Caught in Possession

Belatedly...a few thoughts on DC United's recovery at the weekend. And make no mistake -- even by a 4-1 margin, the win over RSL is still only a recovery win. Plenty of hard work still to come.

But a weight certainly seems to have been lifted off United's collective shoulders. Rod Dyachenko took advantage of Tom Soehn's decision to yank off Dan Stratford early -- unnecessarily early, for me -- by putting in one of his best-ever performances with the DC senior squad.

For most of his time in DC, Dyachenko has routinely been handed one of the tougher tasks in the United cosmos: filling in for skilful attacking veterans like Jaime Moreno and Christian Gomez. Unsurprisingly, he's often struggled to reproduce their creativity. But against Real Salt Lake he gave us a glimpse of an all-around game that could yet live up to the potential Soehn and GM Dave Kasper see in him.

Rod is a pretty down-to-earth guy who typically gives it to you straight when interviewed, answering questions politely and forthrightly. In the locker room after Saturday's game, he got a lot more attention from the media than normal and veteran goofball Bryan Namoff couldn't resist poking fun at the scene, grabbing Dave Lifton's audio recorder and sticking it in Dyachenko's face like we do to the team's leading lights every week. (Dorky reporters are an easy target, to be sure.)

Rod, answering questions about the game: ...I think it’s a good mix between me, Clyde and Gallardo up there...

Namoff, interrupting: How did you feel your performance was out there? Coming in, I know it was a tough game, it was a big crowd, and did you feel right from the start?

Rod, playing along: Well, when you’re a natural like me, it’s a smooth transition from the bench onto the field. I thought the pitch looked real good today, I thought it matched my eyes. So therefore –

Namoff, being 'probing': It looked like there was good chemistry between you and Gallardo and Clyde Simms. Talk about that a little bit.

Rod: Well last night we actually had tea together, we had his wife – [laughing, loses all composure] …Let’s get serious now, I’m sorry. They’re doing their job and you just intruded in here –

Namoff: I thought I did pretty good!

Rod, with the final shot: If it wasn’t for these guys, no one would even know who you are! [guffaws all around] Go ahead, sorry about that, that’s just totally unprofessional...

In typically understated Minnesotan style, behindthebadge.com's Kyle Sheldon noted post-game that "winning is way better than losing." Which sounds obvious and simplistic, except that it actually goes a long way towards summarizing that palpable atmosphere of relief in the locker room, and around the team in general, now that a capable performance has snuffed out a dispiriting losing streak.