A troubling tendency from D.C. United’s past reared its ugly head during a 4-0 thrashing at the hands of Real Salt Lake last weekend.
Actually, United’s struggles were many as they extended their winless streak on the road to nine games in all competitions since September 2007: a hangover after their CONCACAF Champions’ Cup defeat, fatigue due to their fifth game in 15 days, a disappointing performance from of a number of reserves and a third consecutive loss on the Rice-Eccles Stadium artificial surface.
But it was D.C.’s three-back defensive set, which had produced so much offense against Pachuca, that looked very vulnerable against a speedy, counterattacking team like Salt Lake.
“They had a system they implemented in that game, just playing direct,” said United defender Bryan Namoff. “A lot of their balls were just clearances way high, put into our end. With the way the ball bounces on that type of surface, and their ability to win the second balls hurt us.”
Originally implemented under Peter Nowak, United won the 2004 MLS Cup and the 2006 Supporters’ Shield with the 3-5-2 formation. But last year United ditched it in favor of a more traditional four-back setup after dropping three straight games to open the regular season.
