As D.C. United continue to prepare for the upcoming MLS season with this week's Texas Pro Soccer Festival, the four-time champions have another agenda as they take on MLS foes Chivas USA, Toronto FC and Houston Dynamo.
Next Wednesday, D.C. will be in Jamaica, but it will be anything but a vacation, as they'll be there to face Harbour View FC in the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions' Cup quarterfinals.
With that match on the horizon, D.C. coach Tom Soehn is using this week's three-game Texas Pro Soccer Festival series to tie up any loose ends before jetting off to the Caribbean.
"We're on a different schedule than some, us and Houston with the CONCACAF, so obviously we want to set ourselves up to play some important games ahead of [next week]," Soehn said. "So it's a good chance to play the teams that are here, that will be similar to what we'll see in the tournament."
United forward Jaime Moreno echoed his coach's sentiments on the importance of this week's trio of matches.
"We're looking forward to trying to get in the best shape as possible for next week's competition," Moreno said. "Hopefully these games will be a good test for us."
Moreno and most of D.C.'s expected starters got the lion's share of the minutes in their Wednesday morning scrimmage against Chivas USA at the Soccer International practice facility, while most of the reserves took the field when the teams met in their festival match at Steele High School Stadium later in the evening.
In the morning scrimmage, D.C. prevailed 2-1, with Luciano Emilio and Franco Niell providing the scoring. That was the same score in their second matchup, as goals from Quavas Kirk and Brazilian striker Cezar brought D.C. back from an early 1-0 deficit to make it two wins in 12 hours.
While the starters will be rested for the most part for the duration of the series, giving the reserves extended time over the next few days offers up the opportunity for Soehn to see who else could play a role for the team. A new year has brought several new faces in, including the Argentinean trio of Marcelo Gallardo, Niell, and defender Gonzalo Peralta, and a few have exited as well, most notably Troy Perkins and Christian Gomez.
Even though the holes in the starting lineup have been filled, Soehn is eager to see who he can count on in a pinch, and Wednesday night greatly aided his evaluations.
"It gave us a good chance to see some of the guys looking to make roster spots, and some of the guys who are going to give us depth," Soehn said. "So, anytime you get them important minutes, it's a good thing."
Niell, midfielder Dan Stratford, forward Rod Dyachenko and the newly-signed Santino Quaranta played in both matches on Wednesday, and the plan is to get them and others more time in between now and next week.
"We want to get everyone some minutes," Soehn said. "Any games right now are important."
United continue their series with a match against Toronto FC on Friday at 6 p.m., and wrap up their stay in the San Antonio area with a 12:30 p.m. matchup against Houston before both teams head off to their respective Champions' Cup ties.
Eddie Griffin is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
