Going over to the Dark Cyde

I haven’t commented on my DC United much of late, although the team has found some form.  Too busy with the oft-pulsating Euro 2008 — sigh, the Dutch got my hopes yet again — and, sadly, with work.

But leave it to Dan Steinberg over at the Post to remind me why I love my trips to RFK:

The Barra Brava and Screaming Eagles monopolize Washington’s “Look! Soccer crazies!” media attention, and rightfully so. But if you’re always staring at their bouncing side of the park you might miss some of the team’s other vibrant supporters groups. Like, say the Dark Cyde.

That three-year-old group’s membership is a bit vague–its founder said there are about five members–but that founder more than makes up for the small numbers. He is Darth Hooligan, and he is awesome. Witness the District logo tattooed on his left arm, the red-and-black DC Shoes on his feet, the stuffed United mascot hanging from his midsection, the No. 69 “Darth Hooligan” jersey around his torso, the $10 Target light saber twitching in his hands, and the self-applied Darth Maul-inspired red-and-black paint on his face. Yesterday his hair was out, adorned by two feathers; “usually, I wear my little devil hat,” he said, as his friends gleefully displayed his red and black skull cap.

Darth Hooligan, eh?  Now that’s a mash-up of devoted fandom, indeed.  Perhaps one reason for soccer’s rising appeal in the US is the way we are still discovering/inventing our fandom.  NBA or NFL games have become very programmed, filled with piped-in music and prods.  The supporters’ groups at a United game drive the cheers, not the PA system.  The growing awareness of the international game means fans here have a better idea of what their options are.  We can pick and choose among traditions, not simply adapting styles from other American sports or — thankfully — from stereotypical British hooligans.  We’re still figuring it all out, which makes it feel more lived in.

Back to “Darth Hooligan”.  He offers an interesting take on why Darth:

“One day I was watching ‘Star Wars Episode I,’ and it just hit me, out of the blue,” he explained. “You know how Darth Maul is red and black? I’m starting my own supporters club called the Dark Cyde. Come as any villain in any movie, as long as you wear red and black.”

The choices are theoretically endless, as long as you can imagine, say, Norman Bates sporting red and black face paint. Anyhow, why villains? Darth said that United is the New England Patriots of the MLS, at once dominant and reviled league-wide, the unbeatable standard hanging over every rival club. Villainous, in other words.

Ooooh.  Embrace the bad guy, eh?  Personally, I would have thought that would have made us the Oakland Raiders of MLS but perhaps their image has fallen because of their recent losing seasons.  It’s hard to be the villain when you’re bad — at least bad in terms of winning and losing. 

There’s a certain appeal to the villain.  As a serious comic book collector in my youth, I can attest that invariably the villain is a better character than the hero.  And they almost always have more fun…at least until they get caught.  It’s an interesting exercise to contemplate adopting a villain for your soccer fan alter-ego.  Darth Maul doesn’t do it for me, which is probably partly a function of age.  The original Darth was my generation’s villain but that costume would get pretty toasty at a summer game at RFK.  Same for Doctor Doom.  Perhaps the Joker would be more my style.  (I suppose you can make him in red and black.)  Or perhaps Magneto.  He’s got a red helmet after all….

River = Vida

A highlight of the FSC schedule for me is the weekly game from Argentina.  It’s late in the Clausura and this past weekend Estudiantes moved past River Plate into first place.  Things sound a little tense on the River side:

With few second-half scoring chances, the match ground down uneventfully with River fans insulting their players and River coach Diego Simeone expelled in the 86th minute for shouting at the referee.

That’s too bad — I was lucky enough to catch River’s fans on a better day, when I saw a game at Estadio Monumental back in ‘04.  It was a wild affair in front of a huge and passionate audience.  I even got a preview of Marcelo Gallardo, now with DC United, back in his days with Los Millonarios.  Read on after the jump!

“Critically Acclaimed” DC United 2006-2007?

ESPN’s Sports Guy today gives an obituary for the run-and-gun Phoenix Suns.

I made my friend Chris Connelly appear on this week’s “B.S. Report” to discuss “critically acclaimed sports teams,” following up on a discussion we had right after Game 2 of the Suns-Spurs series, when things were looking bleak for Phoenix and the end of Mike D’Antoni’s reign seemed imminent.

