No Drogba, no problem for Impact against United

There is some bad news and some good news for Montreal Impact supporters planning on attending Saturday night’s match against D.C. United (7pm COMCAST SportsNET DC, RDN). The bad news is that Didier Drogba will not be there. The good news however is they may not need him. One of the league’s hottest teams hosts the best team in the league in a Saturday night showdown.

Although having Drogba would certainly be nice, especially given that the club is paying him reportedly paying him $3 million, the club seems to be doing just fine for now with the combination of midfielder Ignacio Piatti and forward Dominic Oduro. The duo has combined for 14 goals this season and have set up a rapport where one will almost always find the other in space. Against Columbus Crew SC three weeks Piatti and Oduro tore up a defense that plays a very similar style to that of United. United left-back Taylor Kemp will be asked to keep up with Oduro and ensure that he does not get too many breakaways.

With Oduro’s speed and Piatti’s service United will need to do a better job at tracking runners in open space. Even if the United back four an mark Piatti and Oduro effectively, Dilly Duka has proven to be a difference-maker on the outside. D.C. has struggled this season when the club faces outside wingers that provide service from the outer edges of their defensive half. United may get a bit of a reprieve with the Impact having played four matches in three weeks. But D.C. have proven to be a very different team on the road (2-6-2, minus 4 goal differential  than they are at home (9-1-3. plus 11 goal differential).

If United are to stop Montreal they might want to take a page out of the New York Red Bulls book. In Wednesday’s 1-1 draw the Red Bulls lessened the impact of Montreal’s attacking by directly engaging their opening and cutting off passing lanes. United defensive midfielder Perry Kitchen and center-back Steve Birnbaum have proven at this season that they can work in concert with one another to complete such a task.

The interesting x-factor for this match will be Impact midfielder Johan Venegas. Venegas, the Costa Rican international, made a brief appearance for the Impact on Wednesday night and will likely start for the home crowd. In Impact coach Frank Yallop’s 4-5-2 formation Venegas will likely play to the left of Piatti in the midfield.

Despite their recent defensive difficulties, United still stands at the top of Major League Soccer thanks to their ability to stay in games and grind out results. Saturday’s wild 6-4 victory over Real Salt Lake showed them as a side that with the addition Alvaro Saborio can match other attack-minded teams blow for blow. Although Saborio has just one goal in two matches teams have shown a willingness to double up Saborio giving other United players space to work. The Impact employed a similar style against Sporting Kansas City two weeks ago against Benny Feilhaber, only to have Dom Dwyer score the game-winning goal. Look for Nick De Leon (two goals in two matches) to try a similar approach against Montreal.

Montreal’s defensive depth will be further tested due to the absence of center-back Laurent Ciman. Ciman, who is serving a one-match suspension due to yellow card accumulation, has often been the glue of a fractured defense. Veteran center-back Hassoun Camara will likely step in for Ciman but is a downgrade in terms of speed and technical ability. United coach Ben Olsen’s attack plan generally centers around Saborio or Fabian Espindola driving at the center-backs and opening up space for the other.

With both United (12-7-5, 41 points) looking to expand their lead in the Eastern Conference (they are currently 8 points ahead of Columbus Crew SC) and Montreal looking to climb in the playoff standings (8-8-4, 28 points sixth place in the East) both teams should bring in their A side for the match. With two of the top attacking sides in MLS supporters should expect a ton of goals and a close match.

Predicted Result: D.C. United 2, Montreal Impact 3.