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U.S. Open Cup: Red Bulls at D.C. United (Match Night Commentary)

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The New York Red Bulls have made the trip down I-95 to take on D.C. United in a U.S. Open Cup play-in match at RFK Stadium.

The Red Bulls are coming off a 1-1 tie vs. Houston while D.C. United also managed a late equalizer in its 2-2 tie vs. Chivas USA.

Both teams are resting starters, though the Red Bulls look to have fewer starters in their lineup for tonight's match. Juan Pablo Angel did not make the trip, while Mac Kandji and Kevin Goldthwaite are on the bench tonight.

I will be providing commentary and analysis throughout the match so feel free to follow along. As always, you are welcome to share your own thoughts and opinions in the comments section below.

Enjoy the action:

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FINAL- D.C. United 5, Red Bulls 2. A masterful first 26 minutes by D.C. and an atrocious first 26 for the Red Bulls. The visitors saved some face with a solid second half, but Osorio will walk away wondering whether he shouldn't have had a little stronger lineup out here tonight.

Chris Pontius with the two goals but Boyzz Khumalo was arguably the most dangerous player on the field for D.C. His speed torched the Red Bulls repeatedly.

For the Red Bulls, John Wolyniec is the clear choice for MOTM honors. He showed great heart, and a surprising passing eye.

That's all for me tonight. Feel free to share your thoughts on the match in the comments section below.

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93rd minute– Easy save for Wicks.

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93rd minute– Red Bulls free kick and Rojas lines it up. 

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91st minute– This one is all but over and D.C. will move one step closer to defending its U.S. Open Cup title. The Red Bulls will turn their attention toward Sunday and a crucial match vs. Chicago.

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90th minute– Three minutes of stoppage time.

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89th minute– Oduro latches on to  chipped pass and hits a SOFT shot. Wow. It's getting painful to watch him play.

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87th minute– If Osorio was hoping to get some answers about his bench tonight I think it's safe to say he got them. Some players stepped up, others showed that they need to be waived.

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84th minute– Don't think we'll see a miracle comeback, but the Red Bulls have been the better team in the second half. Small consolation, but this game could have gotten REALLY ugly. 

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82nd minute– Ubiparipovic is in for Borman.

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81st minute– Tonight's attendance: 5,056.

Why Ubiparipovic instead of Kandji? Good question. I don't think Osorio wants to risk Kandji in this game since they absolutely need Kandji to have any chance against Chicago.

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80th minute– Burch is in for Pontius, so much for the hat-trick. Ubiparipovic is set to come in.

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79th minute– Pontius is lurking and I can see him finishing his hat-trick. Not much possession though from D.C. in the past 15 minutes.

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78th minute– Zimmerman has been good tonight, clean touches, confident on the ball, probably already better than Pietravallo.

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77th minute– Memo to Jeff Agoos: If you don't waive Dom Oduro and sign Johnny Exantus, Red Bulls fans may burn down Red Bull Arena before it's finished.

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76th minute– Wicks just CLEANED OUT Borman on a challenge, Borman did a full flip.

Will we see Kandji for Oduro? The Red Bulls need to.

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75th minute– Sassano SO CLOSE, sends a shot JUST wide.

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74th minute– Wolyniec breaks in on goal but lays it off instead of trying the tight angled shot. His pass is picked off. That was close.

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72nd minute– D.C. is struggling to generate chances now that Gomez and Fred have gone to the bench. Khumalo has basically been the lone remaining threat lately.

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70th minute– Wallace and Richards having some words, but the ref interjects.

I'll say this, I've never seen Wolyniec pass as well as he's passed tonight. He's been like the Staten Island Zidane tonight. Yes, you can laugh at that. 

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69th minute– Dane Richards with a strong challenge to take the ball away from Wallace. He's stepped it up tonight.

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68th minute– The All-University of Maryland battle isn't the only clash of college teammates here. Andrew Jacobson and Luke Sassano were midfield teammates at Cal.

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67th minute– John DiRaimondo comes on for Brian Namoff, who deserves credit for playing in this one after starting in the Chivas USA game in LA on Saturday.

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66th minute– Red Bulls free kick is headed wide.

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64th minute– Hindsight is always 20/20 but I can't help but wonder how this game goes if Rojas and Goldthwaite start for Pietravallo and Boyens. 

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63rd minute– The Red Bulls fans at RFK are jumping for joy. They also let off a flare, which was promptly confiscated.