“Well, that’s OK that they didn’t win the title,” Connelly cheerfully said at the time. “At least they were critically acclaimed!”

From there, Connelly unleashed his theory of “critically acclaimed” sports teams (check the podcast for the full details) and how these Suns teams would be cheerfully remembered some day like we remember Coryell’s Chargers and the Fab Five. In other words, it didn’t really matter that they never won a championship, just like it didn’t matter that “Pulp Fiction” didn’t win an Oscar, “The Wire” never won an Emmy and “Arrested Development” bombed in the ratings. We would always remember them fondly and feel like they were more successful than they actually were.

You know, I think I’ve seen that movie.  In fact, I watched it at RFK over the last two seasons.  They didn’t win a championship but they were a lot of fun to watch.  DC United had a sheen of class and sophistication, at least by MLS standards.  They passed the ball around, they had lots of possession.  They sometimes gave off a sense that they’d rather make the extra pass to score a brilliant goal than shoot in the first place.  (I suppose that was one difference from the Suns, who were supposed to look for a shot in “seven seconds or less.”)  We felt good watching them play.  We felt good when experts approved of their play.

Simmons suggests that in the long run people will remember the Suns fondly.  I hope that’s true for DC United, 2006-2007.  I’m less sure of it — for one, the two-time champion Dynamo were an appealing team as well, perhaps more than the other Texas champions, the San Antonio Spurs.  The other is DCU has a stronger profile in MLS than the Suns in the NBA — we’re more disliked for our past successes and, sometimes, our attitude/confidence/arrogance. 

Earlier this week, Manchester United eliminated Barcelona from the Champions League and word in the press continues to be that the team will come in for an overhaul.  ‘Bye Ronaldinho, maybe Henry, maybe Marquez etc.  They’ve also been a team that’s been “critically acclaimed” for style and creativity.  (In fact, watching them pass the ball around and around and around against Man U I was reminded of some of the more frustrating times with DCU in recent years — take a shot, will you!)  But they have higher expectations.  They think they should win La Liga and the Champions League.  So being “critically acclaimed” is more frustrating, like DCU has been for us. 

And that will be a factor in how they are remembered.  Their fans will be more disappointed and neutrals will be less willing to sympathize. 

Sigh.  I just hope this classic Simmons pop culture reference isn’t entirely applicable to DC United, because I fear that the Gomez for Gallardo move may risk looking like bringing Shaq to Phoenix, the last phase of the old team, not the first phase of the new one:

Meanwhile, the Suns were like the John Belushi of basketball teams — thrilling, creative, inventive and loved by all, but ultimately, they couldn’t sustain what they were doing for more than a couple of years, and by the time it came to a screeching halt, we were already wishing that things could return to the way they were three years before. Like Belushi, the Suns were critically acclaimed. Like Belushi (drugs), the Suns had an Achilles’ heel (Robert Sarver). Like Belushi, the Suns tried to change their style near the end and it didn’t work out. Like Belushi, we will remember the Suns fondly, and every time we see one of their old classic moments popping up on TV, we’ll probably watch.

Great Expectations

So DC United’s season is off to a bumpy start.  A couple of shutout losses on the road in league play already, with the 4-0 loss to Real Salt Lake one of the worst games I’ve seen the team play in years, and eliminated from regional play by Pachuca.  The grumbling/worrying/complaining has begun.  Perhaps the off-season changes aren’t helping.  Perhaps it’s time for a new coach.  Etc.  That’s what fans do.

This comes down to expectations.  We United fans have high expectations, at least in MLS terms.  We’ve had a winning team for four years now, with the best regular season record in MLS the last two years.  It might be different if we were rooting for Real Salt Lake or Toronto where just getting to the play-offs would constitute a good year.

Other teams I root for have even higher expectations.  Look at Celtic.  Two consecutive league titles and back-to-back trips to the round of 16 in the Champions League.  Pretty good.  Oh, but they’re in second this season in Scotland and, perhaps more importantly, keep losing to Rangers.  Heck, they’re having trouble even getting a goal on their eternal rivals.  (I hope that changes today.)  Cue talk about coach Strachan moving on.  It’s like what happens to an Ohio State or Michigan football coach who can’t get a victory in that rivalry.

