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WASHINGTON — In his third game at Audi Field, captain Wayne Rooney added yet another goal to his illustrious career total Saturday in D.C. United’s 2-1 win over the Colorado Rapids.

“It was great to see Wayne score,” coach Ben Olsen said. “One of the reasons we brought him here was to score goals.”

The goal comes as a small relief to the England’s all-time leading scorer. His first MLS goal came from a combination play through midfielders Zotlan Stieber and Luciano Acosta. 

“For him it relieves a little pressure off his shoulders and now he can just focus on playing,” midfielder Russel Canouse said. “Even when he doesn’t score he is a great asset to this team.”

Wayne Rooney opens his MLS account! #DCvCOL https://t.co/XuKvh1sVea

— Major League Soccer (@MLS) July 29, 2018

Colorado had the first opportunity to score in the 26th minute, when referee Ramy Touchan awarded the Rapids a controversial penalty kick. The newest member of Colorado, Kellyn Acosta, stepped up to take the kick and missed off the woodwork. 

“It was his second MLS game, the referee, and you saw that,” Olsen said. “He was pretty inconsistent all night.”

United maintained high pressure through the second half, specifically causing chaos for Howard and the Rapids’ defense around minute 56 with three close chances: the first off the crossbar, the next blocked and the final — a quick one-two-three passing sequence from Yamil Asad to Acosta to Rooney — stopped by Howard.

“[Rooney] played very well,” Olsen said. “His link-up play with Lucho, Asad and Stieber is fun to watch.”

Colorado found a late opening in the counterattack. in the 82 minute, the Rapids’ Acosta got up and behind United’s backline for the late equalizer. United found themselves in a very familiar situation. 

“It’s up to the players,” Olsen said. “You have seen us at times lose leads this year. What I am most please about on the night, obviously the three points, but also the way we got [them].”

United dominated the midfield thanks to the attacking effort from Asad, Stieber, Acosta and the outside backs pushing forward. Defensive help from Moreno and Canouse contributed as well.

“Russell was great,” Olsen said. “His duel-winning is as good as we have on the team, and you saw that tonight.”

Canouse made several important tackles on both sides of the field and played more than 80 minutes before subbing off. Forward Darren Mattocks replaced him.

With Mattocks on the field, Rooney pushed back into the center of United’s midfield.  

United made one final attempt to secure the win by pushing all but defender Oniel Fisher and substitute Chris Durkin into the attack. The pressure paid off when a shot from Ulises Segura ricocheted off Rapids defender Niki Jackson and into the net. 

“It is never luck,” Segura said. “Whenever you get in the box like that you try to hit it as hard as you can so if it hits one of your teammates, or it hits a defender, you get something out of it.”

During stoppage time, United continued on the attack despite Rooney leaving the pitch with a bloodied face. After the match, the team doctor treated Rooney with five stitches for a cut above his left eye and a broken nose. 

“I don’t think it is the first time he has bled. I think he is a pretty tough guy,” Olsen said. “He is in the box, putting his face on the line understanding that that is a big moment … He is selfless in that way.”

With the win, United collect six points in a week packed with three matches.

“Every game is important,” Canouse said. “Anytime you win, you want to start a run and continue to build on it. That is our goal going forward.”

The post D.C. United beats Colorado Rapids 2-1, Rooney scores first MLS goal appeared first on Pro Soccer USA.

WASHINGTON–D.C. United needs to win games.

United hosts the Colorado Rapids Saturday just three days after a loss to rival New York Red Bulls.

United looked to the opening of Audi Field as a late season boost after a string of far-and-wide road games. The Black-and-Red secured a convincing win against an average Vancouver Whitecaps with the help of Wayne Rooney but dropped two consecutive games since the win.

United (3-9-5) consecutively faced two top performing teams in the East in Atlanta United and New York Red Bulls. 

“We’ve played [New York] and Atlanta in the last two games, two pretty good teams,” Olsen said. “There’s some urgency here, but also sometimes you have to tip your hat a little bit to the other team.”

Although Colorado (4-11-5) has played three more games than United this season, the Rapids find themselves among the worst teams in the league. Both clubs are coming off matches affected by rain delays against rivals.

The Rapids were down 2-0 in the first 20 minutes of last week’s installment of the Rocky Mountain Cup against Real Salt Lake. Colorado used the 45-minute delay in the first half to regroup and ended the match in a 2-2 draw.

How to watch

What: D.C. United vs Colorado Rapids

Where: Audi Field – Washington, DC

When: Saturday, July 28 at 8 p.m. ET

Watch: ESPN+

Predicted Starting XI: Steve Clark; Joseph Mora, Frédéric Brillant, Steven Birnbaum, Oniel Fisher; Russell Canouse, Yamil Asad, Luciano Acosta, Ian Harkes, Zoltan Stieber; Wayne Rooney

Oh Captain, My Captain

Olsen officially handed Rooney the title of captain Thursday, a D.C. United team representative told Pro Soccer USA Friday. The honor is not something Olsen assigned to any player this season until this week.

This season, defender Steve Birnbaum, who was United’s active captain last season, bore the title in the capacity required by MLS. 

Before the season started, Olsen refused to name a captain.

“It’s a little overblown, this captain thing,” Olsen said, adding in jest, “I’m the captain!”

Rooney has the right resumé and respect from the other players to don the captain’s armband, Olsen told Steven Goff of the Washington Post.

Rotations ruled by minutes

United is slowly returning to full strength after several players fell under the injury bug. Defender Russell Canouse and midfielder Ulises Segura are finally available for selection.

Canouse played minutes in United’s last three matches, while Segura made his way back to the pitch in the mach against the Red Bulls. Canouse played 23 minutes Wednesday, the most minutes he has seen all season.

“Certainly there will be some fresh bodies on the field. It was good to see [Canouse] in there,” Olsen said after Canouse’s minutes against the Red Bulls. “He won more tackles in that second half than our whole team combined in the first half. That’s a little bit of what we need right now.” 

Because the club plays three games in the span of a week, United will make minor changes to the lineup this weekend, including a potential first start of the season for Canouse. 

United will also be without midfielder Paul Arriola due to yellow card accumulation. 

“For the first time, I think, this season, we are going to have to start to rely on depth,” Olsen said. “Not through injury, but through minutes and managing that.”

The post D.C. United looks to bounce back against Colorado Rapids appeared first on Pro Soccer USA.