Still In It

DC United kept their MLS Playoff hopes alive last night, securing a 2-1 come-from-behind victory against the New England Revolution in their last home game of the season at RFK. Two goals by Francis Doe, his first two of the season, trumped the 58^th minute goal by Taylor Twellman for NE. This win couldn’t come at a more important time for DC, as they hadn’t won a match since the U.S. Open Cup Final on September 3^rd (of which I was in attendance) and their first MLS victory since August. More importantly, they are still alive for securing one of the final playoff spots. Here’s how the race looks so far:

Columbus, Chicago and New England have clinched the Eastern Conference slots. Houston and Chivas USA have done the same on the Western side. Real Salt Lake still has a point on FC Dallas for the final Western Conference spot.

Then, there are the two “wildcard” spots. DC right now is in the top spot of that, but they only have one game left. Kansas City, New York, FC Dallas, Colorado and even Toronto and LA have a realistic chance of making it as well, as they both still have 2 games left (this weekend and next weekend). What’s known is this: DC will need to win next weekend. A draw just will not do, unless everyone loses this weekend and next (which is impossible). They need to win and then probably root for a little help from the other teams in the form of some untimely losses.

Next weekend, DC plays at Columbus, a team that clinched the Supporters’ Shield long ago and will probably be resting players for the playoffs. This is a perfect opportunity for United to get a much-needed victory. What’s also good about this is that they are the final game on the schedule next weekend, so they will go into that game knowing exactly what they need to do. So, it’s time to just do it. ¡Vamos , vamos United! ¡Esta noche tenemos que ganar!