D.C.United’s Youth Academy continued with its pre-season preparation this weekend,as the U-16 and U-18 sides faced the Philadelphia Union on Sunday, October 9 inWayne, Pa.
D.C.United’s U-16 side defeated the Union after being down 1-0 in the first half.United’s first goal came in the 25th minute when Christian Rodriguesseized a rebound from the Union’s goalkeeper after a shot by Cristhyan Najar.United turned the score around in the 38th minute when Najar,assisted by Rodrigues, dribbled past two defenders and finished with his leftfoot to earn a 2-1 victory for the Black-and-Red.
CristhyanNajar had previously scored a goal for D.C. United’s Reserves during the 1-1draw with the New York Red Bulls last Thursday.
“Althoughit was only a scrimmage, I believe we are on the right track by defining theway we want to play this season: an aggressive, attacking soccer,” said UnitedU-16 Head Coach Roberto Da Silva. “After the Union’s goal, I knew the boyswould not just give the game away that easily. I could see in their eyes thatthey wanted more and they responded quickly by scoring two goals in the firsthalf.”
United’sU-18’s did not share the same luck, as they trailed 4-0 against the Union. ThePhiladelphia side scored one goal in the first half and three in the secondhalf.
“Beingour first match of the year, we knew it would be a difficult match against avery good Philadelphia Union team,” said United U-18 Head Coach Nolan Sheldon.“The game served its purpose; we now have a good understanding of where we areas a team and have identified areas of our play that we are pleased with andareas which require attention.”