There’s Arsenal, now clearly bound for third in the EPL and knocked out of the Champions League by Liverpool.  Cue complaints about the failure of Wenger to bolster his young squad.  At the beginning of the year, most didn’t expect the young team could contend for the league title but a nice early run had the Gunners in first place for months.  They even managed to play with some style, like notable recent championship teams coached by Wenger.  This should be seen as a successful rebuilding year and now would be the time to talk about missing pieces to add — a world-class center defender, perhaps? — but now it doesn’t feel as successful.  Hopes were raised.  Expectations grew over the course of the year.  And, as students of revolution will tell you, it’s always when expectations are rising that rebellions are born, not when everyone is ground down and dispirited.  Still, no one thinks Wenger is going anywhere.

Finally, mighty Barcelona, stumbling to second (or third?) in La Liga but still in the Champions League.  Superstars on the wane, with talk that Ronaldinho, Deco, maybe even Henry to leave after the season.  Not to mention coach Frank Rikjaard.  One would think a run to the semi-finals of the Champions League would count for something.  But the expectations for Barca are so very high — win the league, contend for the Champions League, and do so with massive style.   It’s tough to meet them for very long.  Time to bring in a new manager, the old one’s running out of steam.

So, back to DC United.  My expectations are high — I want the team to win and I want to contend for the MLS Cup, plus continue to qualify for regional tourneys.  If MLS set up its competitions as they do in Europe, we’d actually be coming off of two league championships in a row — but both would have seen flops in European competition (as the counterpart to our play-offs).  We’d be looking at our team like fans of Inter Milan and Real Madrid do, with some frustration and disappointment. 

Ah, but of course, we don’t set up our competitions that way.  With the MLS regular season counting for so much less than a European season, we’re going to be happier if the team performs as Liverpool and AC Milan have in recent years — “good enough” in league without necessarily threatening to win it and then excelling in Champions League runs.  (Of course, I really want a “double” like Manchester United is going for this year — league and Champions League — but my expectations would be met with an AC Milan/Liverpool type of performance.)  I also want to keep playing in regional tourneys.  One of these days we’ll beat a team in Mexico and, in the meantime, maybe we’ll learn something and keep building our name with Latino fans in the US who have all too often looked down on MLS. 

Expectations matter.  The last two regular seasons have led to rising expectations — we seemed clearly best in the league, making the play-off crashes all the more frustrating.  Just as, I imagine, an Inter fan is getting ticked off by a team that cruises to the Serie A title yet can’t make a real run at the Champions League.  I’m trying to lower my expectations back to what really matters to me. 

Which is, in a roundabout way, why I’m not particularly upset yet.  If it takes Soehn and the DC United folks another month to get Gallardo and the rest of our attackers in synch, so be it.  If it takes another month of formation tinkering, so be it.  (Please don’t play three at the back again, though, unless they’re three regular defensive starters.)  If it takes a month to get Emilio putting balls in the net regularly, so be it.  Maybe it’s time to figure out if Quaranta is there to spell/learn from Moreno or sub for Olsen at right wing or a mixture of the two.  And so on. 

Because as we’ve learned the last two years, it’s not the first few months that determine whether our expectations are met — it’s the last few weeks of the season.

 

Like a “little red bug”

One of DC United’s multitude of new South American imports this season is Franco Niell, a forward on loan (presumably with an option to buy) from Argentinos Juniors in (duh) Argentina.  He’s of the small pesky type and, based on his initial few games, plays like a “rambunctious gnome,” as I believe someone on bigsoccer described him.  His nickname translates as “the dwarf,” which makes sense since Franco appears to be around 5-3. 

He’s been okay so far, impressing more with energy than skill, but came up with a goal as a substitute against Pachuca Wednesday at RFK.  Some may wonder what an Argentine kid like Niell is doing in MLS.  Why not live at home in Buenos Aires?  Well, the economy in Argentina — and thus its league — have some issues.  And, as someone who has seen Argentinos Juniors play, RFK may feel like a step up.  For more on my visit to Estadio Diego Maradona, home of Argetinos Juniors — known as the “little red bugs” — and first professional home of Argentina’s beloved #10, read on after the jump.

