Background
Preseason
January
D.C. United entered 2016 in desperate need of a makeover in midfield. The team traded winger Chris Pontius to the Philadelphia Union, they were unable to reach a new agreement with long-time central midfielder Perry Kitchen. Kitchen's central midfield partner, Davy Arnaud seemed unlikely to make a recovery from a concussion suffered in September 2015. Also Michael Farfan was released. Although the team traded for two wingers, Lamar Neagle and Patrick Nyarko, they were still in need of help in the center of the pitch. At the 2016 MLS SuperDraft, the team traded up two positions to select a Generation Adidas player from Syracuse University, midfielder Julian Buescher. The team then traded its own first round selection for a pick in the second round along with TAM money. The team used the pick to Select another midfielder, from 2015 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship Game runner-up Clemson University, Paul Clowes. However, the team was still in search of more experienced players, and stories began surfacing that the team was trying to sign various foreign midfielders, including Leonardo Gil and Antonio Nocerino. The biggest news of the preseason, though, was probably the announcement that the team's star player, goalkeeper Bill Hamid had reinjured his knee during the off-season and was forced to have knee surgery that was expected to sideline him for several months.
February
Having set their sights on A.C. Milan player Antonio Nocerino, D.C. United found their negotiation was undermined when Orlando City S.C.'s Kaka apparently convinced his former teammate to reject United's offer and pursue a contract with Orlando. Fortunately, a plan B quickly emerged. The team filled the holding mid slot by trading for MLS veteran Marcelo Sarvas, and got a bit of an unexpected boost when the name of a former acquisition target, Boca Junior's midfielder/forward Luciano Acosta suddenly showed up on the transfer rumor wires. Within a week, United had the diminutive midfielder signed and training in their Florida pre-season camp. The next day, Acosta even assisted on the lone goal in a match against Tampa Bay Rowdies. Reportedly, United agreed to a trade of a conditional draft pick to New York Red Bulls, who had gained discovery claim priority on Acosta, after United had relinquished its own. As preseason continued, the team released Conor Doyle to make way for a trialist from USL side Pittsburgh Riverhounds, winger Rob Vincent. United took to the pitch for the first time in 2016, with a 2015–16 CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal series against Querétaro F.C. In a match in the Mexican mountain city, D.C. United mostly held its own. But, missed chances by the visitors opened the door for the home team, which scored twice in the final 20 minutes, to take a daunting 2-0 lead in the series.
March
For the second straight year, the D.C. team bowed out in the quarterfinals of CONCACAF play. An away goal in the 4th minute locked up the series for Querétaro, but United did manage to reclaim some dignity with an impressive late strike for a goal by rookie Julian Büscher. Unable to practice with the team because of lingering post-concussion symptoms, Davy Arnaud retired from playing and joined the coaching staff. Because he had a guaranteed contract, Arnaud's retirement was not expected to free up any salary cap space, but it did open a roster spot. United made a trade to acquire the rights to U.S. youth international goalkeeper, Charlie Horton, who had left his English team, Leeds United, to play closer to home.
MLS regular season
In its 2016 Major League Soccer season opener, D.C. United started off well with a goal by newcomer Lamar Neagle to take a 1-0 lead over the LA Galaxy in the fifth minute. However, the Galaxy stormed back in the second half, led by former MLS MVP Mike Magee, and crushed D.C. 4-1. As D.C. traveled to Foxboro to face the New England Revolution, Andrew Dykstra was forced to sit out with back spasms, and Fabian Espindola was nursing a tender hamstring. The match ended in a scoreless draw. Dykstra later turned out to need back surgery that would sideline him for 10–12 weeks,[1] joining Hamid on the injury list and leaving the netminding duties up to sophomore keeper Travis Worra and the recently signed Horton.
DC hoped to bounce back in their home opener against the Colorado Rapids, but the team only managed a 1-1 draw thanks to Espindola coming off the bench and chipping a rebound into the net in the 80th minute. The following week, Steve Birnbaum and Álvaro Saborío were called up to their respective national teams in the US and Costa Rica. D.C. faced off against an FC Dallas side that was suffering even more losses from injury and national call-ups, but were crushed 3-0 after Dallas took advantage of multiple mistakes between Bobby Boswell and Kofi Opare, who filled in for Birnbaum.
