Here’s the thing about D.C. United’s 2-1 loss to Seattle earlier tonight: As you’ll see from my game story, I’m going to have to disagree with head coach Tom Soehn’s assessment:
“It was disappointing. The first half I thought we took — we killed plays off by being too cute in the final third, and giving them counterattacks. We addressed it at halftime, and I thought the energy and the way we opened up the game was pretty good. We had so many less turnovers, created a lot more opportunities, and giving away the goal on a half chance like on the near post, it was deflating.”
Although United dictated 90 percent of the match, including as determined and gritty a second half as I remember in a while, I would substitute “not very good at all” for “too cute.”
The truth could certainly be that D.C. United is plum worn out after 12 games in the last 43 days. But the attack never looked crisp against the Sounders – even Rodney Wallace’s goal was borne out of determination to get to a loose ball, not the precision of strung-together passes.
I wonder if Josh Wicks’ hesitancy on the first goal was due to lingering thoughts about the stomp in the U.S. Open Cup final?
Hard not to feel bad for Julius James, but the errors are what will be remembered.
It was also my first time seeing Fredy Montero in person. Don’t be fooled by the mismatched shoes. There’s a lot in his bag of tricks.
Meanwhile, the buzz in the D.C. United locker room afterward was that Wicks has been giving a reprieve from the team’s trip tomorrow to Trinidad, where it will face San Juan Jabloteh in CONCACAF Champions League play on Tuesday. Newly signed Bill Hamid, United’s first addition from it’s academy ranks, will join Milos Kocic on the trip, although it’s not official.
“I’ve never even been to the Caribbean,” said Hamid, who grinned like the 18-year-old that he is.
