all on East Capitol Street, their first home league losses of the season -- and sit two points out of eighth place overall and the final wild card spot with two games to play. The Crew have clinched the top seed in the Eastern Conference and are on target for a second consecutive' Supporters Shield - which would match the 2006-07 United clubs as the only in MLS history to repeat.
REFEREE: Alex Prus. SAR (bench): Sean Hurd; JAR (opposite): Adam Wienckowski; 4th: Andrew Chapin
MLS Career: 156 games; FC/gm: 28.4; Y/gm: 3.6; R: 34; pens: 44
INJURY REPORT: D.C. UNITED - OUT: FW Santino Quaranta (ruptured plantar plate); DF Bryan Namoff (concussion); GK Josh Wicks (dislocated shoulder/MCL sprain); DF Greg Janicki (back spasms); MF Brandon Barklage (anterior cruciate ligament surgery); FW Ange N'Silu (hamstring strain) ... COLUMBUS CREW - OUT: GK Andy Gruenebaum (R hip impingement); DF Chad Marshall (L knee MCL sprain)
INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: none
SUSPENDED: DC: Ben Olsen (through Oct. 18); Chris Pontius (caution accumulation; through Oct. 18) ... CLB: Emmanuel Ekpo (caution accumulation; through Oct. 18)
WARNINGS:
SUSPENDED NEXT YELLOW CARD: DC: Christian Gomez, Julius James, Avery John, Josh Wicks ... CLB: Steven Lenhart, Alejandro Moreno
SUSPENDED AFTER TWO YELLOW CARDS: DC: Fred, Devon McTavish, Bryan Namoff, Ben Olsen, Clyde Simms ... CLB: Eric Brunner, Eddie Gaven, Gino Padula, Guillermo Barros Schelotto
HEAD-TO-HEAD
ALL-TIME (46 meetings):
United 21 wins (5 shootout), 71 goals ... Crew 17 wins (0 shootout), 67 goals ... Ties 8
AT D.C. UNITED (22 meetings): United 14 wins (3 shootout), 48 goals ... Crew 5 wins (0 shootout), 22 goals ... Ties 3
• The Crew have won four of the last six meetings against United. They've won the season series the last two season after going three years without winning the season set, United taking it in 2005 and '06 after they split the four meetings in 2004.
• The Crew won both meetings a year ago - including a dramatic 1-0 victory in the season finale at Crew Stadium that left United outside of the MLS Cup Playoffs field, and put in the New York Red Bulls, the Crew's eventual opponent in MLS Cup 2008.
• Columbus has won the last two meetings at RFK Stadium after going three seasons without a win on East Capitol Street.
• Last year was the first year since 2004 that United did not come away with one victory from their travels to the Ohio state capital.
• One of the more heated rivalries in the early years of MLS, the clubs met in the playoffs three of the first four seasons (with D.C. United winning all three). But they have not met in the postseason since 1999.
• Coaches record: Tom Soehn v CLB: P6 W1 L4 D1 ... Robert Warzycha vs. DC: P2 W0 L0 D2
LAST MEETING (MLS):
7/4: CLB 1, DC 1 (Moreno 59 - Gomez 33)
• The Columbus Crew came back for a 1-1 draw in the first meeting between the teams, July 4 at Crew Stadium.
• United dominated the early exchanges and deservedly took the lead on 33 minutes. A continual attack saw a clearance put back into the area where Chris Pontius headed it goalward. Defender Danny O'Rourke was able to block it with his chest, but Christian Gomez swooped in to knock home the rebound.
• The visitors continued with the upper hand into the second half, but couldn't find another way past Crew goalkeeper William Hesmer, who ended with 10 saves.
• The Crew made them pay in the 59th minute. Emmanuel Ekpo sent in an early cross from the left and Steven Lenhart sent a flick-on header across the box, finding Alejandro Moreno. The Venezuelan international made no mistake for the eventual equalizer.
