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Silva scores 11th goal of the season to lead D.C. United over Union

Silva-D.C.United-UsaTodayPhoto by Mike Dinovo/USA Today Sports
 

By RYAN TOLMICH

Luis Silva’s 10th-minute finish continued D.C. United’s dominance atop the Eastern Conference while also striking a major blow to the playoff hopes of the Philadelphia Union.

D.C. United topped the visiting Union on Saturday, 1-0, via Silva’s strike, which increased the team’s lead atop the Eastern Conference to six points.

Silva’s opener came after the Union failed to clear their lines, giving D.C. United an extended period of possession. The ball eventually found its way to Chris Korb, who delivered a floating cross to Silva, whose header left Union goalkeeper Rais M’bolhi helplessly standing as the ball hit the back of the net. The goal was Silva’s 11th of the season and third in two games.

Matters got worse for the Union in the 22nd minute, as Sebstian Le Toux was forced to depart the game due to a right ankle sprain.

The hosts would have doubled their advantage in the 27th minute if not for the heroics of Union defender Carlos Valdes.

Valdes saved his side with a pair of goal-line clearances, the first of which came via a sprinting effort to prevent Fabian Espindola’s chip from trickling over the line. The ensuing clearance rolled back to Espindola, who centered the ball to Silva. The Mexican- American forward’s shot was on target, but Valdes was there once again to block, allowing the rest of his defense to recover and clear the ball away.

As per usual, the D.C. United defense remained stout throughout the game, but the visitors did put together a chance in the 47th minute.

Union forward Andrew Wenger’s long-distance cross proved to be threatening, as substitute Danny Cruz latched on in the center of the box. The midfielder’s ensuing shot was kick-saved by a rushing Bill Hamid in what proved to be the toughest of the D.C. United goalkeeper’s four saves on the afternoon.

With the victory, D.C. United move six points clear of the New England Revolution, who knocked off Sporting KC Friday, for the conference’s top spot. Meanwhile, the Union sit two points out of the fifth and final playoff spot with the three teams above them each having a game in hand.

The Union’s battle for the postseason continues Oct. 2 in a matchup with the Chicago Fire at PPL Park, while D.C. United host third-place Sporting KC one day later.

Watch the highlights below:

Comments

  1. I knew the Luis silva usmnt calls were gonna come eventually. C’mon guys I know he’s having a great season but how many guys are we gonna vouch for before we have a 50 man roster. Let’s see if he can replicate his form for a couple more seasons first.

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  2. Isn’t Luis silva Mexican American and not just plain mexican, what’s the deal with the writer 🙂
    By the way, this years MLS cup is till December. So what is the difference about playing the international schedule with a WINTER BREAK.
    Start before college football and who cares about playing through NCAA football & basketball, nfl Sundays and NBA because MLS already does it. ( plus mlb playoffs and nascar) come back after Super Bowl weekend and during winter break have a tournament in Hawaii or non MLS markets and as matter of fact, MLS cup in May would have no competition besides boring MLB.
    So before I get bombarded with negative comments, let’s expand to 24 teams first and then think about the international schedule and hopefully more MLS stadiums by then will have a roof cover life tfc plans to.

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    • Through the years the start date of the MLS season has shifted from early April to early March and the MLS Cup final has moved from mid-October to early December. This season MLS took a 2 week break in June during the World Cup. So, it’s definitely inching closer to matching the international calendar, except for the fact that the MLS season begins in March and ends in early December, while the northern European leagues begin in late August, take a winter break mid-December through late-January and resume from January through late May. But ultimately, the two schedules aren’t THAT far apart. The ideal schedule for ALL leagues would be to take two shorter breaks: roughly one month during June (to accommodate the World Cup, Copa America, Confederations Cup, etc.) and another month during the coldest part of the winter (January). In the future if MLS begins a week earlier (late Feb.), ends a week later (mid Dec.), extends the summer break to 4 weeks in June then MLS and other leagues could end up on more-or-less the same schedule.

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    • Luis Silva is Mexican? Is that true? I thought he was born in SoCal. I don’t remember any mention of his playing for Mexico teams while he was at UCSB (Go Gouchos!). Mr. Tolmich, can you confirm?

      By the way, I love that Chris Pontius is 100% and playing well again for DC United. I’m a Galaxy fan but with Pontius and now Silva playing with DC United I’ve been watching and really enjoying Ben Olsen’s team. Would love to see the Galaxy and DC United in the MLS Final.

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    • problem with that in my opinion is the infusion of players that DC had this year. not just quality players, but a ton of experience. How much coaching did Olsen really do versus how much has he been able to rely on a roster of almost 100% veterans? Not saying that he will not get it or deserve it, but a question I would have…

      Reply

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