It’s back to meat and potatoes for D.C. United. After some spicy competition against Spanish club Real Madrid, United returns to MLS action Saturday when it visits Toronto FC.
Under a new playoff format, United needs to pile up points as it enters the final third of the season, and that means playing better on the road. Only the top two teams in each conference are guaranteed playoff spots. The other four berths go to the teams with the most points regardless of conference. With 10 ties, United has dropped plenty of points this season.
“We’ve done well not to lose games - we’ve only lost four - but we’ve also had the opportunity to pick up points [and didn’t],” coach Tom Soehn said. “Now it becomes even more important because we missed those opportunities.”
United continues to struggle away from RFK Stadium, where it is undefeated. Soehn said he believes his team finally has broken the road jinx after winning at Salvadoran club Firpo last week.
“We turned a page in El Salvador,” Soehn said. “That’s going to be our standard from this point.”
United has won only one of 11 MLS road games this season and has tied six, with four left.
“We tend to start off well and then slow down in the second half or just doze off,” defender Dejan Jakovic said. “A few collapses here and there have been costing us as of late.”
United (6-4-10, 28 points) is third in the Eastern Conference, one point ahead of Toronto (7-7-6, 27). United does not have the luxury of just focusing on its last 10 league games; it has seven dates in two other competitions in the next two months.
“This is an important stretch for us, and it’s not going to be easy,” forward Santino Quaranta said. “There’s a lot of traveling, and if you get one or two injuries you’re really [in trouble]. Tommy’s got a tough job ahead of him in picking these teams.”
A loss at Toronto, combined with victories by Chivas USA and Real Salt Lake, could put United out of the playoff picture temporarily. United and Toronto tied 3-3 on May 9 at RFK.
United moves - The club signed Belgian defender David Habarugira on Friday and soon is expected to announce the signing of defender Julius James from the Houston Dynamo.
Freedom in the playoffs - The Washington Freedom face New Jersey-based Sky Blue FC in the first round of the WPS playoffs at 4 p.m. Saturday at the Maryland SoccerPlex in Boyds. It’s the club’s last home game of the year.
The winner will play at league runner-up Saint Louis Athletica on Wednesday. The winner of that game plays at Los Angeles in the final Aug. 22.
The Freedom’s Abby Wambach finished tied for second in the league with eight goals.
Americans in the EPL - The English Premier League kicks off Saturday with a number of Americans hoping to see action.
Defender Jonathan Spector and West Ham visit the newly promoted Wolverhampton Wanderers, who signed goalie Marcus Hahnemann in the preseason break.
Aston Villa and its trio of Americans - Brad Guzan, Brad Friedel and Eric Lichaj - host Wigan. Eddie Johnson, back from his loan spell at Cardiff, and Clint Dempsey will be with Fulham as it visits Portsmouth; goalie Tim Howard will be in the nets when Everton hosts Arsenal.
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