D.C. United’s annual kickoff luncheon Tuesday at the Capital Hilton was more of a welcome-home rally for team that spent much of its two-month preseason on the road.
“We had the course of a season within the preseason,” said United head coach Tom Soehn of the team’s four games in the CONCACAF Champions’ Cup, including last week’s 2-1 loss at C.D. Guadalajara. “It’s great to come home. I think the guys were all drained as well as the staff.”
A team-wide letdown after the loss in Mexico was partly to blame for defeat by the same score at Colorado last weekend. While no one is drawing dramatic conclusions from the season-opening loss, Soehn said there were “structure” issues to sort out.
“There’s a little bit of concern as far as our discipline and just reading the game a little better,” said goalkeeper Troy Perkins. “That’s something we can work on.”
New team owners Victor MacFarlane and Will Chang were both in attendance Tuesday, and United’s pursuit of a stadium in Poplar Point was a persistent theme.
“We believe, when it is all said and done, we will have a stadium that will be the envy of Major League Soccer, that will be among the great football stadiums of the world,” said United President and CEO Kevin Payne.
“We’re excited,” said MacFarlane. “We think it’s going to happen, and that we will be playing part of the 2009 season in it.”
Note
United midfielder Josh Gros, who missed the season opener with a concussion, was cleared to train with the team today and expects to play this weekend against Kansas City.