El Jefe

While the DC United season has gotten off to a slow start, with the team now riding back-to-back 2-0 losses, one bright spot in my opinion has been our new central defenders, Gonzalo Martinez and Gonzalo Peralta.  So far they’ve been tough, seem to read the game well, and react well to pressure.  It’s a bit confusing to have two new players in the same position with the same first name.  Ask Paul Caligiuri, who on the broadcast of the Harbor View game felt the need to state that they were not brothers, despite having the same name.  They are very different physically, with Peralta taller and fair-skinned and Martinez shorter with dark skin.  My wife, M., has dubbed them “tall Gonzalo” and “short Gonzalo.”  That is a serviceable pair of nicknames.  She takes defenders seriously, having been one in her youth, and approves of them both so far.  But surely a team that currently boasts “the doll” (Gallardo) and “the flea” (Niell) and used to boast “el Diablo” can do better than that.

So I was pleased to learned that Martinez recently introduced himself at a team function as “El Jefe.”  I hereby encourage the United blogosphere to adopt this nickname for Martinez.  The more nicknames, the better!

RFK, My Friend

It’s almost DC United opening day, with our first home game next week against Harbour View FC of Jamaica.  Time to head back to RFK and I’m looking forward to it.  While all the talk lately has been (rightly) about DC United’s next home, whatever it turns out to be, I’d like to go on record saying, you know, I like RFK.  I understand the economics dictating that United get its own home but there’s a part of me that wishes the team could somehow take ownership of RFK, maybe fix it up a little, and call it home for a few more decades.

Okay, sure, it’s run-down and has acquired some quirky seating and other features (thanks, Nationals!).  But it’s ours.  It’s got some atmosphere (thanks, Screaming Eagles, Barra Brava, and La Norte!).  It’s easy enough to get to.  And it’s got some history.  That’s a rare combo for American soccer.

There’s a bit of pop psychology that says male friendships are often built on shared experiences (while female friendships are supposedly bulit more on shared confidences).  In that case, me and RFK, we’re friends.  We’ve shared a lot of experiences….

Some are familiar to most DC United fans — the epic 2004 conference final victory over the Revolution, the 1997 MLS Cup win in the rain over the Rapids, the 1999 conference final destruction of the Crew.  (Not to mention some more painful experiences, like the more recent play-offs.)  Or US national team games, like the qualifier against Jamaica back in ‘97 or friendlies against teams like Uruguay and South Africa.  The Women’s World Cup in ‘03.  A Belgium-Saudi Arabia World Cup game in ‘94 that featured one of the most remarkable goals in World Cup history, though I was too new to the sport to understand just what a fabulous play I’d just seen the Saudi player make, particularly because I was surrounded by unhappy Belgian fans.

Others are more personal.  My first date with my wife was that rainy April 2000 comeback victory over the Fire.  I first really got to know my future father-in-law when he came to town for that brutal World Cup Qualifying loss to Honduras in 2001.   Heck, the time I saw the late, great Ramones at the HFStival, watching the whole floor of the stadium pogo-ing along.  A couple of U2 shows, particularly that drizzly one on the ZooTV tour.

Then there are the more mundane aspects, the warming familiarity of the rituals.  For me, that’s taking the Metro to the game, feeling heartened by the others I see wearing DC United gear along the way, and that walk past the Armory, often amused by the scalpers just outside Stadium-Armory  stop.  (Hey!  We’ve arrived — there are guys who think our tickets are worth re-selling.)  Meeting up with friends who have seats nearby.  Discussing on the subway if it’s hot enough to drink the Sunset Wheat beer or whether we’re in the mood for fries or something else for dinner.  Assessing the game on the ride home.

I know there are plenty of different rituals other fans have, such as the extended, perhaps legendary, tailgating of our friends on the “loud side.”  Maybe kickarounds in the parking lots for the suburban types who drive in with the kids.  These rituals a part of being a fan.  After a tough week at work, it’s soothing to be able to relax and do the usual fun things before, at, and after the game.  I’ve seen it on my travels.  The Arsenal fans grabbing a pint at their usual pre-game pub.  (Wonder if they’ve found a new one, post-Highbury.)  The AC Milan fans snacking at the concession vans in the San Siro parking lot.  Lord of the Wing often speaks for the Celtic fans who take the charter bus into Glasgow for their games.  It’s part of what we love.