April
D.C. United announced the signing of veteran MLS keeper Tally Hall to shore up their increasingly-wounded goalkeeping corps, which turned out to be a prescient move as Horton suffered a concussion during training and would not be ready in time for the next match. Still searching for their first victory of the season, D.C. instead found another draw in San Jose. Despite getting an early lead when Nyarko headed in a spectacular cross by Neagle, and seeing several miraculous saves from Worra, a mistake by Espindola late in the game quickly led to a game-tying goal by Adam Jahn. D.C. finally got its first win in 2016 when they returned home to face the Vancouver Whitecaps F.C. Espindola and Alvaro Saborio each scored a pair of goals, with the latter player's goals both assisted by Acosta late in the second half, to notch a 4-0 shutout. Unfortunately, the team's good fortune would be short-lived, when they allowed Sebastian Giovinco to score in the first minute of the very next game, leading to a 1-0 defeat against Toronto.
On April 20, the MLS Disciplinary Committee suddenly announced that they would suspend manager Ben Olsen and fine him $500 for stepping onto the field during the Toronto match.[2] With Chad Ashton as their acting manager, D.C. bounced back in their very next match with a 3-0 victory against New England. Neagle opened the scoring for D.C. and Saborio closed it out with another late insurance goal, but the most memorable moment of the game came when Lucho Acosta scored a fabulous goal—a long distance chip over the goalie that struck the bottom of the crossbar and went in the net for Acosta's first goal in a D.C. United uniform. The goal also earned Acosta the MLS Goal of the Week honor. United closed out the month on the road against the Chicago Fire. The Fire scored first on a free kick late in the first half, but D/C was able to level the score when Nyarko headed home a cross from Acosta.
May
Despite missing several key players, D.C. United started off the month of May expecting three points in a home match against cellar-dwelling NYCFC, but the team missed some good chances to score in the first half and the visiting team punished them with 2 goals early in the second half, the first by Spanish star David Villa and the second by Khiry Shelton. 5 days later, D.C. hosted the other team from the New York region, the potent New York Red Bulls The biggest home crowd of the season turned out for this rivalry match, and the home team responded with a strong overall effort. Nyarko sent Sarvas in on goal with a terrific through ball, and Sarvas unselfishly sent a pass across the goal to a waiting Saborio, who had an easy tap-in to take the lead. Worra delivered with several spectacular saves to maintain United's lead, and the team closed out the first half with a spectacular goal, as Neagle served up a sharp cross that Nyarko was able to turn into a goal with an impressive outside of the foot volley shot that sealed the 2-0 win.
The team also made a couple of personnel changes during that short home-stand, acquiring a young striker from Sierra Leone, via Sweden, Alhaji Kamara. Kamara had been ruled out from UEFA competition due to the discovery of a congenital heart defect that was deemed to pose risk to the striker's life. However, cardiologists hired by both D.C. United and MLS [3] decided Kamara was healthy enough to safely participate in the sport. To make room for Kamara, the team waived Clowes.
On the pitch, the team continued to struggle to produce offense, and dropped point when they surrendered a stoppage-point goal on a trip to the Philadelphia Union. Days after the 0-1 loss to the Union, the team announced that they had mutually parted ways with Markus Halsti, just as he was called up to the Finnish national team. Halsti had been plagued by injuries and fitness concerns, and only appeared in one match for the team in 2016, as a substitute in the second leg of the CCL against Querétaro.
On the 27th, despite furious storms that nearly scuttled the match, D.C. United managed to sneak away with a victory when the newly signed Kamara subbed in for Neagle in the 85th minute, and then scored his first goal for the team less than a minute later, giving his new team a 1-0 victory over Sporting KC.
