D.C. moves closer to CCL quarters with 5-1 win

October 1, 2009

Christian Gomez and Boyzzz Khumalo scored two goals apiece and D.C. United moved one step closer to advancing to the CONCACAF Champions League knockout stage with a 5-1 victory over San Juan Jabloteh at RFK Stadium on Wednesday night.

D.C., which scored three goals in the first half, moved three points in front of C.D. Marathon, which was to host Group B leader Toluca on Thursday in San Pedro Sula. D.C. United would book its place in the quarterfinals with a Marathon loss.

If not, the Major League Soccer club would have until the final matchday when they would head to Toluca on October 20, while Marathon plays at Jabloteh two days later.

D.C. took the lead in the 13th minute when Gomez collected Rodney Wallace’s cross that deflected off San Juan Jabloteh defender Joel Russell and tapped it past goalkeeper Cleon John.

Gomez was again played in behind the Jabloteh defense, but his attempt from 10 meters was saved by John, who dived to his left in the 19th minute.

United doubled its lead on the half hour mark when Fred took a pass from Chris Pontius, took two touches and the Brazilian slotted the ball inside the far post from the left edge of the six-yard box.

Six minutes later, Pontius flicked a header wide of the net from the penalty spot as D.C. United, which also defeated San Juan Jabloteh 1-0 at Hasley Crawford Stadium on September 15, continued to put the pressure on. Pontius had another chance in the 39th minute, forcing John to make another diving stop.

D.C. capitalized on a Jabloteh defensive blunder to take a 3-0 lead two minutes from halftime as Clyde Simms slid a wonderful ball to Gomez, who cut back on Russell and passed to the back post where a wide open Khumalo easily tapped home.
D.C. United goalkeeper Milos Kocic wasn’t tested often, but he came up big when he did, especially when he denied Jerrel Britto in the 52nd minute.

Gomez put any hopes of a Jabloteh comeback to rest when the Argentine took a pass from Wallace and powered a shot from 16 meters that went off John’s hands and into the net for his fourth goal of the CONCACAF Champions League in the 68th minute.
Khumalo nearly added a second, but he bounced Tiyiselani Shipalane’s cross wide of the net in the 77th minute.

Jabloteh ruined Kocic’s clean sheet bid seven minutes from full time when Hector Sam raced into the box and slipped a perfect ball to Britto, who slammed the ball into the back of the net from the edge of the six-yard box to cut his team’s deficit to 4-1.

It was just the second goal for the winless Trinidadians in group play. The other was a penalty kick by Noel Williams against Marathon on August 26.

Khumalo put the finishing touches on the romp, taking Fred’s spinning lay-off and scoring clinically from the top of the arc in second-half stoppage time for his second of the game.

WASHINGTON

Tags: Argentine, britto, C.D. Marathon, chris pontius, Christian Gomez, clyde simms, concacaf champions league, Crawford Stadium, d c united, D.C., far post, Fred, hasley crawford, Hector Sam, jerrel, Joel Russell, John, khumalo, knockout stage, left edge, Major League Soccer, matchday, Milos Kocic, Noel Williams, rfk stadium, Rodney Wallace, san juan, san juan jabloteh, san pedro sula, six minutes, soccer club, Toluca, Washington

D.C. United ends skid with 1-0 victory over Jabloteh

September 16, 2009

Christian Gomez’s first-half penalty kick lifted D.C. United to a 1-0 victory against San Juan Jabloteh in a CONCACAF Champions League Group Stage match at Hasley Crawford Stadium in Trinidad Tuesday night.

It was D.C. United’s first-ever CONCACAF Champions League group stage victory and one that keeps the Major League Soccer team alive in the competition. Winless Jabloteh is all but eliminated from advancing out of Group B.

Gomez stepped to the spot after referee Trevor Taylor ruled Noel Williams handled a cross in the box when he slid and tackled the ball away from Luciano Emilio. After a slight hesitation, Gomez beat Jabloteh goalkeeper Cleon John low and to the right of the keeper to give D.C. United a 1-0 lead in the 14 minutes.

Williams attempted to atone for his mistake, but his shot from distance sailed wide to D.C. United goalkeeper Milos Kocic’s right in the 21st minute.

Four minutes later, Kocic came up big, making three saves at the near post, twice denying Lester Peltier. Moments later, Ataulla Guerra’s attempt from 16 meters skipped wide of the far post for the hosts.

Off a D.C. United giveaway in the midfield, San Juan Jabloteh’s Jason Marcano lobbed the ball at the open net after Kocic came off his line, but Julius James tracked back and cleared the ball off the line in the 42nd minute.

Peltier was played behind the D.C. defense on the hour mark, but his left-footed shot from the top of the 18-yard box sailed over the crossbar.

Emilio nearly added to United’s lead, hitting a low, hard shot from distance in the 64th minute that eluded a diving John but was just wide of the far post.

Twice midway through the second half, Jabloteh had open headers in the box, but Devon Jamerson and Jerrel Britto both missed the target with their attempts five minutes apart.

With a quarter hour remaining, Jabloteh was given a chance to equalize when Taylor apparently ruled Kocic violated the six-second rule, but Williams badly mis-hit his attempt from the top of the 18-yard box.

One minute later, Devon McTavish played a great ball inside the area that Gomez latched onto, but John bobbled the shot before it was cleared away for the game’s first corner kick.

In the 83rd minute, Gomez played the ball over the top to Danny Szetela, who was unable to get off a shot.
Peltier had Jabloteh’s final chance to equalize in the 87th minute when he took James’ bad touch and raced inside the box. But James recovered nicely and blocked the attempt with a sliding tackle.

Both teams resume group play next week, with D.C. United hosting co-leader Marathon at RFK Stadium on Thursday, while Jabloteh will head to Mexico to take on Toluca the day before.

PORT-of-SPAIN

Source