I’m sure I’ll like, probably even love, DC United’s new stadium, wherever it turns out to be.  Our management seems to understand that there are some mandatory requirements, like Metro access, and has development experience.  But I’m going to miss RFK when it’s gone.  Probably a lot.  That happens with friends sometimes.  I’ve moved cross-country from where I grew up and went to college and lost track of some friends in the process, people I may never see again.  I miss them but at least we’ve got good memories.  Leaving RFK may be a little like that.  We have to go our separate ways eventually but, you know, I’ll miss it too.   And so I’ll try to take the time to appreciate the next few seasons there, understanding that it’s just a temporary thing now, not the permanent part of my life it’s been for the last decade.

See you there next week!  Let’s have a few more memories before we part.

Reloaded!

D says that DC United have been rebuilt and backs it up with a look at the turnover just since the beginning of ‘06.

 The mass South American arrivals this week certainly give it that look.  That said, adding guys nicknamed “Doll” and “Dwarf” doesn’t do a whole lot to change the size of the team now, does it?  Got a squat player with flair to sell — give us a call, we’re your side!  And I think our female fans may find Gallardo is not exactly the pin-up that Christian has been.   (The joke is that “doll” Gallardo is closer to Chucky than Ken.  Decide for yourself.)

On a more serious note, this does look like a team built to compete in regional tourneys.  Former national teamers from South America aren’t likely to find playing Mexican teams especially different or intimidating.  In fact, it might be coming up against the rough-and-ready MLS style takes more adjustment for them than a Superliga or “CONCACAF Champions League” affair. 

D also sees this as a crucial year for the front office, making all these moves despite so much (regular) season success:

…this is a year that demands that we truly examine our coaching and front office. Players will win or lose games, but the front office and management will win or lose this season. They, more than any other parties, are responsible for the 2008 campaign. They had done right by us in the past, but the price of professional sports is inevitably “what have you done for me lately.” The departure of Boswell, of Gomez, of Perkins… these all signify that while I give the roster moves of the past great credit, they do not matter for this season. This season is about the choices we have seen being made. 

True that.  They built up some capital with Emilio and Fred and now they’re spending it by letting a former league MVP walk.  But I’m down with it so far.  For one thing, I remember the long drought after ‘99, when the original great team fell apart and degenerated.  I’m willing to chance rebuilding on the fly.  The other is the tremendous frustration of the last few post-seasons.  All that build-up and so little play-off success.  (Insert double entendre, if you wish.)  As I posted before, I’m willing to chance a reloading effort since I can’t help but suspect that there was a problem somewhere in the team’s DNA. 

Here’s my concern.  We’ve got a bunch of new players and the team will probably take awhile to gel.  Yet we jump right into regional competition even before MLS gets going.  If we flop badly against a Mexican team in the CONCACAF Champions Cup, will people like D start questioning what we’re up to?  Good thing we’ve got this mysterious new Champions League to look forward to in the fall — by then Soehn better have figured out this new mix of players.  If we’re watching Gomez tear up the league for the Rapids while Gallardo nurses some injury and Boswell makes the all-star team while the new defenders are providing unnecessary Erpen-like drama, then things could get ugly come September.

That said.  This feels to me like an amplification of the team’s traditions.  We’ve always had a South America feel to the team, particularly our Bolivian connection.  We’re doubling down on that.  As the joke goes, Fulham may have more American players starting that DCU.  It’s almost like we’re turning into what Chivas USA originally promised to be.

Regular Bigsoccer poster JoeW sees this as a matter of DC United taking advantage of a comparative advantage we have over other MLS teams.   We’ve built up the relationships, the brand name, and the dollar goes further than in Europe.  That makes some sense.  In addition, I think he also may underestimate the appeal of the Washington area for an international player.  Sure, we’re not New York or Hollywood but we’ve got a vibrant immigrant community, particularly for Latin players, and plenty of other foreigners working here. 

Now if we could only get a beautiful new stadium to appeal to those players.  Sigh. 

