DC United Still Seeking Consistent Connections

Coming out of the World Cup break, DC United seemed to have found defensive mojo while lacking the scoring touch to make its several draws into wins. In their last two games versus New England and Charlotte, they lost that mojo and yielded six goals. Coach Rene Weiler hit on the cause after the New England game, “. It wasn’t the best game from our side. In our team, everything has to be very, very well connected. It wasn’t, and at the end, the better team won.”

He went on to say, “We have to read certain situations better than we read it today.” Sadly, two set piece goals by Charlotte three days later showed that the team is not yet properly connected. Part of his explanation is based on his view that, “We play three games in one week, so we don’t have a really wide squad.” While he has juggled his lineup often this year, it has been more stable than his inaugural year.

He continues to build the squad in his style but may need a few more pieces to get the flow that mixes defense with attack. In the series of mostly draws the team was able to establish some balance but the closely scheduled games may have shown how fatigue weakens concentration needed for success.

Weiler is aware of some critics, “Some people told me that we had too many draws, and I told them you are crazy because all games are also tight.” Perhaps some of that feeling has influenced the players into too much emphasis on attack as fatigue leads to some loss of focus. The return of Joao Peglow against Charlotte may presage some greater attacking depth which should help the team’s balance.

In both games, DC United maintained width on attack, but often had their right-side defenders drift inside to protect the center, leaving opponents room on that side. The coach noted, “But I think they had maybe the better players on their right side, and then of course they tried to attack on this side.” Interestingly, neither opponent chose to use that opening very often. The focus was on overloading DC’s defense while hoping for success in the confusion. The two set piece goals by Charlotte illustrate the problems that congestion can cause.

Lucas Bartlett noted, “Yeah, maybe that’s it. Disconnect. There’s a lot of overloads in the wide channel for us. We didn’t get pressure on the ball, and we have to do better in the box to defend. You know, guys have to track runners.” Despite that observation, the defense lost coverage against Charlotte. It is possible that using Andre Dozzel in central defense for the first time left a bit of connection lacking.

We might see how well Weiler addresses the issue as United faces LAFC this Saturday at Audi Field. United’s opponent has been recovering strongly from a terrible start and Greg Vanney’s team is certain to be well prepared to face the outfit for which he formerly played.