DC beat Vancouver, a stadium that Philly went down 3-0 at last week
There is no such thing as appreciating a win in Major League Soccer. In a league where parity rules and schedules make about as much sense as a broken jigsaw puzzle, teams can ill afford to enjoy a satisfying result. So despite D.C. United’s 2-1 victory over Orlando City SC on Wednesday night, the club is must move ahead to their match on Sunday against the Philadelphia Union (7pm Fox Sports 1).
If there is one particular thing that can be gained from Wednesday night’s match it is that no position is locked in. With forward Fabian Espindola out, Olsen opted to go with a 4-5-1 with Chris Pontius up front as the lone striker. While this structure was not particularly effective it showed that he is still tinkering with the best alignment for the team. Expect a similar situation on Saturday with Espindola still likely out.
The question will be if Olsen chooses to go with Pontius up front again or a combination of Jairo Arrieta and Chris Rolfe in a 4-4-2 combination. It is clear that Olsen likes the 4-5-1 because of the added bonus of having Luis Silva play directly behind the lone forward. But Olsen may choose to go with the 4-4-2 until Silva is fully match fit from his hamstring injury. Look for rookie Miguel Aguilar to see significant minutes on Sunday after jump-starting the United attack in the second half against Orlando.
For Philadelphia this variety options should be difficult to defend. To say that the Union have struggled defensively would be an understatement. The club has surrendered 21 goals in 11 matches this season, the most in the league. Although the club is relatively healthy along the back four (only defender Steven Vitoria has been injured for any prolonged period) their goalkeeping situation has been anything but. Their starter at the beginning of the season, Rais Mbolhi, has been taken off of the team after disagreements with the club while two of their other goalkeepers (Andre Blake; John McCarthy) are out with injuries.
Former Carolina Railhawks goalkeeper Bryan Sylvestre will likely start again for Union boss Jim Curtin in this match. It would be easy to say that all three goals against the Vancouver Whitecaps were his fault. But looking back at the match it is evident that the main culprit is miscommunication along the defensive line. Whether or not their goalkeeping situation is fair is irrelevant; their defensive line and in particular Maurice Edu have to do more to protect Sylvestre.
The importance of goalkeeping may be a bit overblown in terms of the grander things on the pitch, but having the same goalkeeper play every match is important. Teams are creatures of habit and having a cavalcade of net-minders behind the post can undermine chemistry and confidence in a club. As evidenced by the Orlando match, United can pose a real problem for teams that are light on depth either along the back four or at goalkeeper.
On the other side of the pitch, there is plenty of things that the Union can do on the attack that should worry D.C. United. Orlando’s Cyle Larin showed that teams can attack them with speed through the center of the pitch. United center-backs Kofi Opare and Bobby Boswell are very similar players in that they are excellent vertical defenders, but lack pace. Union forward Fernando Aristeguieta has proven himself to be worth every dollar that management paid for him on the transfer market this winter. His relationship with Union midfielder Cristian Maidana has proven invaluable for the club giving them a 1-2 combination that few teams can defend.
Despite where these two teams are currently in the standings this will be a very close match. With United coming off of a mid-week match and the Union looking to forget their 3-0 destruction at the hands of the Vancouver Whitecaps, Philadelphia will have the advantage in terms of healthy legs. But as D.C. United showed on Wednesday night the club does not necessarily need to play well to get points.
Philadelphia Union
