DC United traveled to Philadelphia to take on a struggling Union team Saturday night. The black and red would return to winning way with a 1-0 victory after a heartbreaking stoppage time defeat to Portland the previous week. Chris Rolfe scored a fantastic volley in the first half that the United defense would ultimately see out to the end.
Chris Rolfe grabbed the lone goal of the match early 6th minute of play. Davy Arnaud played a fantastic ball across the pitch that found left back Christian Fernandez wide open just inside the left side of the box. Christian attempted a volley shot that was blocked. However, the rebound fell to Chris Rolfe who controlled the ball with his chest and sent a left footed volley home to put the visitors up 1-0.
In the 31st minute of play, Davy Arnaud played Eddie Johnson through the back of the Union defense. Johnson put the ball in the back of the net, but was flagged offside by the linesman. It was a very tight call that could have gone either way. Just minutes later, Fabian Espindola was gifted a chance by Austin Berry. With the chance to double DC’s lead, Espindola placed the shot wide of the net.
In the second half, Philadelphia continued to press for the equalizer. In the 63rd minute of play, the ball was played to Andrew Wenger off a DC giveaway. Wegner made an excellent turn in the box and was one on one with Bill Hamid. Hamid made a fantastic save; but the threat was not gone. The ball fell directly to Conor Casey’s feet, Hamid was quick to act and made a double save. Once again, the attack still was not over. The ball now fell to Daniel Cruz, but Perry Kitchen was there to block the shot. Finally, Jeff Parke was able to clear the ball out of the DC United box.
DC United’s defense held strong throughout the match and kept their third clean sheet of the season. With the victory, DC United has officially passed their win total of the 2013 season and move to a 4-3-2 record and third place in the Eastern Conference. The black and red will welcome the Montreal Impact to RFK Stadium this Saturday.
