Tough to beat but rarely fancied, D.C. United have defied odds, expectations and even statistics in their unexpected climb to the top of the MLS Eastern Conference and Supporters' Shield standings.
But fortune frowned on them for the second match running on Saturday in Frisco, Texas, as the Black-and-Red conceded an injury-time winner by FC Dallas after hauling themselves back on to level terms with a second-half equalizer.
Much like their last league match, a 1-0 loss at the Seattle Sounders way back on July 3, United struggled to keep the ball or create many chances against FCD. But coach Ben Olsen's team battled gamely in search of a welcome – even if undeserved – result, and looked to have found it when Jairo Arrieta and Taylor Kemp forced a Matt Hedges own goal to tie the contest in the 77th minute.
A quarter-hour later, however, they would be sent reeling by Fabian Castillo's injury-time winner.
“We're disappointed in the result, and I think disappointed with the performance,” Olsen said afterward. “We were second-best most of the night. Credit to the guys: Like Seattle, we hung in there – then again, late we didn't do a good enough job of seeing out the game.
“But in some ways we had no business being in that game in the end, anyway.”
With suspension again robbing him of star striker Fabian Espindola and injury sidelining first-choice goalkeeper Bill Hamid, Olsen set his lineup out in a defensive-minded posture in sweltering Frisco.
FCD's dynamic front line kept Hamid's understudy, Andrew Dykstra, busy with six saves on the night. Yet the own goal brought United back to life and it seemed as if the worst of the dangers had passed when injury time arrived.
Much like they gave Sounders defender Tyrone Mears a small window to shoot and were duly punished in the final minutes of Seattle's last-gasp win earlier in the month, United lost track of Castillo's movement in the box and were punished as the Colombian cleaned up a deflected shot with a savvy finish.
“It certainly feels like we should've gotten out of here with a point,” said Kemp. “Dykstra made some big saves, I thought the back line did pretty well all night. They put a lot of pressure on us and it was tough with the heat.
“We could've been a little better, a little smarter with our possession at the end there to try to kill off the game. They pressed us and were able to get one at the end.”
D.C. have now scored just two goals in their last four league matches, and on Saturday they again struggled to keep possession and set the tempo against forward-leaning Dallas. Yet they also showed their rugged ability to carve out decisive moments even when outplayed on balance.
“When you're defending a lot and you get a break like that, you want to try to at least get a high-quality chance,” said Kemp of the equalizer. “Getting a goal back was pretty big that late in the game for us, it gave us a little bit of a lift going forward. We thought we were going to be able to close it out, but we couldn't.”
