D.C. United 1-Toronto FC 1
A point is a point. It is a cliche saying and probably has been a bit overused. But it still holds value, especially when sides struggle for 89 minutes and somehow still end up with something. Case in point: D.C. United on Saturday night. Despite not having their best effort a late Wayne Rooney penalty sees them earn a valuable point against Toronto FC in a 1-1 draw.
The heat and humidity didn’t seem to bother either side at the start of the first half with both teams showing their attacking spark. Toronto had the first best chance at goal in the 13th minute when Laurent Ciman hit a right-footed shot that just narrowly went right of the goal. United had an excellent chance of their own just two minutes later when Luciano Acosta intercepted a pass deep inside Toronto territory. Wayne Rooney connected with a Lucho on the attempt however his shot would go over the bar.
For Toronto the key to breaking down the United defense was using their speed on the outside to make D.C.’s outside backs cave inwards. Defender Richie Laryea had been giving Chris McCann problems from the start of the match and in the 19th minute it finally paid off. Laryea broke past McCann and hit a low pass into the box that Nick DeLeon blasted into the back of the net. The goal was DeLeon’s third of the season.
Despite being down a goal D.C. continued to press using the precision passing to create chances for Acosta and Rooney and inevitably free kick opportunities. Their best opportunity came in the 39th minute when Rooney lifted a free kick towards the far corner. Ulises Segura was there with the header but so too was Toronto goalkeeper Quentin Westberg who made the stop.
In the second half Toronto tightened up their defenses, using a zonal marking strategy in the midfield to limit D.C. possession. It worked with the home side being forced to mostly lob chances off of crosses and set pieces. Their best chance came in the 58th minute when Zoltan Stieber broke past the Toronto defense and appeared to have a clear chance at goal. But he was stymied at the last minute by defender Justin Morrow who tracked the Hungarian international down and knocked the ball out of bounds.
Rooney was also fairly limited in what he could do in the second half, facing multiple defenders at close range. He peeled off Liam Fraser in the 71st minute and whipped a shot from just inside the eighteen yard box that at first appeared destined for the back of the net. But Westberg made an excellent read on the shot and made the save.
Still United continued to press the Toronto backline and in the dying minutes of the match they were rewarded. In the minutes prior United center-back Frederic Brilliant had been taken down in the box by a Toronto defender. Although the play went to VAR it was ruled in United’s favor setting up Rooney for a late equalizer. As he has done so many times before Rooney scoring his tenth goal of the season to give the home side a late point.
Although Toronto (6-7-4, 22 points) walk away from Audi Field wanting a little more a point does get them over the line in the Eastern Conference standings. They will travel to Los Angeles on Thursday (10:30 pm EST) to take on the Galaxy.
As for United (8-4-6, 30 points) the draw does help solidify their hold on the number three seed in the East. But Ben Olsen will certainly have some questions for his side entering into their big match on the fourth against FC Dallas (9pm, ESPN +).
D.C. United- Bill Hamid,Chris McCann (Pedroso 45′), Steven Birnbaum, Frederic Brilliant, Leonardo Jara, Russell Canouse, Lucas Rodriguez, Ulises Segura (Quincy Amarikwa 80′), Luciano Acosta, Zoltan Stieber (Chris Durkin 66′), and Wayne Rooney
Goal- Rooney (90′)
Yellow Card- Brilliant (55′)
Editor’s Note: All photos are courtesy of Joshua Ganzermiller.
Toronto FC- Quentin Westberg, Richie Laryea, Liam Fraser, Laurent Ciman, Justin Morrow, Marky Delgado, Tsubasa Endoh (Jordan Hamilton 90+5′), Jay Chapman (Ayo Akinola 67′), Nick DeLeon, Jacob Shaffelburg (Griffin Dorsey 87′), and Alejandro Pozuelo
Goal- DeLeon (19′)
Yellow Cards- Laryea (42′) and Chapman (65′)
