CONCACAF Champion’s Cup result, April 9
D.C. United 2, Pachuca 1
United lost 3-2 on aggregate, but it wasn’t as close as the numbers show.
Playing aggressively
The difficulty with playing aggressively in a game where goal-differential is important is that your opponent can sit 11 players in the defensive end and counter attack through open spaces. The amount of offense generated by a team also depends on the stability of a team’s defense. United used what amounted to a three-man back line against Pachuca and did not create an unusually high number of chances against the visitors. United forward Emilio was presented with a number of scoring chances, but no more than the Pachuca forwards at the other end.
You see this offensive type of strategy more in American sports, like football where the offenses and defenses are separate, or basketball where a coach can call a timeout to set up an offensive play, then sub them out to get defenders back on the floor, or baseball where an offensive player can pinch hit for a pitcher, then have a reliever replace him. But in soccer, starting an “offensive” line-up sounds better than the reality. A team with a weakened defense spends much of its time scrambling to cover openings in its lines rather than patiently controlling the ball to look for a weakness.
It is often a better idea to start in a more familiar formation, wear an opponent down for 60-70 minutes, then send in fresh strikers, or sub out midfielders and replace them with more offensive players. Arsenal has done this effectively all year, scoring important last-minute goals in injury time.
Aggressive play/grass diving
United tried to make up for any lack of defense by aggressively challenging the visiting players in the midfield. This seemed to work for the first ten minutes of the game when the referee allowed both teams to play. A hard tackle in the 11th minute, however, led to a complete change in the game momentum as the referee blew the whistle on average once every two minutes -- Emilio was whistled in the box in the 11th minute, then again in the 13th minute Emilio was given a yellow card for minimal contact, Clyde Simms in the 14th minute, Simms again in the 16th minute for a hip check, Moreno in the 19th minute for a clean tackle, Bryan Namoff in the 19th minute, and Fred in the 22nd minute.
United was, without a doubt playing physically, but a physical challenge and foul are not the same. It was clear from Game One that Pachuca players were well versed in the art of grass-diving, so the United management needed to either adjust their tactics or complain to the league. Fans do not expect fouls like these to be called in a home game just because a visiting player falls down.
Right or wrong, Pachuca’s ability to sell fouls to the referee killed United’s momentum. By the time the referee seemed to recognize the transparency of the play-acting, the initial surge of energy of the home players seemed spent. The same level of physicality was allowed later in the game without penalty. I do, however, hate to blame the referee.
Player selection
United head coach Tom Soehn surprised fans who were speculating on which forwards he was going to use by starting Emilio, Jaime Moreno and Santino Quaranta.
United’s goals
The offensive strategy did not pay off until the last ten minutes of the game when Rod Dyachenko scored in the 85th minute and Franco Neill scored in the 90th minute. Both were assisted by Fred.
Pachuca scores
Unfortunately, the home team’s goals came after Pachuca scored, giving the visitors a 3-0 lead on aggregate. Pachuca’s chance came in the 76th minute when Simms, United’s holding midfielder, crossed a ball from the right side to Emilio. It was a good play, but it opened the United center to counter attack. Emilio dropped a pass from the front line to Gallardo in the center. It was a good idea, but slightly off target and it caught the playmaker leaning the wrong direction. The pass was intercepted by a Pachuca player and run back into the United half. The home team, with only three players back, could only hope to contain a four-player break, but could not commit to marking any of the players. Damian Alvarez shot the ball in from the top of the box to the left.
Time runs out on D.C.
Pachuca, with a three-goal lead, fell back into a defensive shell, allowing United to take full control of the game. To their credit, the home team was able to score two goals. Pachuca’s strategy could have backfired, but the referee seemed to cut the amount of injury time short and left United just one goal short.
It was important, even in a loss, that United was able to score two goals to win the home leg. Honestly, how many fans expected to win this competition? The offseason changes to the team could make this the best United squad in team history, but we won't be seeing that until September and October. With any luck, this CONCACAF Champion’s Cup run is just a preview of next year’s competition, when D.C. can have higher expectations.
United plays next at Real Salt Lake on Saturday 9 p.m. EST.