June
United failed to build on the momentum of the Kansas City win, suffering a crushing 0-2 home loss to Seattle, on late goals by rookie Jordan Morris and Joevin Jones. The entire MLS went on break for the Copa América Centenario. Birnbaum and Saborio were called up to their respective national team squads for the USA and Costa Rica. During the league break, the team made an unusual move, adding 16-year old youth national team captain Chris Durkin as a Homegrown Player signing. Durkin was one of the youngest signings in league history, but the unusual deal did not add Durkin to D.C. United's MLS roster. Instead, he was available to play in a U.S. Open Cup match the next day, and would go out on loan after the match, first to Richmond Kickers, and then to resume his residency with the national team program in Bradenton as least until the USA U-17s finished their run at the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup. Durkin did make his debut in the USOC match and by all accounts looked very much as if he belonged. However, the team was unable to break through against the Ft. Lauderdale Strikers defense, and the D.C. squad made a quick exit from the competition, after losing to the Strikers in a penalty kick shootout. When MLS league action resumed, United claimed 4 points in their final 2 matches of the month, including a dreary 0-0 draw in Houston that produced no excitement until stoppage time, when Bill Hamid was forced into two spectacular reaction saves. D.C. United turned in a stronger performance with some home cooking against the New England Revolution, as Neagle and Franklin turned in highlight reel goals, and the home team cruised to a 2-0 win.
July
July began with another impotent showing from the United offense in a place where the team had long ago become accustomed to losing. Despite repeated jaw-dropping heroics by goalie Hamid, United fell behind in Utah to home team Real Salt Lake on a 52nd-minute goal. United seemed resigned to another road loss at Rio Tinto Stadium until Jeffrey scored a header on a stoppage time corner kick to gain the surprise point. That result, however, seemed a distant memory the next week, when United traveled to the Philadelphia Union, and suffered the team's worst loss to that franchise, a 3-0 drubbing with 2 first-half penalty kick goals and a second yellow-card ejection for Opare. starting in place of captain Boswell, who had been beaten several times in the previous match against RSL.
D.C. United did bounce back the next week on a trip to Columbus. The game marked the first appearance for the D.C. side by long-time nemesis Lloyd Sam, acquired in a trade with the N.Y. Red Bulls. United seemed the more likely side for much of the match in Columbus, but surrendered a goal to the Crew's scoring sensation, Ola Kamara, in the 63rd minute. The D.C. team did catch a break 10 minutes later as Harrison Afful was shown a red card for a sliding challenge on Sarvas. That card was rescinded later by the Disciplinary Committee, but United was able to press the man advantage and gained a point when late substitute Fabian Espindola pounced on a loose ball and shot it past the reach of the Crew goalie. That thrilling moment proved to be the coda to Espindola's career with D.C. United as "Fabi" was traded the next week to the Vancouver Whitecaps in what amounted to a 3-way deal that saw former University of Maryland Terrapins star Patrick Mullins move from NYCFC to D.C. United, with the NYC side getting one of D.C.'s international roster slots. The acquisition of Mullins was one local fans had hoped for since the Hermann award winner left school.
The team's long July road trip finished in Toronto, where Worra started for an injured Hamid. It was a tough lesson for Worra, who was beat for two free kick goals by Sebastian Giovinco in a 4-1 loss. When the team finally returned to RFK, the newly acquired Mullins made his first start for United and put his new team ahead with a header, but the team surrendered a late tying goal to the visiting Montreal Impact, not long after Montreal's star striker Didier Drogba had been sent off for a dead ball foul. The match also marked the first appearance for United by Kennedy Igboananike, who had just been acquired in a trade with the Chicago Fire.
August
D.C.'s homestand continued with a match against the Eastern Conference leading Philadelphia Union. United took the lead when Kemp intercepted a pass in the defensive end, raced through the Union defense and beat the goalie to the far post. However, the Union tied the game on a free kick just before halftime. The visitors took the lead when Acosta was dispossessed as he tried to dribble out of the defensive end and former United star Chris Pontius continued a remarkable renaissance in his first season away from D.C. and put the Union ahead. United's coach, Ben Olsen was ejected late in the second half for protesting one of many uncalled fouls on Acosta. Despite missing their leader, United pushed hard for a tying goal. Despite having a couple of apparent goals waved off by the officials, the team finally found the tying goal in the fourth minute of stoppage time, when Birnbaum got his head on the end of a service into the box by Nyarko. Despite being only a draw, it was a very emotional goal for the players and fans, but the home draw meant the team remained outside of playoff contention.
