D.C. United: Controlling its own playoff destiny moving forward

After beating the Montreal Impact on Saturday, D.C. United is now in a strong position to make a run into the playoffs. It controls its own destiny

Heading into Saturday’s match-up against the Montreal Impact, D.C. United head coach Ben Olsen and his team knew they couldn’t afford another loss at home.

With the Impact currently occupying the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, United had to get a positive result to stay in the hunt.

However, instead of playing a risky game and forcing a result, Olsen decided to sit back and wait for the opposing team to make mistakes. The decision paid off.

Although the Impact controlled 60% of the possession in the game and also outshot United 25 to nine, the final scoreline did not reflect their dominance. United beat the Impact 5-0 and walked away with three points at home.

While the Impact had more opportunities at scoring, United made much more out of its chances. Forward Wayne Rooney and midfielders Luciano Acosta and Paul Arriola were impeccable with their finishing, converting the chances that they did create.

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The goals the trio scored were top quality and reflected the difference in offensive talent between the two teams. The Impact simply don’t have a scorer like Rooney or a playmaker like Acosta on its roster.

Goalkeeper Bill Hamid was also a big factor in the game. He made several important saves throughout the match that helped United keep a clean sheet.

At the end of the day, Olsen’s gameplan worked. United allowed the Impact to control possession, while also pressuring the team to make mistakes in the midfield or from the backline at certain key moments.

Defenders Steve Birnbaum and Frederic Brillant were organized and disciplined with their challenges. They often forced the Impact players to take bad shots that allowed for United to regain the possession they were fighting for.

Moving forward, United will have to continue playing at this level to have a shot at making the playoffs. The club is currently two points behind the sixth place Montreal Impact, who hold the final playoff spot in the East with five games remaining on the schedule.

These last five games are against the Chicago Fire (twice), Toronto FC, New York City FC and FC Dallas. Three of these games are at home, where D.C. have enjoyed great success since Audi Field’s opening in the summer.

At the moment, NYCFC and Dallas are the only two upcoming opponents in the playoff hunt. However, United should not underestimate Chicago or Toronto.

Although both of these clubs have struggled this season, they still managed to beat some winning teams by surprise. Last weekend, Chicago beat Los Angeles FC 3-1 despite being underdogs. Toronto also has a talented roster that could give D.C. United a hard time.

With the Impact looking to hold onto its playoff spot and the New England Revolution just three points behind United in the standings, there is not much room for error remaining in the season.

Fortunately for United, both the Revolution and Impact have tough games remaining on their schedules. The Impact have three regular-season match-ups left and the Revolution have four.

The Impact still have to play the Columbus Crew and Toronto, while the Revolution have to play against Atlanta United, Orlando City and Real Salt Lake. The two teams will then play each other before the end of the regular season, meaning that at least one, if not both, is guaranteed to drop points down the stretch.

While the results of these games could work out in D.C. United’s favor, the team still needs to make sure it gets the job done on its own end first. At this late stage of the season, United controls its own destiny.

If United can beat Chicago and Toronto and at least manage to draw with Dallas or NYCFC, the team will almost certainly secure a spot in the playoffs.