When DC United won big games

As a follow-up to the previous post, here’s a story of the good old days for us DC United fans, and perhaps my personal favorite “back in the day” game I saw at RFK:

It was the deciding game of the 1999 Eastern Conference finals with the winner to play in the MLS Cup, the championship game.  DC United versus the Columbus Crew at RFK.  It was, though we didn=t know it then, the last gasps of the founding dynasty.

What made it so sweet was in part that hint of mortality.  DC United had lost in the MLS Cup the previous season and Bruce Arena had left to take over the US national team.  United had played well enough in the 1999 regular season, though.  At this point, the ever-shifting MLS playoff structure involved rounds of best of three games series before the one-off neutral site championship game. 

It was also sweet because it was the third year in a row that Columbus and United had met up in the play-offs.  United had won the previous two years.  There was a rivalry developing, which gave it an edge.  Columbus had a rising team with two strong forwards, American Brian McBride and the wonderfully named Stern John of Trinidad. 

The first game went to DC United, 2-1.  So far, so good.  But then in the second game, in Columbus, the Crew had struck back.  And how B they beat United 5-1!  Uh oh.  We=d failed in the final the year before.  Would we now fail in the semi-final this year?  Had the decline become that real?  Was Columbus overtaking us?

Game 3 at RFK.  A brilliant November Saturday afternoon.  One of those sunny crisp days that makes most sports fans think of college football.  With the MLS Cup scheduled for Foxboro, it was the last DC United home game of the season.  The lower bowl of RFK was packed and there were some sections busy on the top level.  It was a full house, 21,000 in attendance.

One sliver of the upper bowl was occupied by die-hard Crew fans with banners and drums.  Before the game they began singing and chanting.  Hey!  This is our place, not yours!  Who did they think they were?  We were DC United, the kings of the MLS.  Right?   

The Crew fans got many United fans B beyond the normal standing sections of the Screaming Eagles and Barra Brava B going.  As a result, the crowd was chanting and drumming from the start.  The atmosphere was electric.  The adrenalin was pumping.

As it happened, the Crew fans would have been better off staying in Ohio.  The initial few minutes were even and physical.  Then DC United took command.  El Diablo was running the midfield, dropping his long passes all over the place to the tricky Moreno and the fleet Lassiter.  The amazing thing was the ball possession.  As the game wore on, it seemed like Columbus simply couldn=t get the ball, as if DC United were playing keep-away. 

It was a joy to watch.  The goals started coming.  The first was only 17 minutes in.  It was a classic Moreno to Etcheverry to Moreno move, a give and go in the box with Moreno putting it away.  1-0, United.  Across the way, the Screaming Eagles and the Barra Brava had the RFK stands bouncing up and down.

The second goal was one of that United team=s other standard types, a gorgeous long ball from Etcheverry in the United half to the speeding Lassiter, who scored on the fly.  2-0, United, still in the first half.  At this point, the Crew knew they were in trouble.  DC United were feeling the flow and holding the ball for long stretches of time.

The third goal came relatively early in the second half and it was a gem.  Etcheverry earned his third assist, this time on a free kick into the box that Moreno headed on B and then Lassiter converted with a bicycle kick!  3-0, United, after 55 minutes. 

The Crew fans in the upper deck fell silent.  DC United didn=t let up.  They kept the possession and the pressure up.  This was the lion king contemptuously swatting away a cub, the master reclaiming his authority.  They weren=t just DC United of old B they seemed even better.  And the doubts beforehand made it all the sweeter.  We fans has the oles going.  It was a party now, not a contest.

El Diablo, deservedly, got the dessert on our rich feast of soccer.  With only a few minutes left, he rifled a free-kick into the net and got a goal of his own, after setting up the other three.  Ole!  The goals were a variety pack of classic DC United scores, including one each of the give and go, long bomb, and an El Diablo free kick, as if to demonstrate their full range.

4-0 was the final.  It could have been 6-0 more easily than it could have been 2-1.  Off the momentum of that dominant performance, United went on to beat the LA Galaxy (again) in the MLS Cup for their third title in four years.  We were still the best.