After getting only 2 points on draws in the first two games of the four-game homestand, United was desperate for a win when Portland Timbers came to town. The start of the game was delayed an hour because of record-setting heat that exceeded 100 degrees (on the Fahrenheit scale), but United got off to a hot start themselves. An early corner was headed on by Boswell to Birnbaum, who took his chance on a sharp volley to give D.C. an early lead. The team doubled that lead in the 29th minute, just before a scheduled heat break, when Acosta finished a chance in front of goal, set up by a nifty chipped pass from Mullins. Thanks to the usual heroics by Hamid, the team held on for a 2-0 shutout win that lifted United ahead of New England and at least temporarily holding the sixth and final postseason spot in the East.
The four-game homestand concluded with a Sunday afternoon national TV game against arch-rivals New York Red Bulls. Despite a pre-game shower during warm-ups and with inclement weather approaching, the teams kicked off on time, but the game was stopped just shy of the 8:00 mark, because a powerful storm was about to settle over RFK. After the torrential rains eased somewhat, grounds-crew tried to remove some of the bigger puddles of water and play resumed after a delay of about an hour and a quarter. Despite epically sloppy conditions, United was able to create some excellent chances to score, but their finishing was not up to the task. NYRB punished the home team's mistakes when Bradley Wright-Phillips finished off a play that opened up when Franklin whiffed on an attempted clearance due to poor footing. The visitors extended their lead in the second half on a shot by Felipe. As the team had done 2 weeks earlier, a desperate United team was able to rally to gain a home draw. First, Marcelo Sarvas scored on a penalty kick, earned by Lloyd Sam, who was playing against his old team for the first time. The tying goal was scored on a header by Patrick Mullins after Birnbaum headed a long corner kick back into the box. With a mid-week trip to Montreal looming, United were clinging to the final post-season slot, holding a tiebreaker edge over Orlando City SC.
In Montreal, United got off to an early lead on a penalty kick goal by Neagle, but Neagle gave it away late in the match when his turnover in the defensive zone was quickly turned into the tying goal. Still, the point was enough to hold on to the playoff position spot in the table.
D.C. United closed out an unbeaten August with some good home cooking and a 6-2 drubbing of the cellar-dwelling Chicago Fire SC. Acosta opened the scoring in the 25th minute, finishing off a cross through the box from Sarvas. Against the run of play, Hamid surrendered the lead six minutes later, when he gave up a big rebound on a long shot and he was helpless to deny the follow-up shot. However, United was soon playing with a man advantage after a Fire player was ejected for dissent. Mullins then slotted home a Nyarko pass to put United ahead again, and just before halftime Mullins finished off a pass from Acosta to extend the lead to 2 goals. The Fire responded with a goal just before the whistle for halftime. However, in the second half, a Nyarko volley just got across the line to restore the two-goal lead. Mullins added another goal to get the first hat-trick of the year for United, and Deleon came off the bench to close out the 6-2 scoreline with a crisp shot past the outstretched Chicago goalie, which was Deleon's first goal of the year.
September
D.C. United opened September with a Thursday match in Yankee Stadium against NYCFC without Steven Birnbaum, who was called up to play in his first United States Men's National Soccer Team World Cup qualifying match. Jalen Robinson played well over the first hour ad a quarter, as D.C. protected a 1-0 lead gained when Sam finished off a play started by Acosta and assisted by Nyarko. However, an errant back-pass by Luke Mishu, found its way to David Villa, who easily beat Hamid. In the 85th minute, Villa received a ball in the box and he was taken down by Robinson. Advantage was played when Frank Lampard collected the loose ball and beat Hamid with a laser shot. United seemed to have recovered for a draw, when Neagle headed in a corner kick by Büscher in stoppage time. However, the defense couldn't slow down the NYCFC attack and Lampard was able to get Robinson to slide early and then took the open shot to give NYCFC the 3-2 win in the third minute of stoppage time. In addition to the disappointing result for the team, Acosta received a yellow card which mean he would miss the next match due to an accumulation of yellow cards.
