May 24, 2008 MLS DC United vs Toronto FC (from MLSnet.com)
05/24/2008 10:18PM
Two late goals too much for Toronto
Toronto FC surrender two second half goals in 3-2 loss at RFK Stadium
By Chris Snear / MLSnet.com Staff
WASHINGTON -- Toronto FC has defended exceptionally well all season except at RFK Stadium. Despite a late surge, D.C. United came from behind to defeat Toronto FC at RFK Stadium, snapping their four-game losing streak. Conversely, the loss ended Toronto's six-game unbeaten streak. TFC has given up just 12 goals all season but seven have been to D.C. United in Washington.
Danny Dichio scored on TFC's only two shots on the first half but they could not hold onto the lead as United converted on a penalty kick and a rebound after spending the better part of the match in the Toronto's end of the field.
Dichio converted his third goal of the season on Toronto's first opportunity, in just the 13th minute. Dichio slipped behind United center back Gonzalo Peralta, nodding home a Jim Brennan cross. Laurent Robert sprung Brennan with a smart ball behind Bryan Namoff down the left flank.
Toronto continued the pressure in the 20th minute but were not able to capitalize on a 4-on-2 counterattack that was started by Guevara and culminated with a shot from the diminutive Honduran that was deflected away by Namoff.
United nearly equalized but Sutton was equal to Jaime Moreno's low, left footed blast from 19 yards out in the 28th minute. The rebound went directly Luciano Emilio but Wynne quickly closed him down to knock the shot away from inside of 10 yards.
Sutton needed to be sharp again in the 35th minute on a shot from Marcelo Gallardo from 19 yards out on the right side. Gallardo picked up a bouncing ball after a poor clearing attempt by two TFC players and waltzed unopposed to the top of the penalty area but Sutton flashed the knuckling shot over bar with two hands.
United scored a well-deserved equalizer on a corner kick just four minutes before halftime. Devon McTavish flicked a Jaime Moreno corner kick to the back post that Peralta finally pushed over the line with a diving header to make the score 1-1.
The goal ended a 272-minute shutout streak for Sutton and TFC, spanning over three games including Wednesday's win against United.
Equality did not last long however as Dichio quieted the suddenly hopeful United crowd with a clinical finish just seconds before the whistle for the break. Dichio won the ball some 30 yards from goal with a header directly to Amado Guevara and headed straight for the top of the penalty area. Guevara cut inside and easily slotted the ball to the unmarked Dichio whose shot from outside the box slipped just inside the left post.
Of the seven shots that Dichio has taken all season, the four that have been on goal have scored and three of his four goals on the year have come against United, all this week.
United continued to push the attack early in the second half. McTavish finished a run that started with him receiving a rolling ball from Wells at the other end of the field and after a few passes in between, ended with him being taken down after a late challenge by Brennan just inches outside of the penalty area. Toronto escaped however as Gallardo's bending free kick skimmed just off the crossbar in the 53rd minute.
TFC dodged another bullet when Santino Quaranta's volley sailed wide in the 59th minute. Gallardo sent a perfectly weighted ball from midfield through to Namoff on the right flank, who floated an equally perfect ball to Quaranto on the back post.
Emilio appeared to equalize in the 67th minute but Moreno was ruled offside on the initial ball from the right channel by Gallardo. Moreno's shot was not handled cleanly by Sutton with Emilio pouncing on the rebound.
Moreno did equalize three minutes later, however, on a penalty kick in the 70th minute after Wynne pushed down Quaranta from behind with both hands well into the left side of the penalty area.
On an eerily similar play to the disallowed goal, Emilio ran through and pounced on a rebound from a Quaranta shot from 25 yards out to give United a 3-2 lead just two minutes later. Quaranta ran full gallop through the TFC midfield before unleashing a blast that knuckled all the way through to Sutton, who again could not handle it cleanly.
TFC's first significant second half attack did not come until the final quarter hour. Guevara collected a loose ball in midfield and sent it back into the United area, which Jarrod Smith knocked over the bar.
A mad scramble in the penalty area in the final moments ended with appeals for a handball against United's Bryan Namoff denied and a red card issued to Laurent Robert immediately following the play. It was as close as TFC came for the equalizer before their club record streak came to an end.
Chris Snear is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
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