D.C. United earned three points last night against Columbus Crew SC for the first time since 2007. After their recent defeat at home, the Black-and-Red were looking to put together a complete performance at Mapfre stadium and keep their spot at the top of the Eastern Conference.
In the first half, both teams were pushing the offense and creating chances. Columbus was putting the pressure on Bill Hamid, but couldn’t find the back of the net. DCU kept the Crew’s defense on their toes and it was only a matter of time before someone scored a goal.
In the 26th minute, Luciano Acosta was fouled just outside the 18 which earned DCU a free kick. Wayne Rooney found an opening and took the shot. D.C. United was up 0-1 and was able to keep the lead only allowing a few chances for Columbus to have shots on goal.
The second half was a closely contested 45 minutes between both sides, as the Crew were searching for their equalizer and United were up to the task of protecting their one-goal lead. Pedro Santos took a left footed shot from outside the box in the 51st minute, the shot sailed wide of the left post to keep the score in DCU’s favor. On the immediate counter, Acosta found space on the edge of the box but Steffen read the shoot well and made a comfortable near-post save on the Argentine.
In the 60th minute, Acosta again weaved his way into the center of the penalty box and unleashed a right-footed effort but the ball was sent just wide of Steffen’s right post. D.C. United conceded three corner kicks in a three-minute span starting at the 61st minute, the barrage of corners were well defended by Frederic Brillant and Homegrown Donovan Pines to keep the scoreline in DCU’s favor, 0-1.
Frederico Higuain earned a free kick in the 76th minute of the match and the Argentine sailed his shot a bit too high. The final opportunity of the match came in the 84th minute of the match after a left-footed effort from Pedro Santos ended up off frame and to the right of Hamid’s post.
D.C. United captured their 5th win on the season and remained unbeaten on the road this season, sporting a 3-1-0 record thus far in 2019. The three points also meant that United bounced back up to the top of the eastern conference with 17 points collected through nine games.
Next up for United is the brand new Allianz Field in Saint Paul, Minnesota where D.C. will take on the Loons. The game with be broadcast nationally on Fox Sports starting at 1:30 PM ET.