The Red Bulls get away with a clear handball in the box, but the play happened too quickly for the ref.

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61st minute- GOAL RED BULLS!!!!!!!!!!!!! Jorge Rojas converts the PK. D.C. 5, Red Bulls 3.

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61st minute– PENALTY!!! A D.C. handball gives the Red Bulls a penalty kick.

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59th minute- Wolyniec delivers a great pass to Rojas on the left wing, but Rojas misses inches wide with his shot.

Wolyniec is the Red Bulls MVP tonight. I know that's not saying much.

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59th minute– For those wondering, it was Mendes who Pontius out-jumped on his second goal.

Rodney Wallace is coming in for Fred and we're going to have an all Maryland battle on the wing between Wallace and close friend Jeremy Hall. I'm pretty sure Hall is glad that Fred left this game.

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55th minute- Khumalo is just TOO fast for the Red Bulls tonight. He's been a terror all night.

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54th minute– D.C. United 5, Red Bulls 2. I think we'll see two more goals this game.

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53rd minute– Carlos Mendes was injured but he's up now. The Red Bulls do have a sub left (It's four subs in U.S. Open Cup play). 

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52nd minute- GOAL DC!!! Pontius with a header. Too easy. D.C. 5, Red Bulls 1. And the comeback is halted.

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51st minute- Wolyniec flicked one into the air toward Rojas, who hit a nice left-footed shot past Wicks. Red Bulls are in a 3-5-2 that looks like this:

—————Oduro———Wolyniec———-

Borman————–Rojas——————Richards

————–Sassano—-Zimmerman—————

Mendes————-Goldthwaite————-Hall

———————-Cepero———————- 

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48th minute- GOAL RED BULLS!!!! And it's Jorge Rojas, who volleyed home a pass from Wolyniec. D.C. 4, Red Bulls 2. Uh oh.

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48th minute– Tom Soehn deserves some credit tonight for playing the speedy duo of Khumalo and N'Silu against the glacial Boyens and not so quick Mendes.

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47th minute- Andrew Jacobson came in for Christian Gomez at halftime.

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46th minute– Oduro comes right out and strips a player in the box and lays off a nice pass to Richards, who hits a WEAK pass to a D.C. defender. Oduro looks like someone who knows his job is on the line.

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HALFTIME– Red Bulls fans will be unhappy that Mac Kandji won't play, but I think the white flag is up and it's time to let these guys sink or swim. Oduro will have every opportunity to show something this half. Zimmerman will also get a chance to show what he can do. 

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HALFTIME– Red Bulls are making three subs at halftime. Out are Khano Smith, Andrew Boyens and Juan Pietravallo. In come Jorge Rojas, Nick Zimmerman and Goldthwaite. I know it's easy to say now, but Rojas and Goldthwaite should have started this match. I really wonder if Boyens will ever play for this team again.

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HALFTIME– D.C. 4, Red Bulls 1. D.C. United dominated midfield, destroyed the Red Bulls offside trap and put this one away in 30 minutes. The Red Bulls have been awful at the back, but Wolyniec has looked good. Richards has shown some flashes, but other than those two, there aren't many Red Bulls heading into the locker room feeling good about their performances.

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45th minute– Wolyniec strips a D.C. player, then springs Oduro with a nice pass, only to have Oduro send a shot right at the keeper. Oduro is useless.

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42nd minute– Khano Smith has been utterly useless today. For someone who mouthed off about being unhappy with his playing time he sure didn't do much for his case.

And just as I say that, Smith almost scores, but has Wicks stop his shot with a great save.

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39th minute- Hey, Red Bulls corner. Go crazy folks.

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37th minute– D.C. fans are overjoyed. Why? Well, A) They're smoking a hated rival, B) they're doing so without several starters and C) they just won free wings at a local eatery because D.C. scored four goals tonight.

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35th minute– So much for this being a chance for Smith and Richards to stake claims for starting jobs. Both have been invisible offensively and outworked defensively.

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34th minute– I'm starting to wonder if there's any way Chris Pontius isn't on the U.S. national team's Gold Cup roster in July. The kid looks good.

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32nd minute– I'm sure the Red Bulls will point out that their lineup had no starters in it, but D.C. has just two starters from Saturday (Namoff and Pontius). To be fair, though, Christian Gomez and  Fred aren't exactly your usual bench players.

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31st minute- Dane Richards finally shows up and makes a nice run, delivers a cross, but it's smothered by Josh Wicks. 

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30th minute– You have to feel for John Wolyniec, who finally gets a start, and hasn't looked bad, but is surrounded by players who look completely overmatched.

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28th minute– Juan Carlos Osorio will wear the goat horns for this one because he put out a starting lineup that had no chance of winning. I get that yo are focused on Chicago on Sunday, but against a rival like D.C. you can't just throw out a team with ZERO starters.

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28th minute– Have no fear Red Bulls fans, Jorge Rojas is coming into the match. He may not create any goals, but he might be able to start hitting D.C. players in the face with elbows. 

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26th minute- GOAL D.C. UNITED!!!!!!! And it's FRED with the finish. He just torched Jeremy Hall, then got a tad lucky when Cepero came out and challenged and the ball ricocheted right back into his path for an easy finish into an empty net. D.C. United 4, Red Bulls 0.

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25th minute– D.C. looks very good tonight, moving well in attack and pressuring all over the field on defense. This 3-5-2 is toying with the Red Bulls. 

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24th minute– This game is bringing back memories of a 2003 match D.C. won 6-1. All it needs is a bad goalkeeper blunder (jinx).

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23rd minute– To call the Red Bulls defense horrific does a disservice to horror. 

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23rd minute- GOAL D.C. UNITED!!!!! Brandon Barklage with the finish, buries a loose ball off Cepero. D.C. United 3, Red Bulls 0.

Wolyniec nearly responds but his shot is blocked.

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20th minute– Andrew Boyens is TOO slow to play against a speedy forward like Khumalo, but the blame lies in midfield, where there isn't enough pressure on the ball. Gomez laid off a perfect through-pass to Khumalo. 

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18th minute- GOAL D.C. UNITED!!!! Thabisu Khumalo with the finish. D.C. burns the off-side trap BADLY and Khumalo breaks in on goal, beats Cepero, and sends his shot at goal. Jeremy Hall tried to save it but just buried it into the net. 

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16th minute– D.C. has beaten the off-side trap with regularity on the flanks, but can't find the final pass to put this one away. It looks like it's coming though.

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15th minute– Boyens nearly has a Tony Sanneh-like blunder at the back, but gets bailed out.

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13th minute– The Red Bulls have taken to bypassing the midfield with long balls, but Dom Oduro is pretty well useless in the air. 

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11th minute– D.C.'s crowd is small, but vocal, and they're enjoying this one.

D.C. dominating possession, and the midfield trio of Gomez, Pontius and Fred is too good for this group.

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10th minute– Without Angel, Rojas and Celades, this REd Bulls squad has ZERO creativity in attack and I'm not sure where a goal will come from.

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9th minute– Red Bulls are fielding a team with ZERO starters from Saturday's tie vs. Houston, and it shows.

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8th minute- GOAL D.C. UNITED!! And it's Chris Pontius with a free header off a corner kick from Christian Gomez. Too easy. D.C. United 1, Red Bulls 0.

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7th minute– D.C. is shredding the Red Bulls on the counter, and with perfectly-timed runs from midfield.

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6th minute– FRED MISSES FROM POINT BLANK RANGE. Pontius beats the off-side trap and sets up Fred on the doorstep, but he manages to hit it over the bar. Red Bulls got lucky there. 

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5th minute– Pietravallo's first challenge actually doesn't draw blood. He stripped Pontius clean. Promising.

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4th minute– Pontius is sitting deep in midfield and looking to spring the D.C. forwards. Interesting spot for him.

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3rd minute– D.C. United's formation looks more like this:

————Khumalo—–N'Silu—————

——————–Gomez——————–

Fred———————————Barklage

———McTavish——-Pontius————

John———–Janicki————-Namoff

——————Wicks———————-

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1st Minute– We're off. 

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PRE-GAME– The ref tonight is Mark Madlecik, who as far as I know, isn't Hispanic, so we should avoid that controversy tonight (kidding).

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PRE-GAME– We're about to kick off here. About 30 Red Bulls fans have made the trip and are stationed in the upper deck. You can hear them loud and clear because the actual overall crowd is miniscule tonight. Surprising for this match-up. Maybe D.C. fans are tired of watching their team beat the Red Bulls.

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PRE-GAME– for those who haven't heard, Jorge Rojas has had his red card suspension extended by one game and he has been hit with a $750 fine for his red card and delayed departure from the field in Saturday's 1-1 tie vs. Houston. OUCH. Also, Rojas is here, but starting out on the bench. 

