United unravel Red Bulls at home
Luciano Emilio's hat trick spurs 4-1 victory vs. New York at RFK Stadium
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With key veterans Juan Pablo Angel and Claudio Reyna sidelined by injury and young striker Jozy Altidore recently sold to Spanish side Villareal, the visitors entered the match shorthanded and United showed no mercy, paced by Luciano Emilio's first-ever MLS hat trick and a sizzling long-distance blast from Clyde Simms.
Missing Marcelo Gallardo and Bryan Namoff through red card suspension, D.C. coach Tom Soehn inserted Rod Dyachenko in Gallardo's playmaking role and shuffled his back line to start Marc Burch on the left side as Gonzalo Martinez switched to the right. On the other side, New York boss Juan Carlos Osorio signaled a conservative approach for his injury-hit squad with John Wolyniec as a lone striker in a 4-5-1 formation.
Thunderstorms had rolled through the Washington area throughout the afternoon and the heavy clouds opened up again just as the match was getting underway, quickly drenching both teams in a soft but steady rain.
With captain Jaime Moreno orchestrating, United controlled play in the early stages and their passing and movement promised much, but created few clear looks at goal with which to test Red Bulls netminder Jon Conway.
As the half wore on, D.C. switched wingers Santino Quaranta and Fred -- as they had done to such good effect against Toronto FC in their last game at RFK -- and the move soon paid dividends as Quaranta drifted in from the left to meet Fred's hard run with a stabbed diagonal ball that split the defense wide open. The tricky Brazilian wasted no time in stroking a sharp low cross to the far post, where Emilio's timing left him with the simplest of finishes for a 1-0 United lead.
Dave van den Bergh had been working hard to give the Red Bulls a presence in the center of the park and he nearly caught United napping just moments after the goal, rising well to meet Seth Stammler's corner kick delivery from the left, but the Dutchman nodded his header just over the top with Wells at his mercy.
Having dodged a bullet, the home side charged back the other way and took full advantage of Jeff Parke's foul on Emilio to double their advantage off a well-executed set piece. Without Gallardo, their main free kick threat, United took a different approach as Moreno looked into the box only to roll a square ball into the path of Clyde Simms. The delicate pass allowed D.C.'s holding midfielder to pick his spot from some 25 yards out and deliver a clinical example of long-range shooting, hammering a right-footer just inside the near post.
But the Black-and-Red again showed their vulnerability on set pieces and aerial challenges as a booming Red Bulls free kick into the box nearly led to a point-blank finish for Wolyniec just short of the half-hour mark.
Fred was running amok on the United right flank and burst clear behind the New York defense three minutes later, only to be denied by Kevin Goldthwaite's remarkable recovery as the left back sprinted back to slide in with a crunching -- but well-timed -- block deep in the box.
New York's direct approach continued to discomfit United as the visitors tested Wells with a wave of corner kicks, only for D.C. to strike back opportunistically with a back-breaking goal on the stroke of halftime.
This time it was Moreno leading the charge, as the Bolivian ran at the heart of the Red Bulls back line before slotting wide to Quaranta on the left, who tried to find the far post with a low, curling shot around Conway. The 'keeper dropped low to palm that effort away, but was left helpless as Emilio met the rebound with a composed side-footed finish that doubled his haul for the day.
For the second stanza, Osorio attempted to haul his side back into the contest by inserting another striker in the shape of Oscar Echeverry, while his opposite number Soehn removed Quaranta -- who was feeling a tight hamstring -- in favor of Dominic Mediate.
D.C. soon showed a bit of complacency to allow their Atlantic Cup rivals back into the game as they failed to clear their lines after Wolyniec clanged a close-range shot off the crossbar. Taking possession at the top of the United penalty box, van den Bergh made the most of it with a deftly curled left-footer that beat Wells and nestled into the far inside netting.
The Red Bulls' revival proved short-lived, however. Perhaps sensing an opening, the visitors were caught with too many numbers forward in the 59th minute and paid the price when D.C. center back Devon McTavish -- of all people -- raced forward to latch onto Moreno's alert through ball down the left channel.
Spotting Emilio to his right, McTavish fed the Brazilian with a simple centering pass that he smacked home with gusto to complete his first-ever MLS hat trick. The feat provides further notice of Emilio's dramatic return to form after a rough spring: the 2008 league MVP has now scored six goals in United's last four matches.
The Red Bulls provided some late danger: Wolyniec came close on a 72nd-minute turn-and-shoot; Goldthwaite looped an unmarked header harmlessly wide; Wolyniec scuffed another effort well wide after Echeverry presented him with an inviting layoff. But by that point, United had already banked the points.
Charles Boehm is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
