Story of the Match
After a heartbreaking home defeat last weekend, D.C. United are looking to bounce back on the road as they travel to New York and Citi Field to face off against 12th place New York City FC.
Neither team has been able to find consistent form early on this season and with both teams in the middle of the pack, a win here could be a springboard to climb the Eastern Conference table.Â
Manager Troy Lesesne will have his work cut out for him this weekend as both Mateusz Klich and Aaron Herrera are serving a one-game suspension due to yellow card accumulation. With two integral players out for the Black-and-Red, Lesesne will rely on other players to step up to get a result on a challenging road trip.
Of course, there’s always Christian Benteke to rely on as well! The Belgian forward currently co-leads the 2024 Golden Boot race with six goals in six games. If he maintains his consistent form in front of the net, the Black-and-Red fans can be optimistic about Benteke carving out some goal scoring opportunities in New York on Saturday night.
By the Numbers
- Top goal scorer for D.C. United is Christian Benteke with 6; New York's is Santiago Rodriguez with 3.
- D.C. have scored a total of 12 goals; 9 from open play, 2 from set pieces, 1 from a penalty.
- D.C. ranked 7th in shots on target per match (5.4); NYCFC ranked 23rd (4.3).
- D.C. ranked 5th in accurate crosses per match (5.6); NYCFC ranked 21st (3.5).
- If Benteke scores, he would join an elite group of DCU legends to score at least 7 goals if first 7 games of a season (Raúl DÃaz Arce had 9 goals in 1997, Jamie Moreno had 7 goals in 1997 and 2000, and Roy Lassiter had 7 goals in 1999)
Historic matchups
D.C. United's all time regular season record against NYCFC is 7-10-3 (NYCFC has 38 goals scored and D.C. has 24 goals scored).
Take a look at Benteke's sixth goal of the season:
