Three observations from D.C. United’s 0-0 draw at Vancouver as the team gets set for Friday Night Lights later this week at RFK Stadium against FC Dallas.
For all the turmoil with the starting lineup – we’ll get to that – United put together its grittiest defensive performance in a long time, earning the team’s first shutout since a 3-0 win at Chivas USA on Sept. 10, a span of 12 matches. The Whitecaps didn’t register a single shot on goal. Without injured Dejan Jakovic – who, by the way, has been consistently plagued with knocks during his tenure in Washington, playing fewer matches in each of his three seasons (23, 19, 15) – Emiliano Dudar stepped up and had a much-improved performance at center back in his first United start. Marcelo Saragosa was also extremely disruptive in the midfield, where D.C. also got active games from Danny Cruz and Nick DeLeon. When was the last time Sebastien Le Toux wasn’t heard from at all? More importantly, when was the last time D.C. United didn’t have an unforgiveable breakdown defensively? That’s progress.
Both Dwayne De Rosario and Hamdi Salihi looked better than they had previously. It’s going to take time for both of them to develop chemistry. Despite De Rosario’s heroic season last year and a career spent being both lethal and clutch, he can still be a player that times is difficult to connect with because he is so unpredictable. In contrast, Salihi just needs a sniff of goal to create chances but he also needs service. The more that De Rosario can provide that service, or at least find ways to attack himself and create, the better they’ll be together. Certainly, Maicon Santos hasn’t distinguished himself in two matches.
As for Branko Boskovic, perhaps it’s fitness, perhaps it’s playing on the road that kept him yet again on the bench to start. D.C. United was also a more dangerous team once he came on the field for the final 30 minutes. His corner kick to Salihi’s head would’ve resulted in a goal if not for Joe Cannon’s fantastic save. At the same time, Boskovic sprayed three different shots from distance that were all well off target. While each of them weren’t the best of decisions, it’s hard to imagine there isn’t a level of frustration with how he’s being used by United coach Ben Olsen. That could all change in four days when Dallas comes to town; perhaps Boskovic could be back in the starting lineup. Given D.C. United’s track record with him, it seems equally probable that he could again be on the bench, and that Olsen could opt for using De Rosario as his playmaker and underutilizing Boskovic until his contract runs out this summer – a scenario which would make the legacy of his signing only slightly less of a disastrous waste of money than Marcelo Gallardo.
