New England Soccer Today

DC’s Olsen: Revs Made it Difficult For Us

Photo credit: Chris Aduama/aduamaphotography.com

Photo credit: Chris Aduama/aduamaphotography.com

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – DC United coach Ben Olsen took a long and pronounced pause before he was able to explain just how a nine-man Revolution squad managed to take a point from his team in Saturday’s 1-1 draw.

Despite holding a two-man advantage for over half-an-hour, Jairo Arrieta’s late equalizer was the only shot DC was able put on goal during the match. It was a testament to the resolve the Revolution showed against all odds, and Olsen wasn’t shy to admit the same.

“Look, credit them,” Olsen said. “They dug in. There are a lot of guys on their squad that were doing everything it took to make it difficult on us.”

Thanks to some key tackles from Andrew Farrell, and smart positioning and play from Scott Caldwell and Jermaine Jones, the Revolution were able to keep DC’s attack largely at bay after Lee Nguyen’s 58th minute red card left them in a precarious position.

Even though Olsen was quick to give kudos to the Revolution effort in light of the circumstances, he also felt that his squad didn’t take advantage of their opportunities.

“I thought we could’ve just played with what’s there,” Olsen said. “Ten v eight – you just give it to the next guy, side-to-side, and eventually you’re going to get your looks or you’re going to get service in better spots closer to the goal, in and around the 18.”

So what was missing?

“The passing was a little bit off at times,” Olsen said. “But I thought Facundo (Coria) came in and did a good job and obviously Taylor (Kemp) – the introduction of Taylor helped from a service standpoint.”

Service didn’t appear to be an issue for DC late. But with Farrell, Jones and Jose Gonclaves winning the aerial war inside the 18, the guests could do little against a compact and positionally-sound Revolution side that eked out a point from a match that United hypothetically should’ve taken a victory from without issue.

“I’m not sure what to say about that game,” Olsen said. “1-0 down at half, I’ll take the tie right? But at 1-1, up two men? It’d be nice to get out of here with a win.”

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