The following year, after further off-season player losses, the team simply fell apart, not even making the playoffs.  But I held onto that afternoon of greatness, and kept going back to RFK hoping it would reappear someday.  And, finally, I was rewarded with another championship run in 2004, complete with a dramatic epic conference final at RFK.  And maybe there=s another coming next year too.

Has DC United turned into the Atlanta Braves?

This one is for the good folks over at the DCenters, who help me understand my team better. 

I live in DC and I’ve been rooting for DC United as long as there has been an MLS.  I’ve had partial season tickets for going on a decade now.  I became a soccer fan in large part because of all those evenings at RFK, rooting for the boys in black.

The past few seasons have been frustrating.  Loads of beautiful — and winning — soccer, international tourneys, likeable players.  All good, right?  And yet only one MLS Cup, back in’ 04 when the team was arguably weaker than the sides we’ve seen since.  The last two years United had the best regular season record — first time a team has done that in back-to-back seasons in the league’s (short) history — and didn’t even reach the MLS Cup final.  And the failures weren’t just in the MLS play-offs, United has had a series of close losses in international competitions.  Any United fan knows the litany: the blowout loss to the Fire in the ‘05 playoffs, the late collapse in Chile in Copa Sudamericana, the “smash and grab” 1-0 loss to the Revs in the conference championship in ‘06, the goalkeeping mistake in the rain in Mexico that let Chivas beat us the first time around this season…

All in all, it’s hard to come up with a “big game” win for United since that ‘04 run.  It hurts.  United used to be that team that found a win to win when it mattered.  We had a swagger in the early years, after that ridiculous rally in the downpour to beat the Galaxy in the first MLS Cup.   It seemed like the team would step up in big games, like play-off matches or cup tourneys.   Not anymore.

Which brings me to the Atlanta Braves of the 1990s, a team that routinely dominated the regular season, running off a remarkable 14 division championships in a row.  But they only won a single World Series (1995) during that stretch.  A common theory was that a team built around strong starting pitching enabled them to pile up wins during the long regular season but was vulnerable during the shorter rotations of the post-season series. 

Has this model of DC United been built with a similar structural flaw?  Too vulnerable to the greater defensive pressing one might seen in a do-or-die match, perhaps?  Maybe.  Or perhaps it gets into team chemistry/composition issues, a lack of the killer instinct or crazed “won’t accept defeat” leadership?  (Though Ben Olsen seems like the latter type, in the Roy Keane mold.)

Or is this really more a matter of some bad luck and we shouldn’t try to assign structural reasons to it?  The ‘06 loss to the Revs felt like one of those bad luck games where your team just can’t score but has a ton of chances.  The ‘07 team failed because the star forward got injured at the worst possible time.  And expecting a result on the road in Mexico and Chile might just be too much to assume for an MLS team yet.  Of such flukes, reputations are won and lost.  Look at the Buffalo Bills of the early ’90s.  One made field goal and they are no longer the team that lost four consecutive Super Bowls.  What if their MLS-equivalent Revs had found a goal during regular time of that first MLS Cup they lost to the Galaxy, instead of letting Ruiz beat them in overtime? 

This debate matters as the team looks at making changes during the off-season.  Is it a matter of minor tinkering (bring in a good CB!) or something more substantial (bring in a “designated player!”)?  If the team brings in Juan Sebastian Veron it seems like that would be, at least in part, about adding a player for those big games.  If you’ve played for the Argentine national team and in the Champions League in Europe, presumably an MLS play-off game is not exactly an occasion for nervousness.  If there are leadership issues, is it time for a veteran like Jaime Moreno to retire or leave for one last pay-day in the Middle East?  But if you just think some bad luck is involved then you spend more time lining up a solid back-up forward in case Emilio gets hurt at the wrong time.  Look at how the Dynamo won the MLS Cup without their number 1 forward. 

I’m inclined to think it’s something a little more substantial than bad luck and bad timing over the last few seasons.  We haven’t really won a big match in years.  So if we’re going to let former league MVP Christian Gomez go and bring in a “designated player” I’ll give it a chance.  I’m willling to support making some bigger changes.  I’m too tired of getting my hopes up after a great string of regular season results.

But, as a fan, I reserve the right to change my mind halfway into next season if we start losing!