D.C. United was in such fine form heading into the last fixture of the regular season, but it was railroaded out of a bye when it was destroyed by Columbus 5-0 in the finale. Now, the Red and Blacks have to find a way back up on the horse in a hurry against a very good New England Revolution team in the opening round of the MLS Cup playoffs.
ODDS ANALYSIS
United was great at home this year at 11-3-3, and it is going to be a deserving favorite in this match. However, there's a degree of doubt as well. The Revs played their hearts out last year in the playoffs to reach the MLS Cup Final, and they did get five wins in their 17 away matches this year. It isn't out of the realm of possibility that they could pull off an upset like this one.
KEY INJURIES
D.C. United remains a relatively healthy squad. Chris Korb, Davy Arnaud and Jared Jeffrey are the only problems the team has, and these are problems which have been lurking for it for quite some time.
The Revs actually have a completely clean bill of health as well. Darrius Barnes is a long-term absentee, but he's been out with a torn patellar tendon since April.
QUOTE TO NOTE
"You can go two ways from this, right? It can fuel you and piss you off a little bit, or you can put your heads down and let this affect you. I have known this crew now for two years, and I know there is enough character, enough experience to understand that, in some ways, this may be a get-out-of-jail-free card. And now we have a new lease." – D.C. United manager Ben Olsen on the last woeful game in Columbus on "Decision Day"
RECENT FORM
United went just 2-6-1 in its last nine MLS matches, and those wins came against New York City FC and Chicago, two teams which didn't get into the playoffs. As a result, the Red and Blacks went from on the verge of being able to win the Supporters' Cup for having the best record in the MLS to having the fourth best record in the East.
New England isn't exactly in fine form either. The team did beat NYCFC to lock down a playoff spot on Sunday, but that was the team's first win since September 16. The Revs were 0-3-1 in their previous four fixtures.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
There's just something wrong with D.C. United right now, and we can't put our finger on it. Chris Pontius has looked worthless in the midfield, while Chris Rolfe has had nothing going forward whatsoever. A defense which once stood tall early in the year to make up for a lacking offense just allowed five goals to a team playing without its two best offensive weapons.
Furthermore, this is the time of year when the Revs tend to wake up. Lee Nguyen was massive in the playoffs last year for New England, and he could play a big role again in this game. If United plays as poorly at the back as it did against the Crew, this is going to end up being a short stay in the playoffs.
New England only managed one point in two fixtures against the Red and Blacks this year, but all of that could turn around for it on Wednesday night. The crowd should be light with the short turnaround time in D.C., and the fact that the Wizards are playing in their home opener at the same time could be devastating. To us, this is just all adding up to an upset.
New England 2, D.C. United 0
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