DC United Continue to Steal Points With Late Game Goals
DC United continue to steal important points with late game goals as they battle for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
After DC United‘s comeback draw against the Chicago Fire on the road, they were able to walk away with an important point when it looked like they would get nothing from the match. This isn’t the first time that they have stolen points from their opponents late in games this season. This was the third straight game in which DC has scored a stoppage time goal.
United have drew two of their past three games with the third being a loss to NYCFC even after a stoppage time equalizer. They have stolen two points in their past two games and were unlucky to get a third against NYCFC. They were also able to steal points on August 21st against the New York Red Bulls when they came back from a two goal deficit to level things late.
This has been the trend for DC United the entire 2016 season as they have scored after the 80′ minute in eight matches in which they came away with a draw or a win. On August 6th against the Philadelphia Union, a goal in 90+4′ from Steve Birnbaum equalized the game. Fabian Espindola’s 89′ minute goal against the Columbus Crew on July 16th also saw DC get a point.
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On July 1st, United stole a point from Real Salt Lake with Jared Jeffrey’s 92′ minute goal. Alhaji Kamara’s 86′ minute goal on May 27th got DC a 1-0 win over Sporting KC. The late game goals trend started early in the year when Fabian Espindola scored a late equalizer in the 80′ minute against the Colorado Rapids on March 20th.
In total, DC United have stolen 10 points late in games this season and that has propelled them into the hunt for a playoff spot in the East. They are currently tied with Orlando City SC for the final playoff spot with 34 total points on the year. The team from the nation’s capital are in position to make the postseason for the third season in a row.
They hold their fate in their own hands with only five games left in their season. It will be a close race to the playoffs but if DC can continue to score late game goals, they will have a great shot at squeaking above the red line. Their ability to steal points late in matches can get in their opponents heads as they have scored after the 80′ minute in their last four games.
It will be interesting to see if Untied can use these points to their advantage by making the playoffs. DC are the surprise team in Major League Soccer this year with the amount of stolen points they have gained. Without those late game goals, they would near the bottom of the league in terms of points.