| It was one of those matches where you'll gladly accept the win, pack your bags and head on home.
That's just about what D.C. United did on Saturday, much to the dismay of nearly 27,000 fans at Foxboro Stadium near Boston.
After playing a mediocre first half, D.C. United recovered with a 72nd minute goal from forward Tony Sanneh and shut out the New England Revolution, 1-0 in an important Eastern Conference matchup.
"Obviously we're very happy - anytime you get three points on the road in this league it's big," said D.C. United Coach Bruce Arena, whose team improved to 11-3 overall, with all three losses coming in shootout.
"I thought we were outplayed in the first half by the Revolution. They did a better job at getting after the ball and playing as a team. In the second half I thought we reversed that trend a little bit in our favor."
The win was D.C. United's sixth straight this season, and moved the club eight points ahead of the Revolution for first place in the Eastern Conference. Washington's 29 points lead the league.
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The win was D.C. United's sixth straight this season, and moved the club eight points ahead of the Revolution for first place in the Eastern Conference. Washington's 29 points lead the league.
A win would have brought New England to within one point of D.C. United for the conference lead.
"We never established any kind of rhythm from the opening minutes and I think both teams struggled to create chances or situations where they could score," said New England Coach Thomas Rongen, who on Tuesday was scheduled to assist US National Team Coach Steve Sampson in the squad's international friendly against Israel.
"Again, I think we were well-organized from a defensive standpoint but we were never able to do the things we wanted from an offensive standpoint."
Both teams struggled throughout the match offensively, often settling for long bombs on goal.
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Sanneh earned his third goal of the season on a D.C. United counterattack. After a Revolution attack broke down at the top of the United penalty area, Harkes took possession in the center circle and sent a through ball to Sanneh, who barely stayed even with the New England defense to stay onside.
Sanneh dribbled into the penalty area, pulled the ball back to beat a defender and, from the right side, shot back across the goal to beat goalkeeper Walter Zenga inside the far post.
United goalkeeper Jeff Causey, who was a last-minute replacement for Mark Simpson when Simpson injured his knee, posted his first career MLS shutout. United hasn't lost in regulation in 22 matches, dating back to last season.
D.C. United next travels to Kansas City on Saturday to take on the Wizards at 8:30 pm (HTS). |