Before the team's next match at NYRB, Andrea Mancini was released to join the New York Cosmos, freeing up an international roster slot, and allowing the team to activate Kamara, who had sat out over six weeks with a hamstring injury. Without Acosta, United seemed hopelessly overmatched by the potent NYRB in a match scheduled to honor the 15th anniversary of the September 11 attacks. Indeed, the Red Bulls went ahead in the first half following a Nyarko defensive turnover that led to a historic goal by Bradley Wright-Phillips, giving BWP the most goals over a 3-year stretch by any player in league history. In the second half, Wright-Phillips caught Hamid leaning towards the far post and slammed it past him to the near side, giving NY a 2-0 lead. The New York team only turned up the pressure, but Hamid responded with multiple highlight reel saves to keep his team in the match. In the 89th minute, a loose ball in the box came to Birnbaum, and he delivered with a shot that narrowed the gap to 2-1. Then, in the 5th minute of stoppage time, a loose ball in the box came to Neagle for an easy tap-in, and United emerged with a shocking draw against the run of play. The result was the first time that NYRB had ever surrendered a 2-goal lead in Red Bull Arena.
A short week two-game road trip concluded on a Friday in Chicago, where D.C. once again rescued a point in the final minutes. The game started brightly for the visitors, when they were awarded an indirect free kick just outside the Fire's 6-yard box. Rob Vincent scored his first MLS goal, with a blast through the defense, assisted by Acosta. However, the Fire responded quickly as Luke Mishu, playing for the injured Franklin, lost his mark on a corner kick and surrendered a header for goal. The Fire made it 2-0 not long thereafter, as David Accam dribbled around Birnbaum and took a long shot that found the corner of the goal. Down a goal, United turned in a tired display, and seemed destined for a defeat. As the game went into stoppage time, Mullins took a chance with a spectacular overhead volley that rang off the crossbar. The rebound went to Nyarko, who forced a save by the diving Sean Johnson, but Boswell headed that rebound in for the tying goal. The draw again put United ahead of Orlando City Soccer Club in the race for the final playoff position, – but only on the goal differential tiebreaker with a big home match against Orlando City looming the following weekend. Both teams actually trailed New England Revolution in that race, by two points, but the Revolution had played an additional game.
The match against Orlando City was a hit at the box office, as the official attendance at RFK Stadium exceeded 25,000 for the first time in years. D.C. rewarded the big home crowd with a fluid performance that produced a 4-1 win and gave United a cushion over the visitors in the playoff chase. Mullins opened the scoring in the 34th minute, getting a foot on a cross across the goalmouth from Kemp, which followed a nifty back heel from Nyarko that created Kemp's chance. Two goals in quick succession put the game out of reach early in the second half. Sam got a header on a cross by Kemp, who had his second assist of the match. That was followed by Mullins' second goal, when the striker collected a pass from Nyarko, slipped wide of a defender, and cut the ball back just inside the far post. Orlando did get one back on a free kick in the 72nd minute, but the rookie Julian Büscher, who subbed on for an injured Sarvas in the first half, capped off the scoring with a goal in the 90th minute. The goal was Büscher's first in MLS play.
The midweek match at home against Columbus Crew SC was almost the opposite. Rain earlier in the day and a rainy forecast resulted in a small, but enthusiastic crowd. The visitors controlled play over most of the first hour, but United began to assert itself and seized control when Acosta was able to deliver the ball to Sam just outside the six-yard box. Sam created a shooting lane and took advantage with a shot that put United in the lead, even as Neagle stood at midfield waiting to come on for Sam. Fifteen minutes later, it was Neagle whose shot found the back of the net. He finished off a play that began when Nyarko got on the end of a long kick by Hamid and passed to Büscher. Then, Büscher passed to Neagle, who was unmarked inside the 18-yard box. A 3-0 victory was in the books after Neagle collected a long outlet pass by Hamid and then set up Saborio in front of the goal in the 90th minute. The Costa Rican had not played in over a month but showed no sign of rust as he neatly beat the Crew goalie. It was the first time in 2016 that D.C. had won two games in a row, and it stretched the team's home unbeaten streak to 8 games. The win solidified United's hold on 6th place and a playoff spot, stretching the lead over New England to four points, but United also trailed Montreal by only a point and Philadelphia by only two points, with three games remaining in the regular season.