• Here's Warzycha's team (4-4-1-1): William Hesmer - Frankie Hejduk, Eric Brunner, Andy Iro (Steven Lenhart 46), Gino Padula - Eddie Gaven, Brian Carroll, Danny O'Rourke, Emmanuel Ekpo (Kevin Burns 80) - Guillermo Barros Schelotto - Alejandro Moreno. Substitutes Not Used: Jason Garey, Andy Gruenebaum, Stanley Nyazamba, Duncan Oughton, Jed Zayner
• Here's Soehn's team (3-4-1-2): Josh Wicks - Bryan Namoff, Greg Janicki, Marc Burch - Thabiso Khumalo (Fred 55), Ben Olsen, Clyde Simms, Rodney Wallace - Christian Gomez - Chris Pontius, Ange N'Silu (Brandon Barklage 86). Substitutes Not Used: John DiRaimondo, Andrew Jacobson, Avery John, Milos Kocic, Devon McTavish
D.C. UNITED
D.C. United lost for the third consecutive season - all at RFK Stadium - with a 2-0 defeat by Chivas USA on Oct. 3. D.C. United have 36 points from 28 matches on the season, now tied for fourth place in the Eastern Conference and now two points out of the top eight overall and the places in the MLS Cup Playoffs.
LAST MATCH
• United were coming off back-to-back losses - both at home, after going unbeaten on East Capitol Street in their first 11 league games. Chivas USA were unbeaten in three in a row, with draws in their last two.
• Yet the visitors bossed the match from start to finish, scoring on either side of halftime. In the 32nd minute, Maicon Santos came in on the left and hammered a drive that rattled off the face of the goalpost, hit the back of diving goalkeeper Milos Kocic as he dove past the shot, and trickled back across the goal line.
• Then in the 53rd minute, Jonathan Bornstein flighted a long free kick into the United penalty area, where Jesus Padilla challenged D.C. defender Marc Burch for it. The ball came off Burch's head and fell straight down to Padilla, and he turned a fired a shot inside the right-hand post for his first MLS goal.
• United's miserable night was completed in the 65th minute when Ben Olsen was sent off with a straight red card.
• United head coach Tom Soehn made seven changes to the team that 2-1 2-1 to the San Jose Earthquakes on Sept. 27. Maintaining their place in the team were Lawson Vaughn, Marc Burch, Ben Olsen and Chris Pontius.
• Here's Soehn's team (4-2-3-1): Milos Kocic - Lawson Vaughn, Dejan Jakovic, Julius James, Marc Burch (Luciano Emilio 62) - Ben Olsen, Clyde Simms - Santino Quaranta, Christian Gomez (Jaime Moreno 43), Thabiso Khumalo (Fred 46) - Chris Pontius. Substitutes Not Used: Andrew Jacobson, Avery John, Devon McTavish, Chris Sharpe
TEAM NEWS
• After a pair of home losses - the first of the season in league play - Soehn tried to change his team's fortunes against Chivas with a formation with an attacking bent.
• Chris Pontius played as the spearhead with Boyzzz Khumalo and Santino Quaranta in wide supporting positions and playmaker Chrisian Gomez floating in the "hole." Ben Olsen and Clyde Simms sat deep in midfield, while Dejan Jakovic paired with Julius James in central defense, the Canadian international's first start since undergoing sports hernia surgery in early September.
• "I'm flustered that we could come out and not have real energy in the first half. I think we've been saying the right things all week and then to come out flat and have them take the game to us was very disappointing," Soehn said. "We tried to energize ourselves and get some legs on. In the end, we didn't have the legs to begin with."
• Just before halftime, Soehn brought on Jaime Moreno in place of Gomez. "Christian was forced to play with his back to goal a lot and they were surrounding him. Jaime [Moreno] is obviously more capable of doing that and injecting some life. We were looking to add some possession at that point," Soehn said.
• The Columbus match concludes a five-game homestand where United thought they could go far in securing their postseason passage. After a 1-0 win against Kansas City to start, United have lost three consecutive matches at RFK Stadium for the first time since the MetroStars, Columbus and New England emerged victorious between April 22 and May 13, 2000.
• "Well, our playoff hopes are slim now. We've dug ourselves a major hole. Now we're looking at everybody else, but in the end we still have to look at ourselves and find a way to pick ourselves out again. But it's slim chances now. That's the reality," Soehn said.
• Their chances were dealt even more blows when goalkeeper Josh Wicks and forward Santino Quaranta were ruled out for the remainder of the season, Wicks after suffering a separated shoulder vs. San Jose on Sept. 27, and Quaranta after undergoing foot surgery this week.
