Jesse Marsch read the accounts of the Red Bulls first leg victory over D.C. United in the Eastern Conference semifinals, but he didn’t necessarily agree with them.
Most reports talked about the ineptness of the D.C. offense, how quality goal scorers like Fabian Espindola and Alvaro Saborio could not even manage a shot on goal in their own stadium, how D.C.’s midfield could not string together enough passes to set the attack in motion, or how D.C.’s defense just banged the ball out of danger rather than keep the ball on the ground and play through the center of the field.
Marsch didn’t see it that way.
“There’s been a lot of talk about some of the statistics with D.C. and how they played, but I haven’t heard that many people credit our team and the way that we put them in a certain kind of game and forced the game,” he said. “I thought that, overall, our ability to manage the game physically, to now win a lot of headers, a lot of 50-50 balls, a lot of second balls, and what we did to settle the game down and find spots to now start to attack them and now push the game, not just by how we play physically, but by soccer-wise how we try to command the game with the ball and what happens when the ball turns over.
“All that for that kind of game, on the road, in the playoffs. Nobody wanted to credit the Red Bulls for that. I think we played pretty well and that our game plan was executed quite well by our players, so we know it’s going to require another kind of performance like that. There will be other things that will be important because we’re playing at home, but for sure we’ll be ready for D.C. to throw everything at us. That’s what they’re about. They never quit, they never die. We’ll be prepared for that.”
Goalkeeper Luis Robles noticed what his teammates were able to do. How could he not? He was barely involved in the action. With D.C. United failing to register a shot, Robles never made a save. His action was confined to punching a few balls away, taking several goal kicks and shouting instructions and organizing the defense.
“My job was pretty easy last game,” Robles said. “It’s not going to be like that every single time. A huge compliment to the front four, the (defensive) midfielders and then the back four. We were disciplined and we maintained our shape and made it difficult for their forwards.”
The way Sacha Kljestan controlled the game in the center of the field, the way defensive midfielders Dax McCarty and Felipe clogged up the middle, forcing D.C. United to funnel the attack to the wings, the way Sal Zizzo and Kemar Lawrence won their battles on the outside of the defense, and the way Matt Miazga, Damien Perrinelle and Ronald Zubar won nearly every header in the center of the field left the D.C. United attack without ideas or solutions.
However, with a week to come up with another game plan, Marsch expects to see a different D.C. United team in the second leg Sunday at Red Bull Arena.
“We know that there is still a big job to finish here,” Marsch said. “We’re not taking anything for granted. We like playing at home in front of our fans, but we’re in every way going to step on the field and be ready for an absolute battle, knowing that D.C. is going to come here and throw absolutely everything at us. We’re looking forward to it, just like we did the first leg. These are fun games to play in. They mean a lot to everybody and we’ll be ready to go.
“The game will be a little bit more in our offensive third then it even was last game, which sets up for them to be dangerous on the counter. We have to be prepared for that. We have to be prepared for them, again on set pieces, and in all these little ways, try to get an edge, put balls in the box. This is what they are. They’ve shown throughout the season that they’ve gone down in a lot of games and they know how to come back. If you’re going to say it’s halftime and they’re down 1-0, this is not a new position for them. They’re going to throw everything at us and we’ll be ready for it.”
Midfielder Mike Grella also believes D.C. United is far from dead. The Red Bulls only have a 1-0 lead, and a D.C. United goal will even things up very quickly, not only in the overall score, but away goals as well.
“We’re happy with the result we got down there and now we’re at home, but the job, I wouldn’t say it’s halfway done, because they’re going to come here desperate,” Grella said. “They’re a very good team, they like to battle. They like to fight. The job’s not done. We’ve still got a lot of work to do.
“A goal puts them under all sorts of pressure and puts the match further and further away from them. The earlier we can score, the more goals we can score, and take those chances, the better it is for us.”
Zizzo expects D.C. United to press from the beginning and try to get the equalizer early rather than sit back and wait for something to develop or wait to counter attack.
“They’re going to throw everything at us,” Zizzo said. “We expect a similar game. We’ve just got to be ready for it. There’s going to be a lot of similarities. They want to try and counter our press by hitting some long balls, but I think we did a good job dropping and playing their game early. As the game settled down we started to play our style a little bit. I think it’s going to be a similar game, but obviously the intensity is going to be upped a little bit.
“They were still a little bit dangerous at times even though they didn’t have a shot on goal. They created some chances and had some crosses, but we’ll try and clean those up.”
Though the Red Bulls may not know for sure what to expect from D.C. United, they know what they’ll get from the supporters. When Red Bull Arena is full, it can get very loud, and everyone is hoping the noise level will be at its highest.
“It’s going to be amazing as it’s always been,” Grella said. “All the home games this season have been fantastic. This is the ultimate because it’s our biggest test yet and it’s our biggest advancement yet. We’re on the right path and the home stadium’s going to be buzzing for sure and hopefully we can give them something to cheer about.”
Robles agrees.
“This is where home field advantage comes in,” he said. “We feel good about our performance. It’s the byproduct of a lot of hard work. We were able to adjust to the way they played. We’re mentally strong. For us to (win) a game away from home is huge. With that being said, at the end of the day it is halftime. Maybe we do have that advantage coming home, but that’s not something we should be too confident or overconfident about.
“Last year, when we played New England, that was incredible. Unfortunately, the result didn’t go for us. But for the stadium to be that energetic, to be that vibrant and that full, we’re hoping it will be the same thing this weekend. I know we have the early match, but I hope that isn’t a deterrent for people to come out. We know that we have the best arena in Major League Soccer when it comes to soccer-specific stadiums and we want to see that full, because when it is full it is absolutely the best stadium in this league to play.”