October
For D.C. United, the final month of MLS' regular season began the way the prior month ended—with a victory, one that extended the winning streak to three games in a row. Following the midweek win over the Crew, United traveled to Toronto, where they faced a Toronto F.C. squad that had struggled since their star Giovinco was injured. Jozy Altidore, however, continued his hot streak. as he dribbled past both Birnbaum and Hamid and scored to stake the home team to a lead in the 36th minute. But, Neagle scored on a header three minutes later to level the score, when a goalmouth scramble forced a saved by the Toronto goalie that found its way to Neagle in front of the goal. Neagle made it two in the second half when he got on the end of a Sam pass and touched it beyond the keeper's reach. Pending the next day's Montreal Impact match, the win catapulted D.C. at least temporarily into 4th place in the Eastern Conference. The Toronto match was followed by a break for international games, and both Birnbaum and Hamid were called into the national team. Birnbaum made the trip to Cuba where he was a second-half substitute, but a kick to the face left him bloody and needing stitches.
Despite the incident in Havana, Birnbaum was in the starting lineup when NYCFC came to RFK in the final home game of the regular season for DC. Playing before an announced crowd of over 30,000, United played as strong a half as the team had at any time under Coach Ben Olsen. Patrick Mullins put DC out in front as he finished a Lloyd Sam cross in the 27th minute. Four minutes later, Boswell headed in a Sam corner kick to give the home team a much deserved 2-0 lead. Just before halftime, a defensive error allowed United to extend the lead to 3-0. An errant back pass found its way to Mullins, who then found Rob Vincent at the top of the box, leaving Vincent with a wide-open goal to shoot at for his second MLS goal. NYCFC got one back after the 70' mark, when David Villa drew a soft penalty call, and then beat Hamid on the penalty kick. The 3-1 win clinched a postseason spot for United and left them a point ahead of Montreal in the race for 4th place and a home-field advantage in the play-in game.
D.C. closed out the regular season in Orlando knowing that they would be hosting the play-in round match four days later so long as the Montreal Impact did not win at New England, so it probably should not have surprised anyone that Coach Olsen started a line-up made of entirely of reserves and a few players returning from lengthy injury spells. Not surprisingly, Orlando City dominated the match, winning 4-2, despite United goals by Saborio and Igboananike, who notched his first goal for United, with Büscher assisting on both goals. Montreal fell to defeat to the Revolution, however, so D.C. would host the Impact in the mid-week play-in match.
United's season came to a crashing end in the playoff match against Montreal Impact. In the 3rd minute, captain Bobby Boswell made a huge mental mistake, ignoring his goalie's pleas to allow a missed shot to bounce over the end line and under no pressure, Boswell played it out for a corner. Montreal converted on the set piece as Laurent Ciman ran onto the cross and volleyed to give the visitors the early lead. United was frustrated by the Impact defense, and finally surrendered a second goal late in the first half after a failed clearance gave the Impact a chance to run at the D.C. defense. Ignacio Piatti chipped the ball behind the back line and Matteo Mancosu ran on to the pass and slotted it in for a 2-0 lead. The lead grew to 3-0 when a Mancosu header beat Hamid. United began showing some life late, but two Birnbaum headers were cleared off the line. The result was put beyond any doubt when Mancosu and Piatti combined on a breakaway, with Piatti getting the goal. D.C. did manage to make the scoreline more respectable in the closing moments, as Neagle headed in a Nyarko cross for a goal in the 90th minute and Kemp scored unassisted in stoppage time with a screamer inside the post from 25 yards. Though the team showed the same late-game fire they had for the last 3 months, they had dug too deep a hole, and a 4-2 loss began the long off-season.
