One portion of the Eastern Conference Semifinals on the road to the 2012 MLS Cup, is taking place between second place DC United and the third place New York Red Bulls. Like all the other conference semifinals, this matchup is one of a rivalry and two fan bases that plain out hate each other. This will only be the fourth time DC and New York face each other in the playoffs and the previous three meetings have seen DC advance (1996, 2004, 2006) and New York’s run to MLS Cup end.
The season series is split between the two teams, 1-1-1 giving no room to pick a clear favorite. Early in the season DC trounced the Red Bulls on a rainy night in April down at RFK 4-1, which spurred NY onto their five game winning streak without Thierry Henry. The Red Bulls won their only home meeting with United, 3-2, with former DC player Brandon Barklage being the hero that day. The last meeting of these teams, back in August, saw Dwayne De Rosario score his 100th goal and Wilman Conde with a Goal of the Year nominee to tie the game late resulting in a 2-2 draw.
Though DC United drew 1-1 with the Chicago Fire to secure the second seed in the east, they will host the first leg of the series due to the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy and its affect on the NY/NJ area. NY will subsequently host the second game on Wednesday, gaining the slight advantage of playing in front of your home fans incase of extra time and penalties occur.
It is well known that DC United is 5-0-2 without their captain and MVP De Ro and he will not factor in this series. Tim Cahill is currently carrying a calf knock that could see him sidelined for the first leg. In my season preview, I said that NY’s third DP would be the x-factor down the line and I stand by that. Tim Cahill has only earned a portion of his paycheck. I know he had no offseason and MLS is a league that takes time to adjust to, however Cahill has proven to be a quality set piece defender but has yet to truly impact the score sheet on NY’s end.
DC United’s front attackers in Pontius, Pajoy, and De Leon could give the back four of NY serious trouble. Hans Backe is staying with the backline of Lade, Marquez, Holgersson, and Pearce after boasting shutouts against Sporting KC and the Philadelphia Union. One reason is because of the inclusion of Rafa Marquez on the backline. Marquez has played his best two games against SKC and Philly and if he can continue to marshall that defense and play the ball smartly out of the back, DC could be in trouble. Pontius is dangerous in front of and in getting behind the defense and you would think whoever is in an advanced midfield role, Teemu Tainio will have to close down the space that would allow service to DC’s forwards. On the flipside, having Thierry Henry and Kenny Cooper coming out you is no field day. Cooper was second in the golden boot race (if you can call it that) with 18 goals and Henry finished the season with 15 goals and 12 assists. Even if NY is able to break down the backline of United, DC has the upper hand with Bill Hamid in goal. Hamid will likely be tested a lot in this series and if he can play to the top of his game, NY could very well see themselves not advancing. Unlike his US international counterpart in Chicago Sean Johnson, Hamid is not prone to make mistakes as much.
As a fan it is always hard to call an unbiased predication over your teams rivals, especially in the playoffs. However, I do see New York advancing through to the Eastern Conference finals over their bitter rivals United.
(image courtesy of newyorkredbulls.com)
