For the Black-and-Red, defense is critical. With captain and U.S. Men’s National Team defender Steve Birnbaum and MLS veteran Sean Franklin at the heart of the defense alongside United's first-ever Homegrown Player Bill Hamid providing cover in goal, the Black-and-Red are well-versed in defending. Leidos, the presenting partner of D.C. United, is a global science and technology leader in defense. Whether it's air, land, sea, space, or cyberspace, Leidos meets challenges and provides solutions. Sponsored by Leidos, this weekly feature delves into some of the defensive storylines for United's next match.
United earned a hard-fought point against the MLS Supporters’ Shield frontrunners, Toronto FC, on August 5 at RFK Stadium after an impressive defensive display. Defender Kofi Opare latched onto a well-placed Lloyd Sam corner in the 6th minute to give the Black-and-Red a 1-0 lead.
After a chippy opening to the game that culminated in midfield maestro Luciano Acosta getting fouled six times (the most fouls he’s ever suffered in a game), United were forced to play the remainder of the match with only 10 men.
“Obviously with eleven guys they’re [Toronto] a very potent attacking team and to play with ten men was even harder,” said goalscorer Kofi Opare.
The team regrouped after an unfortuitous own goal and put forth a gutsy defensive effort for the final 38 minutes to keep the score at one-a-piece.
“Each game has it’s own story…but, so what?,” said head coach Ben Olsen. “We talked about it and I asked 'what’s your response to all this?' It would be easy for these guys to not be selfless and disciplined in the second half and to throw their hands up, because there’s been a lot of things that have not gone our way this year. But they didn’t.”
Olsen said he was pleased with the team’s response and the rigid United performance showed promising signs for the United side.
“I'm proud of the group. I thought the first half we played well and our energy, commitment and discipline were good,” said Ben Olsen. “The second half was a different ball game because we were down to 10 men but it took guts and the guys dug in. We were selfless and disciplined in how we defended for the second half. It was a performance that we can build on.”
And now, with new signings getting acclimated to new teammates and a flurry of momentum for the remainder of 2017 and beyond, the Black-and-Red's future is bright. United kick off against Real Salt Lake at RFK Stadium on Aug. 12, at 7 PM.
