What to say about that match? Obviously, not the team's best performance. Tommy Soehn had some strong words in his post-game press conference, which I'll post shortly. The team is all but eliminated, depending on tonight's result in Houston. You can read Charlie Boehms dcunited.com account of the game right here.
The team will take tomorrow off and reconvene on Thursday for training. Saturday's game against Houston is set for 8 p.m. The Dynamo will stay in D.C. following the match as the squads will square off again three days later in the make-up game following the June 4 cancelation.
I've added a few photos to the Video & Pics page.
UPDATE:Chivas' 1-0 win over Houston means United is still in the hunt to advance to the knockout stage, though not by much. Here's how it would have to break down:
- Chivas would have to beat Atlante on Saturday and United would need to top Houston;
- Chivas would win the group with nine points, while each of the other three teams would all have three points each;
- The first tie-breaker is head-to-head results, but because each team would have beaten one of the others (Houston over Atlante, Atlante over United, United over Houston) it would go to the second tie-breaker which is goal differential;
- Following tonight's matches, Houston's goal differential is +3, United's is -2 and Atlante's is -3.
- All that considered, United would need to beat Houston by three goals in order to go through.
- Confused yet?
Here are the post-game quotes..
D.C. United Head Coach Tom Soehn
On tonight’s game
Our performance, particularly in the first half, was atrocious; we had no commitment, no passion, and we played flat. It is unacceptable, especially in a tournament like this. Every time a player wears the D.C. United uniform, they should be proud. This team is well known for its pride, and that’s something we did not show today. We didn’t appear in the first half. Thus, we couldn’t contain any team. We tried in the second half, but that was too late. We cannot do that in this competition. Whether you are tired or not, you have to put in an effort. And that sweat wasn’t out there today.
D.C. United Midfielder Fred [via translation]
On the game
[We’re] very disappointed because we worked hard all week and we lost two in a row. Now we really want to get back to MLS play and get some more wins there. We just played really badly, that’s why they won. We didn’t play our game.
D.C. United forward Luciano Emilio
I think between us we haven’t fixed the defensive problem we have. We can’t win because we give up goals in all our games. We always score but never even it up. We have to fix that now. The time to fix it already passed. We still haven’t gotten a shutout and that complicates things because we always have to come from behind. But we’re all responsible; we have a defensive, offensive and midfield problem. The whole team is responsible.
On the tournament
SuperLiga is an interesting tournament, where the best teams from Mexico and the US play. You want to at least make it to the final.
D.C. United defender Devon McTavish
On the game
We did a good job getting that first goal back and then we just let off the gas and then they got two against us. It’s tough to come back from two goals down. We just weren’t that good together. I think we had an off night together and lost a lot of guys back there. I think we just weren’t on the same page at the time.
Atlante Head Coach José Cruz [via translation]
On D.C. United’s attacking strategy
On the alignment sheet, when I got it, there were four forwards. To me, it seemed that they were underestimating us after our last lost. Whenever there is a wounded team, as we were, you have to be careful because they need to win. So I think they were a little overconfident.
On the Houston game compared to tonight
We just committed too many errors for us to have a chance to win the Houston game last Saturday. They were also able to capitalize our opportunities.
On the team’s changes from Houston’s game to D.C. United’s game
Last game against Houston I started it with a defensive line of four, three midfielders and an upside triangle for the three forwards, Gabriel Pereyra, Giancarlo and Rey. The team lost all control of the sides, lost possession – all we have been practicing daily is the basics. Therefore, we came back to our usual strategy with five defenders, three midfielders and three forwards.
On Atlante and the Mexican League
We are a very limited team in terms of players. I would have loved to bring with me, David Torredo; a very important strategic key. However, it was impossible to do this on time. Thus, we must make an enormous effort to affront the Mexican League and the CONCACAF Cup.
On the Mexican national coach and his presence in tonight’s game
At yesterday’s practice, we were honored with the national coach’s presence. I think he will consider players such as Christian Bermudez, Alan Zamora, José Guerrero y Fernando Navarro for future competitions. The national coach is a very dedicated man, and he will enrich Mexican soccer.
Atlante midfielder Gabriel Pereyra [via translation]
On coming back after the 4-0 loss at Houston
We’re the Mexican champions form the tournament before last. We have merits but I think we didn’t play well in Houston. But now we showed improvement and more concentration and we got the result.
On D.C. United
It’s a team that plays very well. Out of all the US teams we’ve faced, it’s the one I like the best, the one that plays the best and thankfully we were able to beat them. We finished the chances we got.
