Both D.C. United and the Chicago Fire left themselves with an anxious weekend of scoreboard watching after the two clubs played to a scoreless draw Saturday at RFK Stadium.
With the win, D.C. United now moves to 55 points on the season as they extended their unbeaten streak to 13 games, with Chivas USA again three points behind ahead of their Sunday home match against the Colorado Rapids. The Fire moved into a tie for seventh place in the overall MLS standings with the Kansas City Wizards, both on 37 points, and could be assured of qualification for the MLS Cup Playoffs if Colorado fails to defeat Chivas and if the LA Galaxy lose to Toronto FC on Saturday.
Knowing a victory would put his team into the postseason if the Los Angeles Galaxy failed to win either of their next two games, Chicago coach Juan Carlos Osorio arranged his side in a 4-3-3 formation, centered around Mexican legend Cuauhtemoc Blanco in the playmaker spot up top with Paulo Wanchope and Chad Barrett.
Meanwhile, D.C. coach Tom Soehn's back line choices were simplified by Bobby Boswell's suspension for yellow-card accumulation, handing starts to Devon McTavish and Greg Vanney in central defense. Up top, the United boss elected to use Guy-Roland Kpene in place of Jaime Moreno, who was away on international duty.
Barrett got the better of Devon McTavish on an aerial challenge in the United box just four minutes in, handing the Fire striker a good look at goal from close range -- but Troy Perkins closed down the angle expertly and snuffed out Barrett's shot.
While Chicago enjoyed some quality possession in the early going, the home side gradually hauled themselves into the match and Kpene seemed certain to grab his first professional goal in the 16th minute when Wilman Conde poked the ball away from Emilio just as the Brazlilan set himself to shoot. But it rolled right to his strike partner and Kpene's shot flew past Matt Pickens, only to clang off the inside left post to preserve the scoreless deadlock.
But Chicago carved out a chance at the other end just three minutes later. Receiving a pass from Chris Rolfe, Barrett created separation from Bryan Namoff some 12 yards from goal and shuffled to the outside before cutting a left-footer towards the far side of Perkins' goal, but the D.C. 'keeper quickly got down to his left to glove the effort.
The aggressive Barrett was looking genuinely dangerous in the attacking third and he nearly stunned Perkins when he latched onto Wanchope's headed flick just inside the United box, blasting a one-touch half-volley that spun inches high of the upper corner of goal.
Thirty-five minutes in, Gonzalo Segares ranged forward to send in a left-wing cross that Barrett flicked past a diving McTavish, forcing Perkins to come off his line alertly and smother the ball before Wanchope's arrival.
The home side strung together a beautiful sequence less than three minutes later that began with a booming diagonal ball from McTavish that tested Logan Pause as Fred raced down the touchline. The Fire right back misjudged the pass, allowing Fred to skip past him and send in a centering pass from the endline that Emilio dummied for Gomez, who cracked a fierce shot that Pickens adeptly parried over the crossbar.
But it was a rare riposte from United, increasingly put under pressure by the visitors. At the other end, Perkins produced another sharp reaction save some two minutes from halftime, then punched a Blanco corner kick away from danger in injury time to keep his side level going into the break.
Soehn pulled off Kpene in favor of holding midfielder Brian Carroll to begin the second half, pushing Gomez into a more advanced role similar to the one he played in Kansas City last Friday.
But it was the men in white who made the half's first clear opportunity some eight minutes in, as Marc Burch's poor decision gave Barrett another inviting look deep in the United box. But the young left back was bailed out by Perkins as the netminder notched his ninth save of the evening, setting his high mark for the season.
Three minutes after the hour mark, Fred -- still working himself back to full fitness after a recent groin injury -- gave way for Rod Dyachenko, who slotted in up top next to Emilio as Gomez returned to a playmaking role.
Soehn might well have remembered that Dyachenko's only league goal this year came against Chicago, in the Fire's first trip to Washington back in June. But as the half wore on, there was much less goalmouth action than in the first stanza as the two sides' battling midfields largely cancelled one another out.
United's forwards were becoming isolated from their teammates all too often as the game ticked away, but Gomez's class posed a constant danger to the visitors as proven by his gutsy 84th-minute run past Chris Armas. Even with the Fire holding midfielder draped all over him, the Argentinean worked his way to the Chicago endline and skipped a cross towards the goalmouth, but Pickens read the play well and smothered the ball with little trouble.
Second-half substitute Calen Carr was presented with a gilt-edged chance in the last minute of regulation after Blanco laid off for Segares to whip a cross to the far post, but the lanky attacker looped his header over the bar from close range.
In the end, that was the last best chance either side would see as Stott blew the final whistle after two short minutes of added time, finalizing a 0-0 draw that does little to clarify either team's final place in the MLS standings.
Charles Boehm is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
