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| Davy Arnaud (left, on ground) scores the game's only goal |
Arnaud Scores Early; United Tops Red Bulls 1-0
One streak ends, and another begins. After snapping the fifth-longest winless streak in MLS history last week,
DC United won its
second straight match of this young season... staving off the visiting
New York Red Bulls 1-0 in front of a joyous crowd of 12,364 at RFK Stadium. Veteran midfielder
Davy Arnaud scored the game's only goal on a diving header in the fourth minute; and backup goalkeeper
Andrew Dykstra pitched his second straight shutout in relief of starter
Bill Hamid, as United improved to 2-2-1.
The Red Bulls, led by French superstar
Thierry Henry dominated time of possession (57%) and total shots (19-12) but couldn't manage to crack DC United's goal, ably guarded by the 28-year-old Dykstra. Last year's USL Goalkeeper of the year finished with three saves; and if he keeps playing like this, head coach
Ben Olsen will have a tough decision to make when Hamid returns from his foot injury.
When
Luis Silva went down with an ankle injury two weeks ago, United appeared to have lost a major cog in its offensive attack; but Arnaud has filled in remarkably in his absence. That's huge, especially given
Eddie Johnson's early season struggles (he remains scoreless in five games.) Johnson's inability to score hasn't been for a lack of effort, as he narrowly missed a goal in the second half before coming off for good at the 84-minute mark. 2012's MLS Comeback Player of the Year also had the misfortune of drawing
close attention all night from New York's 6'3 defenseman
Jámison Olave. Olave is a monster, and shoved Johnson to the ground on several occasions.
RFK was especially noisy, and a good many Red Bulls could be seen (and heard) throughout the night. They were treated to a slew of offensive moves by France's all-time leading scorer Henry. He may be 36, but he's still a handful for any defense. Need proof? Look no further than his game-high eight shots (two on goal.) He remains one of the most exciting players in the MLS; and if you missed tonight's game, you can still catch him (and some of his injured teammates, including MLS All-Star
Tim Cahill) when the Red Bulls return to DC on August 31st. Sadly both Cahill and former DC United star
Bobby Convey were unable to play, due to injury.
United looks to make it three wins in-a-row when they travel to Columbus to face the Eastern Conference leading
Crew (3-1) next Saturday; before returning home to host
FC Dallas (4-0-1, not including tonight's contest vs.
Seattle) on Saturday, August 26th at 7:00 PM.
Click here to purchase tickets.
Click here for tonight's box score.
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| M Dax McCarty (#11) |
