On Wednesday night, D.C. United took a break from MLS action to face off against Club Puebla from Liga MX in a friendly match. The starting XI featured many D.C. United regulars, including Wayne Rooney, Luciano Acosta, and Joseph Mora. And they got things started early.
The Black-and-Red struck first with a goal in the 4th minute from Quincy Amarikwa. Leonardo Jara sent a blazing cross into the box and Amarikwa tapped it in first, giving D.C. United the early lead.
Both teams created chances in the first fifteen minutes. In the 17th minute, Chris Seitz saved a rocket shot, blasting the ball out of bounds for a corner kick. After the corner, Puebla got another shot off, but Seitz was there again to make the save. A few minutes later, Wayne Rooney took a free kick just outside the 18-yard box and launched the ball into the near corner, but Puebla got the save, forcing a corner kick.
D.C. United and Puebla continued to split time on the ball with both teams creating some decent chances but nothing successful. The scoreline at halftime was 1-0 D.C. United.
In the 75th minute, Puebla equalized with D.C. United. Right after it started pouring rain, Puebla lined up to take a corner kick. The ball landed at the feet of Diego Abella Callega who launched the ball towards the goal. It was too strong for goalkeeper Chris Seitz to keep it out and the scoreline became 1-1.
The rain quickly calmed down and so did the match. D.C. United were able to create some more chances going forward, but Puebla had some solid looks too, including a shot in the 87th minute that went off the crossbar. In the end, neither team were able to break through and the friendly with Club Puebla ended in a 1-1 draw.
Following the two-week international break, D.C. United will travel to Portland to face the Timbers on September 15th. The next home game for the Black-and-Red is against the Seattle Sounders on September 22nd.
