D.C. United Leave Chivas USA In The Dust At RFK (VIDEO)
Jul 20, 2014; Washington, DC, USA; D.C. United goalkeeper Bill Hamid (28) celebrates with fans after United
Ben Olsen’s D.C. United continued their pursuit of Sporting Kansas City in the MLS Eastern Conference with a 3-1 statement victory over Wilmer Cabrera Chivas USA at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C. on Sunday night. Here are six things we learned, followed by player ratings, for the match between D.C. United and Chivas USA.
1. Eddie Johnson opens up the scoring
Early on in the first half, a through ball from Chivas USA’s Eriq Zavaleta for Marvin Chavez was ruled offsides. In the 14th minnute, Erick Torres tried a left-footed shot from outside the box but it missed to the right. In the 17th minute, Chivas defender Donny Toia had a left-footed shot from outside the box saved by Bill Hamid. In the 23rd minute, Luis Silva had a right-footed shot from outside the box saved by Dan Kennedy. Oswaldo Minda fouled Chris Rolfe in the box in the 24th minute, and that allowed Eddie Johnson to score his third of the season off a penalty in the 25th.
2. Close calls for both teams in first half
Following a couple of free kicks won by Chivas USA, the aforementioned Chavez tried a through ball for Mauro Rosales in the 29th minute but it was called back for offsides. Perry Kitchen was cautioned in the 31st minute for a foul on Chavez. In the 34th minute, Rosales had a shot from outside the box that was blocked.
Torres tried a shot from the right side of the box in the 40th minute but it was blocked. Torres was offsides in the 41st minute on a through ball from Rosales. Johnson was hoping for a brace in the 42nd minute, but his header hit the bar. In the 45th minute, Chris Rolfe had a shjot from the left side of the box saved by Kennedy.
3. Kitchen makes it 2-0 D.C. United
At the halftime break, midfielder Nathan Sturgis came in for Oswaldo Minda. Early on in the second half, Zavaleta nearly scored an own goal, but the woodwork bailed him out. Johnson was caught offsides on a through ball from Rolfe in the 49th minute and just five minutes into his shift, Sturgis was cautioned for a foul in the 50th. The 51st minute saw Davy Arnaud try a left-footed shot from outside the box but it was saved by Kennedy. In the 56th minute, Torres tried a right-footed shot from the right side of the box, but it was skied. In the 59th minute, Kitchen scored his third goal of the season off a rebound on a set piece.
4. Luis Silva slams the door shut on Chivas
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In the 63rd minute, Chavez had a right-footed shot from the center of the box blocked. A minute later, it was Agustin Pelletieri’s turn to try his luck at goal but it missed to the right. Midfielder Lewis Neal came in for Rolfe in the 67th minute after Rolfe took a knock. In the 70th minute, Luis Silva scored his fifth goal of the season…and also got cautioned for getting carried away. Take a look.
5. Torres salvages some sort of pride for Chivas
In the 71st minute, forward Leandro Barrera came in for Agustin Pelletieri to get some numbers forward. Barrera almost made an impact in the 74th minute but his shot missed wide right. D.C. forward Conor Doyle filled in for Luis Silva in the 74th minute of play. In the 80th minute, defender Akira Kaji made his debut, coming in for Chavez. Barrera has a left footed shot from outside the box blocked in the 81st minute. In the 83rd minute, Steve Birnbaum fouled Rosales in the box, and that allowed Torres to score his 14th goal of the season off a penalty in the 84th minute of play.
D.C. United midfielder Jared Jeffery came in for Davy Arnaud in that same minute. Torres’s next attempt on goal in the 88th minute was just a tad too high, and that would be the last major chance for both teams as D.C. were able to hold firm the rest of the contest.
6. Better passing from D.C., poor shot selection from Chivas
D.C. United played the better game, despite what the stats say below. They passed better and were smarter with their shot selection. As for Chivas, they were trigger-happy and their poor finishing proved to be their major undoing.
Team Statistics
D.C. United in bold black, Chivas USA in red
| 7 | Shots | 11 |
| 5 | Shots on Target | 2 |
| 1 | Shots off Target | 5 |
| 1 | Blocked Shots | 4 |
| 3 | Corners | 6 |
| 19 | Crosses | 21 |
| 1 | Offsides | 4 |
| 10 | Fouls | 18 |
| 2 | Yellow Cards | 1 |
| 0 | Red Cards | 0 |
| 489 | Total Passes | 389 |
| 83 % | Passing Accuracy | 77 % |
| 55.6 % | Possession | 44.4 % |
| 41 | Duels Won | 35 |
| 5 | Tackles Won | 8 |
| 1 | Saves | 2 |
| 18 | Clearances | 17 |
D.C. United Player Ratings
Bill Hamid 6, Bobby Boswell 6, Chris Korb 7, Sean Franklin 6, Steve Birnbaum 5, Chris Rolfe 7, Davy Arnaud 6., Nick DeLeon 6, Perry Kitchen 6.5, Eddie Johnson 9, Luis Silva 7.5, Lewis Neal 4, Conor Doyle 3, Jared Jeffery NR
Chivas USA Player Ratings
Dan Kennedy 4, Carlos Bocanegra 3, Donny Toia 3, Eriq Zavaleta 3, Tony Lochhead 3, Agustin Pelletieri 3, Marco Delgagdo 4, Mauro Rosales 5, Oswaldo Minda 3, Erick Torres 6, Marvin Chavez 4, Nathan Sturgis 2.5, Leandro Barrera 3, Akira Kaji NR