been traded between each club, helping to spawn one of the biggest marketing campaigns for an Open Cup final.

More than a month after the U.S. Open Cup semifinals concluded, the Dewar Cup will finally be awarded tonight.

Click to continue reading...

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the last CONCACAF Champions League game my fiance and I will be attending until things change. The lineup put on the field to start was a sham. That backline had no prayer of stopping goals, as they had never played together, and one of the worst defenders I have ever seen, Avery John, was at center back.

Click to continue reading...

Allen runs down the Rookie of the Year candidates; the smart money is on Pontius or Zakuani. Click to continue reading...

Tomorrow marks the third inaugural "Beckham invades DC Tour". I've been to the two before, and I'll be to the third. In the two previous meetings, we saw two wins for DC, and the win last year in decisive fashion. The circumstances leading up to tomorrow's match are starkly different, with DC United on a steep decline and LA Galaxy as hot as fire.

Click to continue reading...

DC United announced a few roster moves today. As reported before, Julius James is coming after a trade with Houston for a 3rd Round Draft Pick in 2012.

DC announced that they have signed defender David Habarugira. Habarugira has played for the Burundi national team and in the Anderlecht (Belgium) youth system.

Click to continue reading...

Good afternoon. It's a hot and humid day down in the D.C. area, with a sea of Madrid-clad fans ready to watch their heroes take on D.C. United. Madrid's second match against MLS opposition will indeed be an interesting when you take into consideration the elements outside.

I'm in the press box at FedEx field, ready to take in all the action.

Click to continue reading...

This is the fourth in a recurring series where we look at the DC United season, five games at a time.
Results: 1-2-2. 9 GF, 11 GA
Standings: Third place in the Eastern Conference
Statistical Leaders: Christian Gomez (3 goals, 2 assists), Luciano Emilio (3 goals), Bryan Namoff, Jaime Moreno, and Fred (1 goal, 1 assist each)
Most frequent lineup:

What we liked:

• The Christian Gomez of 2007 - In the first half of the season, there was a wide variety of candidates for DC United's MVP: Quaranta, Pontius, Moreno, Gomez, maybe even Wicks or Jakovic.

Click to continue reading...

It's time for the Champions League to return. I just got home, so we join tonight's matches in progress. DC United 1-1 L.A. Firpo 66' Pachuca - Jalapa 1900 Commentary after the jump. 1832: Jaime Moreno exits, and Pontius enters for DCU. 1825: Lost possession by DCU (Jacobson I think) and Firpo go forward. Click to continue reading...

This match exhibited nothing but a lowly underperforming team working harder than a much more talented team. DC came out to a quick 2-0 lead, and apparently they thought they didn't need to do anything else for the next 70 minutes. That wasn't true.
There was also some definite bad luck for San Jose. Click to continue reading...

Boyzzz Khumalo's follow-up rebound of a Chris Pontius shot in the 82nd minute was the game-winner and D.C. United is off to their 4th U.S. Open Cup final. Click to continue reading...

It's pretty tough to forget the 3-0 loss the team suffered in Colorado last month at the hands of the Rapids. United was playing its third game in eight days, at altitude and without the services of Jaime Moreno, Luciano Emiliio and Fred.

This time around, the team will have Moreno, Emilio and Fred available for selection, but will be without Santino Quaranta (U.

Click to continue reading...

Americans Abroad / USMNT
The Case For Jimmy Conrad - MLS Talk
MNT Wins ESPY For 'Best Upset' - The MNT Blog
Beckerman's Turn - USSoccerPlayers.com
Johnson Concludes Australia Tour - Yanks Abroad
Thin Squad For Panama Encounter - Yanks Abroad
Zizzo Loan Halted By Heart Irregularity - Yanks Abroad
MLSnet Game Previews
- Conference Leaders Clash In Toronto
- United, Rapids Renew Rivalry Saturday
- Crew Chasing Home Streak Record
Chicago Fire
Well-Traveled Ward Finds Fit In Chicago - MLSnet
Video: Blanco Leads Fire To SuperLiga Final - Soccer By Ives
Fire vs. Click to continue reading...

Today Goff is reporting and United is confirming that the club has officially acquired Danny Szetela via the MLS allocation system. United continues to acquire more young talented players who could turn into fairly big stars.
Almost makes you wonder why FC Dallas would pass on this 22-year old kid with international experience. Click to continue reading...

If you'll forgive our stateside fixation on our Premier League blog, but today is decision day for those of us playing fantasy Major League Soccer. With Gold Cup in full swing, injuries and suspensions mounting and the odd schedule quirk it's a tough week to pick.
First of all you have a lot of good players on international duty. Click to continue reading...

I don't believe in the "win at home, draw on the road" theory, but that doesn't mean the idea doesn't have value. It has value, occasionally, it just shouldn't be a mantra. Columbus has come on recently, but the single significant win was a 2-1 victory over Chivas. The other four wins include 2 wins against Kansas City (including a nice 2-0 road win), a win at home against San Jose, and a win at home against New York.

Click to continue reading...

A 1-1 tie would have been a pretty good prediction going in, and isn't a bad result for us. But it feels good to say that this team deserved better. DC United dominated in scoring opportunities, with 11 shots on goal to Columbus's 3. But they were a bit more effective at converting their few opportunities, as we let the Crew off the hook far too often with failed chances and weak shots straight at the keeper. Click to continue reading...

D.C. United continued their habit of taking the lead only to allow the opposition to hang around and tonight in Columbus it resulted in an undeserved 1-1 draw. Click to continue reading...

Tomorrow night at the Maryland SoccerPlex, United takes on the Ocean City Barons in its first official game in U.S. Open Cup play. On June 16, the PDL Barons (the equivilant fourth division in the U.S.) defeated Real Maryland 1-0 on a penalty kick in extra time. Knowing little about their opponent, United's players discussed Tuesday's game and defending last year's Open Cup title.

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D.C. United saw thier three game unbeaten streak come to a crashing halt with a 3-0 drubbing at the hands of the Colorado Rapids. United is now 0-8-2 since 2000 in the state of Colorado. Click to continue reading...