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PRE-GAME– Here is D.C. United's lineup:

————Khumalo—–N'Silu—————

——————–Gomez——————–

Pontius———————————-Fred

———————Barklage——————

John—-Janicki——-McTavish—Namoff

——————Wicks———————-

BENCH– Kocic, Burch, DiRaimando, Jacobson, Wallace, Moreno, Quaranta

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PRE-GAME– Here is the Red Bulls lineup:

———–Oduro——Wolyniec————

Smith———-Sassano————-Richards

—————Pietravallo———————

Borman—-Boyens—-Mendes———-Hall

—————–Cepero————————

BENCH– Conway, Goldthwaite, Rojas, Kandji, Ubiparipovic, Mbuta, Zimmerman

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PRE-GAME– It is a beautiful early evening at RFK Stadium and the crowd has yet to arrive. This place has been a house of horrors through the years for the Red Bulls and it could be again tonight.

Comments

  1. Ives, any chance the Red Bulls just cut Khano Smith loose and try something else? I’ve never seen a lazier player in my life. Having his salary on our books is a joke.

    Reply
  2. I have a hard time believing that the Red Bulls didn’t care about this match. Ives’ post before this talked about how the Red Bulls wanted payback, thought they had the previous match in the Meadowlands won. And for guys like Khano Smith and Dane Richards and Wolyniec and Oduro, this was audition time. You’ve got to figure that unless things much better very soon, a lot of these guys will be looking for work (ie: cut/waived) come the summer transfer window for SI signings. Not Wolyniec I’d hope. But many of the other players. They had the motive to show up for this match.

    But not starting Rojas was just really dumb–especially since it’s not about resting him for the weekend’s match against Chicago or the match after that. I think that with a 2-game suspension, it would make it essential to play Rojas in this game to help keep him sharp, even if you didn’t care about the result.

    And DCU has a lot of skill on the field. Fred is effectively a reserve now. But he’s probably got more technical ability than anyone that RBNY had in their starting lineup for this game. And Gomez and Pontius are starters. So you’re talking at least 3 attacking players who can either make their own chances OR create chances for teammates with their passing. I’m not sure RBNY started anyone tonight who has that ability (thus, the mistake not to start Rojas).

    Reply
  3. Kevin, why on earth would I be upset? I’m not a Red Bulls fan. I feel for the people who are Red Bulls fans though, especially the ones who made the trip down.

    The sarcasm is easy to deliver in a blowout.

    Reply
  4. Hey STLU, it’s better than Ives not mentioning it on the Red Bulls match-night commentary here! That’s the DCU broadcast; at least there’s an excuse for the apathy.

    Reply
  5. St. Louie…..if you’re a RB supporter you should thank God for Richards every day. He single handedly brought us to our first and only MLS Cup Finals.

    Hope we make a comeback.

    Reply
  6. GOAL !! Never thought I’d say this but, thank god for Richards. You can tell how incredibly pissed this commentator is haha.

    Positive thing for tonight-Not a shutout!

    Reply
  7. Matt,

    Not to quibble about your main point regarding Osorio, but DCU are tinkering with Pontius (a forward in college now playing several positions from forward, to left mid, to playmaker to holding mid); and Wallace (a left back now playing left mid).

    Reply
  8. Ohhhh OSORIO the death of the REDDDD BULLSS

    Ohhhh ohhhh Oh SORRY OH the death of the REDDDD BULLLS!!!

    but will the FO do the right thing??? Nah, that would not be our style….

    Reply
  9. Ives, your sarcasm is just making this better and better. I know you must be pretty upset right now, but thank you for your good humor at the expense of the Red Bulls.

    Look at that. I feel so bad, I can’t even make fun of the name right now.

    Reply
  10. Ives, looks like you are going to have to get some drinking games to get keep some interest. Seems like there ought to be several candidates.

    Reply
  11. Embarrassing. Not exactly accurate to say we have no starters. Hall is a starter.

    Here is the difference between these clubs. DC drafts Pontius and plays him where he’s supposed to be played, in a system that makes sense. The kid thrives. The Red Bulls draft Hall and Osorio tries to turn him into something he never was – a right back. He may be a great right back some day but in the process we have to sit and watch the nutty professor’s experiments.

