Another hard lesson for DC United

DC United Head Coach Curt Onalfo came into yesterday’s game against New England Revolution knowing he needed his team to give a better and more controlled effort than last week’s loss against the Kansas City Wizards. In one sense, he got just that. His team held possession for a good majority of the match and looked like the better side. However, Onalfo and the rest of United learned a hard lesson: Possession does not mean much if you can not put the ball in the net. United had several good opportunities to find the back of the net, but nothing came from their efforts. Santino Quaranta had two excellent efforts, but Revolution goalkeeper Preston Burpo made great saves to deny him. Unlike Quaranta, Chris Pontuis and Jaime Moreno, United’s starting forwards, were below par and did not make the most out of any of the opportunities given to them. Australian striker Danny Allsopp did not play. In the eightieth minute, Revolution substitute Kenny Mansally made United pay for their lackluster performance with a defected-shot that proved to be the match winner. He then scored again after two more minutes to seal the victory.

Despite the loss, United had some key positive results from the match. Brandon Barklage, in his second career start, looked solid on the right wing and can be considered United’s best player during the match. United’s shaky defense looked more solid with the addition of Juan Pena in central defense. Rodney Wallace is still getting used to his new role at left-back, but looks like a regular starter at the position with improving defending and Marc Burch’s injury. Santino Quaranta created great opportunities for the Black and Red, despite playing in a center midfielder role, but none were taken. Head Coach will have to keep these points in mind if he wants to win next week’s match against Philadelphia Union.