United stars prove decisive in win
'Keeper, ace striker provide difference on opposite ends
Largely outplayed in the first half, the home side hardly deserved the lead handed to them by in-form striker Luciano Emilio in the 16th minute, and Kyle Beckerman soon responded with a long-distance drive that left United head coach Tom Soehn fuming.
"It was disappointing, because we addressed this before the game, that Kyle's got a shot from the outside," he said afterwards. "We failed to step and close that and we gave him a good opportunity to have a look at goal, and he punished us."
But all that was just an entrée to a pulsating second half that was often scrappy but always compelling, highlighted by two controversial penalty kicks awarded by referee Jorge Gonzalez.
After watching former United goalkeeper Nick Rimando save his spot kick in the 50th minute, D.C. playmaker Christian Gomez redeemed himself 13 minutes later with a smart header to bury Fred's cross for the game-winner. Then a mere three minutes later, goalkeeper Troy Perkins did Rimando one better, punching away Alecko Eskandarian's penalty to deny Real and keep Black-and-Red spirits high on the eve of a 10-day lull in their schedule.
"It was a tough moment for me, when I missed that penalty," admitted Gomez. "All I needed to do was keep focused, because I knew I was going to have another chance, and I couldn't miss that one. Luckily I got it and I could convert it to win the game."
Eskandarian worked industriously in his return to the stadium where he spent the first four years of his professional career, but was deprived of a storybook finish when his former road trip roommate saved his 76th-minute penalty effort. Afterwards, both men alluded to the many times they'd faced off in similar situations on the United practice field, where Eskandarian usually got the better of Perkins -- and rarely missed a chance to remind him of it.
"You know, we used to practice PKs all the time, every day," said the D.C. netminder. "And he would give me stick and lip about not saving any of them, or not saving them in games. So for me to save his was brilliant -- I loved it. But I feel for him a little bit. That's tough, to come back to a club you used to play for and you want to score so bad and celebrate, but don't."
Perkins' remarks were summarily interrupted by defender Bobby Boswell, who explained what his unassuming 'keeper would not.
"What Troy is not saying is that Alecko used to give him the hardest time about penalty kicks, and not saving them -- and more specifically, his 'pre-dance,' that [Eskandarian] called it, before he tried to save the PKs," said Boswell. "So in my opinion, Troy's not going to say it, but I'll say it: this was his sweet redemption."
The win officially qualifies D.C. for the MLS Cup Playoffs and maintains the club's nine-game unbeaten streak, though afterwards, no one in the home locker room was fooling themselves about the quality of their performance.
"I thought on the day, it was bad all the way around," said Soehn. "Having said that, there's a lot of situations you're in where you don't play well and you don't get the result. So I still give our guys credit that they did what it took to get our three points and keep our streak alive, whether it's Troy making a big save or Christian coming up after missing a penalty, Fred injecting some life. We found a way to win."
Last season United had rolled up an impressive string of results leading up to their first meeting with RSL, only to give up two late penalty kicks and crash to a 2-1 loss that was followed by a late-summer slide from which the club never really recovered. But this time the Black-and-Red did just enough to win, and will enjoy four days off before gearing up for a pressure-packed fall.
"We didn't put together the best performance tonight -- in fact, it was pretty bad, I thought," said Boswell. "But the important thing is the result, and if we keep getting these results, it doesn't really matter how we get them -- just keep taking them and keep on trucking."
