Veljko Paunovic hit the road during his side’s idle weekend, traveling to the nation’s capital Saturday to watch firsthand as D.C. United easily handled the New England Revolution, 3-0, at RFK Stadium.
United flashed plenty of qualities that Paunovic and his staff will be preparing for in advance of Saturday’s matchup between the Chicago Fire (1-2-3, 6 points) and D.C. United (2-3-3, 9 points) at Toyota Park (4 p.m. CT, CSN Chicago).
An uninspiring 0-2-2 start to the season with two goals scored had United feeling some pressure early on, but a 4-0 home victory over Vancouver and, two weeks later, the dismissal of New England have indicated that Ben Olsen's side is beginning to figure out its identity.
“They have good individual quality, they have also experienced players, many of them [have been] playing a long time together so that’s a great advantage for their team,” Paunovic said. “I think they are very good on the counter also and very good on set pieces so we will work on that to prepare as much as we can … and [not] concede the offensive transitions, counterattacks, because they are very dangerous on that. We have to be smart and not concede fouls and corners and set pieces in our half.”
Notes: Accam staying course in road to return
Paunovic is right about the significant experience of Ben Olsen’s side; D.C.’s starting lineup against the Revs averaged 28.8 years in age, with six players aged 30 or older.
Of course, two of D.C.’s most battle-tested contributors -- striker Chris Rolfe and winger Patrick Nyarko -- earned their MLS chops in the form of a combined 15-plus seasons and 430 career appearances for the Chicago Fire before moving United in 2014 and 2016, respectively. Both occupy prominent positions in the Fire’s career record books, with Rolfe ranking second in club history with 55 goals scored while Nyarko is fifth on the club’s career assists list with 43 (all competitions).
Despite the presumed loss this week of prolific 10-year MLS veteran Fabian Espindola to a hamstring injury, D.C. has cover in the form of Espindola’s former running mate at Real Salt Lake, Álvaro Saborio (70 career goals, 14 assists). And even with the December departure of longtime club fixture Chris Pontius and loss of Perry Kitchen, offseason acquisitions Lamar Neagle and Marcelo Sarvas -- along with Nyarko -- only served to restock Ben Olsen's supply of firepower and MLS know-how in the midfield.
Factor in the ability of 23-year-old goalkeeper Travis Worra (3 shutouts) to stand in for the injured Bill Hamid and the excitement brought by 21-year-old Argentine loanee Luciano Acosta, and D.C. presents a formidable challenge for a Chicago side looking to end United's four-match winning streak and run of six unbeaten in the series.
“We are working on everything," Paunovic told media in summary Monday. "We are working to be solid defensively, which is very important for us. We are working to create more opportunities in the final stages, to convert those opportunities and be efficient. It’s something we’ll have to do all of our season, to improve and be always focused on those things.”