• To replace Wicks, United were allowed to sign goalkeeper Steve Cronin on loan from the USL-1 Portland Timbers under the "extreme hardship" provision. Cronin played with the Los Angeles Galaxy from 2005-08.
• D.C. is eliminated if it loses or ties vs. Columbus AND New England wins vs. Chicago. "[The last two games] are must-wins. I think before this three-game stretch I felt like if we won two then we could make the playoffs. So we lost the first one so we have to win these last two," said Clyde Simms.
COLUMBUS CREW
The Columbus Crew guaranteed they will hold home-field advantage throughout the MLS Cup Playoffs with a 1-0 victory last Saturday against the New England Revolution. The Crew still lead the Eastern Conference with 49 points from 28 matches on the season, eight points ahead of Chicago, and still five ahead of the Houston Dynamo, LA Galaxy and Chivas USA in the race for the Supporters' Shield.
LAST MATCH
• The Crew had seen their MLS-record 22-game home league unbeaten streak come to an end in a 1-0 loss to Seattle the week before, just the second Columbus loss in MLS since mid-June. The Revolution were coming off a 1-1 draw in Colorado to conclude a winless two-game road swing, now with just one win in their last six games.
• The game's lone goal came in the 36th minute. Gino Padula launched a free kick into the box from far out on the right flank. The ball was allowed to come down in the Revolution penalty area and bounced past goalkeeper Matt Reis, the first MLS goal for the Argentinean left back.
• The Crew were left a man down for the final 25 minutes when Emmanuel Ekpo was shown a straight red card for a foul on New England's Kevin Alston.
• Crew goalkeeper William Hesmer made four saves in recording his seventh shutout of the season.
• Crew head coach Robert Warzycha made four changes to the team that lost 1-0 at home to Seattle Sounders FC the week before. Danny O'Rourke was suspended, Robbie Rogers and Alejandro Moreno on international duty and Guillermo Barros Schelotto rested, with Andy Iro, Emmanuel Ekpo, Steven Lenhart and Emilio Renteria coming into the team.
• Here's Warzycha's team (4-4-2): William Hesmer - Jed Zayner, Eric Brunner, Andy Iro, Gino Padula - Emmanuel Ekpo, Kevin Burns (Jason Garey 84), Brian Carroll, Eddie Gaven - Steven Lenhart, Emilio Renteria (Adam Moffat 75). Substitutes Not Used: Guillermo Barros Schelotto, Cory Elenio, Alex Grendi, Duncan Oughton, Kenny Schoeni
TEAM NEWS
• The Crew were able to come away from New England with the full three points despite starting a team that featured eight players 25 years of age or less.
• "That is something we can build around. The guys are young. That's the future of the Columbus Crew," Warzycha said. "We have a good group of guys. We have to add two or three to the mix and we're going to be very, very good."
• Guillermo Barros Schelotto was again given the night off, having started just three of the Crew's last 11 games. In the six MLS matches this year the Crew have played without Schelotto, the 2008 league MVP, they have the maximum 18 points and outscored opponents 13-3 with four consecutive shutouts.
• "It's obviously risky to rotate the players, but I took that chance and (now) we have everybody ready for any game," Warzycha said. "We can choose from 23 players, like we did today. Compared to some of the games, we didn't have seven starters. We played well. We have a deep squad, so giving those guys some games in the beginning of the season allowed them to contribute right now. It pays off."
• A Crew victory and a San Jose win or tie against Chivas USA would give the Crew another Supporters' Shield for having the most points over the regular season. The only team to repeat as winners of the Supporters' Shield was D.C. United, who did it 2006 and 2007. "We have to try to win the Supporters' Shield. To win it two years in row is not very easy," Gino Padula said.
• Three days following the United match, the Crew will face another massive game, with advancement in the CONCACAF Champions League having come down to a match at the Puerto Rico Islanders. A draw against the USL-1 side will guarantee passage to the knockout stage, though they still can with a loss and the failure of Costa Rica's Saprissa to defeat Mexico's Cruz Azul.
• "We've tried to give everybody some minutes so when guys are with the national team or guys are injured they can help and do the job. Because they've played some games before it's nothing new for them," Warzycha said. "With the Puerto Rico game so close you have to think about two games but I'm worried about D.C. right now."
