The struggles of D.C. United against the New York Red Bulls no longer seem like a problem that can be solved within a week. In a week that included eight playoff games in a span of five days for MLS, D.C.’s performance against the Red Bulls in the first leg of the Eastern Conference Semifinals was the worst performance in that time. They didn’t even resemble the team that took the field against New England in the knockout round on October 28.
The paltry stats put up by D.C. in their first leg game against the Red Bulls included zero shots on target, 24 fouls committed, 41.9% possession and a woeful 55% passing accuracy. Sealing the pitiful performance was the fact that Bill Hamid once again had a strong performance with eight saves, including this one off his face in the first half, but allowed the shortest player on the field, Dax McCarty, to score the lone goal of the game off a header.
Besides Bill Hamid, the other thing that D.C. and their fans can feel good about is that the Black and Red led Major League Soccer in comeback wins this season with eight, including their opening round win when they trailed 1-0 and came back to score two goals. Unfortunately, something occurs when D.C. plays the Red Bulls, the team looks slower, discombobulated and can’t seem to string together any significant series of passes. Since the 2013 season the Red Bulls have played D.C. 12 times to the tune of a 7-3-2 record.
Here are some recent games that have led to the recent Red Bulls dominance in recent years:
April 13, 2013 – Before the first leg of this current playoff matchup, April 13, 2013 was the last time the Red Bulls had won in RFK. A 2-0 win by the Red Bulls in which D.C. dominated possession, the teams matched shots and shots on goal, however, the away team had one Thierry Henry on their side who scored one of the two goals that put the game away before half time.
September 10, 2014 – At Red Bull Arena, D.C. United went down to 10 men early when Fabian Espindola was red carded in the 32nd minute of the game. D.C. frustrated the Red Bulls throughout as Red Bulls controlled the stats sheet but had nothing to show. The Red Bulls dominated possession, outshot D.C. 19-5 and had a phenomenal 88% passing accuracy rate. The game was imminently headed for a tie until, in the 90th minute, Lloyd Sam made a brilliant individual effort to slip a game winner past Bill Hamid for a 1-0 Red Bull win.
November 8, 2014 – After D.C. was thoroughly outplayed and outmatched in their first leg tie with the Red Bulls, losing 2-0, the team knew they needed at least two goals to force extra time in the return leg at RFK Stadium. Nick DeLeon scored an opening goal that made things interesting going into the half, before Peguy Layundula tied the game at one apiece, giving the Red bulls a 3-1 on aggregate lead and essentially putting the game and the tie away in the 57th minute. D.C. would go on to win the game 2-1 but lose the tie 3-2, despite clearly outplaying the Red Bulls in the second leg, they still went home at the hands of their I-95 rivals.
August 30, 2015 – The Red Bulls came into this game trailing D.C. by five points in the East and a chance to win the Atlantic Cup title at home in Red Bull Arena. The game was never close, Red Bulls jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first half, on their way to a 3-0 route. Bradley Wright-Phillips scored two goals and assisted in the first goal by Lloyd Sam. The Red Bulls outshot DC 24-9 and won the possession and passing accuracy battles while outdueling and out tackling D.C.
D.C. United find themselves staring down a 1-0 hole, heading to a stadium where they haven’t won a game since the second leg of the Eastern Conference Semi Finals in 2012, a 1-0 win to take the tie 2-1 over the Red Bulls. Coach Ben Olsen thinks his players had a good game in the first leg, Steven Goff of the Washington Post cited Olsen after the first leg, “I’m happy with the performance, for the most part,” Olsen said. “Obviously, we need to get the goal. . . . Disappointed but optimistic this is still a series we can win.” Meaning they probably need to play a great game in order to give themselves a chance, since their recent history against the Red Bulls shows that this team struggles to play defensive, counter attacking soccer against their northern rivals; a signature D.C. United style of play.
In 2012, when D.C. went to Red Bull Arena needing a goal to win the tie in the Eastern Conference Semifinals, rookie Nick DeLeon scored a late game winner in the 88th minute. DeLeon will now return with his 2015 teammates to Red Bull Arena, knowing that one goal may help extend their season a little longer. There are no guarantees though, that D.C. will solve the Red Bulls puzzle.