    I hate the fact that the solution for all this club’s ills has been replacing the manager, but it is so abundantly clear that Osorio has no idea what he is doing that I would have no problem with him receiving a pink slip. DC comes into your stadium and embarrasses you when the game was your to win. And you play like this the next time you meet?! Unacceptable.

    Reply
  12. 37th minute- D.C. fans are overjoyed. Why? Well, A) They’re smoking a hated rival, B) they’re doing so without several starters and C) they just won free wings at a local eatery because D.C. scored four goals tonight.

    C is easily the most exciting, IMO.

    Reply
  13. Ives, I lied…here is the lineup from last Saturday. DC has two repeat starters (Pontius and Namoff) – so really – it’s not like we are putting up our first team here.

    DCU (3-4-2-1): Crayton; Namoff, Jakovic, Burch; Pontius, Simms, Olsen, Wallace; Quaranta, Moreno; Emilio. Subs: Wicks, John, McTavish, Jacobson, Fred, Gomez, N’Silu.

    Reply
  14. 28th minute- Have no fear Red Bulls fans, Jorge Rojas is coming into the match. He may not create any goals, but he might be able to start hitting D.C. players in the face with elbows.

    fine with me

    Reply
  15. 28th minute- Have no fear Red Bulls fans, Jorge Rojas is coming into the match. He may not create any goals, but he might be able to start hitting D.C. players in the face with elbows.

    HAHAHAHAHAHAHA I literally just fell on the floor laughing. Good one, Ives! I’m in good spirits anyway, as a United fan, and that just added to it.

    Reply
  16. Well…guess DC should be able to rest their bench tonight. Wish I was at RFK instead of stuck up here in Jersey!

    Reply
  17. 2-0, from bad to worse.

    Great thought by Osorio….choosing not to use the 2nd DP to help Angel…..instead he said he wanted to build depth for competitoions like this one.

    Nice job.

    Reply
  18. Ives, isn’t Namoff the only starter from DC’s match last weekend? Not just the Red Bulls who are fielding the 2nd team.

    Reply
  19. as I said yesterday, NYRB doesn’t care about this tournament, at least not compared to DCU. note that every player starting for DC has started at least one match this season. what do you expect?

    Reply
  20. Wicks!?!?!?!? Josh Wicks!?!?!?!?
    Well at least we know New York will get some goals.
    This guy is probably the worst keeper in the league…..

    Reply
  21. St. Louis United, why do you care? This tournament is a waste of time. The teams don’t care, the fans don’t care, and the USSF barely cares. I’m sure you are one of the 12 people excited about this thing, but I would much rather have a rested first squad for Sunday’s match against the Fire.

    Reply
  22. I’m a RB fan and Rojas’ extended suspension is DEFINITELY warrented. Pathetic behavior Saturday night.

    Go RB!

    Reply
  23. What kind of lineup is that ?! Metro can’t win with Mac on the bench. The only good points on their is Hall, Woly and Cepero.

    Osorio just handed DC the win.

    Reply
  24. First, when Ives said it is a “beautiful early evening” he’s understating tremendously. For a city built on a swamp (Washington DC), this is one of those rare days of a light breeze, San Diego blue sky with few clouds, no humidity, no rain, lots of sun, mild temperature and when the sun goes down, the kind of warm weather you can run all day in. Just an exquisite day to play soccer in.

    Second, I’m stunned, truly stunned that Rojas isn’t starting. Olsen isn’t playing, Simms isn’t playing so central midfield defense for DCU isn’t strong and the opposing A-mid is likely to have some space. Plus, Rojas is out the next two games. But instead, JCO doesn’t start him. Go figure.

    Third, DCU is going with 3 guys who start when everyone is healthy (Namoff, Pontius and Gomez). As for RBNY–it’s kind of hard to say who the “regulars” are given how much JCO likes to shift lineups but I figure only one definite starter (Hall).

    Fourth, probably DCU’s two fastest attackers are starting up top tonight (Khumalo and N’Silu). I know, I know, not that fast by RBNY standards. But given Boyen and Mendes, that’s a significant mismatch.

    Ives–suggested drinking games:
    –every time Pietravallo is called for a foul (3 drinks if he gets a card)
    –every time Barklage is called for a foul (3 drinks if he gets a card)
    –a drink every time Richards or Smith hits a wild cross or NFL field goal in leu of a shot
    –a drink for every bit of excitement (mishandled cross, dropped shot, poorly deflected rebound) by Josh Wicks

    Reply

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