New England Soccer Today

First Touch: #DCU

Photo credit: Kari Heistad/capturedimages.biz

Photo credit: Kari Heistad/capturedimages.biz

The top teams in the Eastern Conference meet on Sunday when the New England Revolution head to the nation’s capital to face D.C. United. Kickoff is at 5:00pm.

Here are a few things to know about D.C. United going into the match:

*D.C United is in the midst of a slump, coming off two straight losses. D.C. United lost 1-0 to Orlando City last week, and prior to that, dropped a 2-1 result to Toronto FC at home. D.C. United has lost three of the last five games and four of their last seven games.

*RFK Stadium has been kind to D.C. United as the team has a 6-3-1 record at home in 2015, with 16 goals scored and nine goals conceded in 10 games. D.C. United’s only loss at home was their last home match against Toronto FC.

*Jario Arrieta leads the team with five goals, while fellow striker Chris Rolfe has four. Arrieta, who is in his first season with D.C. United, has already matched his season total from 2014 with the Columbus Crew and is on pace to surpass his career-high of nine goals in 2012.

*No one one the DC roster has started every game this season, but defender Bobby Boswell and midfielder Perry Kitchen have made appearances in all 17 games while starting in 16. Boswell has one goal and has started all but one game over the past two seasons for D.C. United.Kitchen has started in at least 30 games for D.C. United since his rookie campaign in 2011. He has two goals and an assist so far in 2015, and had a career-high five goals last season.

*D.C. United also has a star goalkeeper, Bill Hamid, who is the top rated goalkeeper in the MLS according to whoscored.com. Hamid has started 13 of 17 games for D.C. United with a 0.85 goals against average and four shutouts. Hamid has been the primary goalkeeper for D.C. United in recent years, as he has started 128 MLS matches since entering the MLS in 2010 and has 34 career shutouts.

*The primary lineup for DC and cumulative player ratings, according to www.whoscored.com, is presented below:

Formation1

*D.C. United’s lineup has seen a little variety this season as they’ve utilized a 4-4-2 in 15 of 17 matches so far in 2015. They have an 8-2-5 record with this 4-4-2. In the remaining two matches, including a game against the Revolution on May 24th, D.C. United used a 4-2-3-1 and they have drawn in both those matches.

*D.C. United is led by a former player of theirs, Ben Olsen. After retiring in 2009, Olsen joined the D.C. United coaching staff as an assistant before the 2010 season and was named the interim head coach in August 2010. Following the season, Olsen was named the permanent head coach and has held that positon since. Olsen holds a 57-45-72 record as manager, and was the 2014 MLS Coach of the Year. Even during D.C. United’s worst season under his tenure in 2013, when the team complied a 3-7-24 MLS record, Olsen guided the squad to the U.S. Open Cup championship.

*As a player, Olsen had success at the college and professional level. At the University of Virginia, Olsen notched 34 goals with 41 assists while being named the 1997 Soccer America Player of the Year. Olsen made a splash immediately at the professional level earning the 1998 MLS Rookie of the Year, while D.C. united won the CONCACAF Champions Cup and InterAmerican Cup that season. While with D.C. United, Olsen also won the U.S. Open Cup in 2008, and the MLS Cup in 1999 and 2004, while being named MLS Cup MVP in 1999. In total, Olsen played in 221 MLS matches from 1998 to 2009, all with D.C. United, while scoring 29 goals.

*Olsen also made 37 appearances with the United States Men’s National Team, including one World Cup appearance in 2006 against Ghana. Olsen scored six goals at the international level.

*This is the second match between D.C. United and the Revolution, as these squads last met in a 1-1 draw at Gillette Stadium on May 24th. Despite the Revolution being shown two red cards, D.C. United was unable to score until the 80th minute, and only came away with a draw.

Here are highlights from that match:

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