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Tuesday night was an interesting one out in Germantown at the Maryland SoccerPlex. United and the Philadelphia Union played one of the uglier games I've ever witnessed while covering United. The referees lost control of the game early on and it continued to worsen as the game wore on.
Everything culminated in the second half of overtime as Brandon McDonald and Carlos Valdes got red cards for a scuffle that took place in the 112th minute. Ben Olsen was critical of the referees after the game, but made it clear they weren't the reason United lost the game.
"The U.S. Open Cup is a circus, maybe that's half the fun of it" said Ben Olsen. I'd have to agree with Olsen on this, the game was chippy from the beginning and the referees lost control. "They let people get away with multiple fouls early, and then didn't discipline them later after multiple fouls," Olsen added.
Match Ratings:
GK Bill Hamid - 8.5 (Man of the Match)
Hamid made a number of big saves, probably none bigger than a miraculous diving save he made at the end of regulation as the Union had a wide-open net. United fans, enjoy seeing Hamid now, because his star is growing.
DEF Robbie Russell - 6
Russell got forward very well early on, but 120 minutes took its toll on him, and he slowed down in overtime. He sent in a bunch of good crosses, but his work on the defensive end was lacking, at times. He did make a game-saving tackle on a 3-on-1 Union attack in the final seconds of regular time.
DEF Brandon McDonald - 5
It is very hard to judge McDonald's night. He made a couple of clutch defensive plays, but he also got a yellow card early on and then took on half the Union squad in the second half of overtime.
DEF Emiliano Dudar - 4
Dudar looked gassed by halftime. He was just diving on the field after balls by the first overtime, and swinging and missing on clearances in the second overtime. He was easily the weak link on the backline tonight, but it is to be expected coming back from injury.
DEF Daniel Woolard - 6
Like Russell, he got forward well early on. He also made a clutch goal-line clearance during Philly's assault on the goal in the 14th minute. He looked to take a cheap shot from Martinez in the second half and was down for a while.
MID Perry Kitchen - 8
Outside of Hamid, Kitchen was the one United player who had a good night. Kitchen was everywhere in the midfield on Tuesday. He was incredible on defense, and he got forward well as well. He missed a solid chance off a corner, but it was a difficult angle on the header.
MID Branko Boskovic - 3.5
He looked awful for long stretches and invisible the rest of the night. His service was even lacking for most of the night. Another player who looked gassed at halftime. Unfortunately, United didn't have anyone else who could possibly create in the midfield with De Rosario with the Canadian national team.
MID Nick DeLeon - 6
DeLeon looked good, at times, and got forward well, but missed an early opportunity. It's tough to single that out, but the great ball in from Russell was wasted as DeLeon missed. Tough to blame DeLeon for any single thing, so I think I've changed my rating for him about five times.
MID Andy Najar - 5.5
Had a roller-coaster ride of a night. He did well, on multiple occasions, breaking down the defense, but his final touch back in to the box was never on point. He had a great opportunity, but didn't use his left foot or try to chip with his right.
FWD Josh Wolff - 7
Wolff earned the captain's armband tonight, he was everywhere, and even got the game-tying goal in the closing seconds of the first half. He even did well to track back on defense. Tough loss for Wolff as he really laid it all on the line.
FWD Hamdi Salihi - 2
If you can tell me one positive thing Hamdi Salihi did before the 110th minute, I'd love to hear it. He started, but really only played for ten minutes of a 120 minute game. Unbelievable.
Subs:
FWD Maicon Santos - 6.5
He became the focal point of the offense as soon as he stepped on the field. He was constantly getting service in the box, but couldn't connect for a goal.
MID Lewis Neal and Marcelo Saragosa - Incomplete
Neither really had a chance to make much of an impact on the game, but neither did much while on the field as well.