MLS D.C. United

United Comes Back Again To Defeat Revolution 3-2

Published on June 8, 2002 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
D.C. United News Release


WASHINGTON, DC (June 8, 2002) - In Eddie Pope's absence, all United could ask for from Ryan Nelsen was solid defending in the middle of United's backline. They got that and a lot more tonight from Nelsen, who was a part of all three of United's goals, sparking the Black-and-Red to a 3-2 come-from-behind triumph against the New England Revolution. In his fifth start of the season, the second-year defenseman from New Zealand scored the first two goals of his career and added an assist, helping United to get back-to-back wins for the first time this season.

While the Lewis-Tyson fight will get more attention, the 12,988 at RFK Stadium were witness to a pair of teams that threw some knock-out punches of their own. Tonight, however, it was United who had the stronger chin, which is what head coach Ray Hudson was most proud of.

"I'm just delighted with the way we got off the canvas. That takes a lot of ability," said Hudson. "We were never out of it (the game)."

The first half started off slowly, with both squads able to move the ball the through midfield, but unable to produce many chances. United nearly got the game off to a quick start on a Santino Quaranta breakaway in the 4th minute, but New England goalkeeper Juergen Sommer came twenty yards off his line to get in front of the attempt. D.C. United continued to enjoy the run of play for the next half hour with Petter Villegas narrowly missing a pair of blasts from 18 yards in both the 21st and 27th minutes.

One minute later, the momentum started to shift when New England's Taylor Twellman began to make his presence known. Twellman, the Revolution's leading scorer, went down in the box after bouncing on a loose ball in the area, but no foul was called. Two minutes later, the Revs' Daniel Hernandez took a short corner and sent a cross into the box, which found the head of Twellman. Nick Rimando, however, was able to backtrack and tip the ball just over the crossbar.

The offensive onslaught paid off for the Revs with a pair of quick goals courtesy of Twellman. In the 35th minute, the young forward one-timed a cross from midfielder Steve Ralston from 10 yards out past Rimando on the short side to give the Revs a 1-0 lead. One minute later, Twellman once again found the back of the net. After receiving a long pass from Ralston, Twellman put the ball through the legs of defender Brandon Prideaux and rocketed a shot from 18 yards. The ball found the upper right 90 past a helpless Rimando to give New England a two-goal cushion. The goals were Twellman's 8th and 9th of the season and tied a D.C. United record for the quickest two goals scored by an opposing player. The plays also allowed Ralston pad his MLS assist lead by notching his 7th and 8th helpers on the campaign.

Instead of panicking after the pair of quick strikes, United regained their attacking composure by countering in the 39th minute. Quaranta rose high in the air to head a Marco Etcheverry corner kick on goal. Sommer made the initial save, but the rebound squirted in front of him, where Ryan Nelsen had set up camp. The Black-and-Red defender poked the ball into the net, cutting the Revolution lead in half and giving Nelsen his first tally of the season.

The Black-and-Red found the equalizer one minute from half. Once again Quaranta and Nelsen were in on the play. Nelsen played a long ball to the top of the penalty box for Quaranta, who was then able to hold off a pair of New England defenders, turn to his left and fire a low right-footed blast just inside the left post past a diving Sommer. The goal leveled the match at two and gave Quaranta his team-leading third goal of the year.

After the half, both teams traded quality chances, as both teams nearly found the net, only to find themselves almost getting beaten on the a counter-attack. In the 52nd minute United midfielder "Chino" Alegria chipped a shot destined for the upper-right 90, only to see it travel a foot over the corner. In the same minute, Ralston sliced through the right side of the box, shaking two defenders. His low cross went across the top of the six-yard box, but was unable to land on the foot of two Revolution attackers. In the 58th minute, Brandon Prideaux made up for his earlier mistake in the first half by stopping Diego Serna's one-on-one opportunity from ten yards out. Seconds later, Villegas found himself behind the New England defense. Sommer charged off his line to collect the ball just inside the edge of the penalty box before Villegas could get his second touch on the ball.

The next quality chance went to United, and once again it was Nelsen's rare offensive prowess that led to be the game-winner. Moments after the Revolution cleared a ball off the goal lone, Villegas collected pass from Richie Williams on the right flank. Villegas was able to work past a defender and sent a cross towards the near post, where Nelsen used his strength and height to get position in the air. The Kiwi defender put a head on the ball from six yards out that beat Sommer. The goal gave United three consecutive goals and their first lead of the night.

As the game wound down, the Black-and-Red were able to hold off some quality chances from the Revs while narrowly missing some chances to pad their lead. Nelsen was almost able to pull off an unthinkable hat trick in the 71st minute, as he dove towards the post to send a header on goal. Sommer was able to move to his right and keep the ball from finding the net by saving the ball in between his knees. New England's best chance came in the 76th minute when Diego Serna was able to get into the United penalty area on the left side. However, Serna's tough-angle shot towards the far post was deflected by Rimando just enough to push it wide and keep United in front.

Despite the win, Hudson still believes that his squad has not played the way they are capable of performing. He'll take the wins, but still wants something more from the Black-and-Red.

"I don't want to rain on the parade, but this was not a game of style, and until we get there I won't be satisfied," explained Hudson. "I am estastic with the result, however, coming back from 2-0 down."

With the win United moves into sole possession of second place in the crowded Eastern Conference with 13 points and a 4-5-1 record. United will next see action again next Saturday, when they play their first road game in over a month at Kansas City.

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Major League Soccer Stories from June 8, 2002


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