D.C. United lost 4-3 against the New England Revolution in a back-and-forth match for their second to last game of the 2020 MLS Regular Season on a cold and rainy night at Gillette Stadium.
After their midweek win at Audi Field against Columbus Crew SC, United reverted back to a more traditional 4-4-2 formation with Bill Hamid starting in net and Kevin Paredes, Russell Canouse, Donovan Pines, and Oniel Fisher manning the back line. The midfield four consisted of Edison Flores, Yamil Asad, Júnior Moreno, and Griffin Yow. Yordy Reyna and Ola Kamara were partnered up top to lead the line.
Yamil Asad scored the first goal of an eventful first half when Edison Flores found him unmarked at the back post for his first MLS assist in the 22nd minute. Flores found a pocket of space on the left wing and curled in a perfect cross to the back post where Asad was on-hand to finish to the right of New England goalkeeper, Matt Turner. United doubled their lead shortly after when Griffin Yow pounced on a loose ball inside the box following a United set piece, before slotting it home into the bottom left corner for his second career MLS goal.
New England cut the lead in half just four minutes later when Adam Buksa tapped home after Carles Gil saw his penalty kick rebound off the left post and fall right into the path of the Revolution forward. Bill Hamid kept United’s lead intact heading into the break as he made an acrobatic stop diving to his right in the 45th minute.
The Revolution came out the quicker of the two sides after the break and they quickly found the equalizing goal in the 54th minute, after Russell Canouse’s attempted clearance ricocheted past Hamid into the net. New England then took the lead in the 67th minute when Teal Bunbury finished a low cross into the bottom right corner.
United pushed forward and were rewarded when second-half substitute, Gelmin Rivas, tied the match 3-3 just eight minutes later. Edison Flores recorded his second assist of the night, looping in a cross from the right wing that Rivas controlled the ball and finishing with a low, driven shot. Homegrown midfielder, Moses Nyeman, also earned an assist on the goal, marking the first of his young career.
The 3-3 scoreline was short-lived, as Teal Bunbury found his second of the night in the 84th minute, finishing a rebound after Hamid made a great initial save on Buksa from close range. United pushed to find a late equalizer, but they were unable to find the breakthrough and the match ended 4-3 in favor of the hosts.
The loss snapped D.C. United’s four match unbeaten streak and leaves the Black-and-Red needing a win and some help from other teams in the final week of the season to make the playoffs. As things currently stand, United are two points behind the 10th and final playoff spot with one match to go.
D.C. United will play their final match of the regular season on Sunday, November 8 at 3:30 p.m. EST. Tune into WJLA 24/7 News, www.dcunited.com, and ESPN+ to watch the match.
