From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to navigationJump to search

D.C. United
2021 season
D.C. United 2016 wordmark.svg
General managerDave Kasper
Head coachHernán Losada
StadiumAudi Field
MLSConference: TBD
Overall: TBD
MLS Cup PlayoffsTBD
U.S. Open CupQualifying rounds
← 2020
2022 →

The 2021 D.C. United season is the club's 26th season of existence, and their 26th consecutive season playing in Major League Soccer, the top flight of American soccer. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and its ongoing ongoing vaccination efforts, the season began on April 17, 2021 (about six weeks later than normal) and will conclude on November 7, 2021.

Beyond MLS play, D.C. United will be participating in the 2021 U.S. Open Cup, which will begin on May 4, 2021, again delayed by about 6 weeks due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background[edit]

Further information: 2020 D.C. United season and Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on association football

Offseason[edit]

The 2021 season was the first season since 2010 where Ben Olsen was not the club's head coach, as he was fired before the end of the 2020 season while Chad Ashton filled in as the interim head coach. After the 2020 season ended, the team began interviewing multiple candidates for the vacancy. Among the candidates included Ashton, former New York Red Bulls manager Chris Armas, former USWNT coach Jill Ellis, Columbus Crew assistant coach and former LA Galaxy assistant Ezra Hendrickson, and Seattle Sounders assistant coach Gonzalo Pineda. However, the team was either unable or unwilling to hire any of those candidates for undisclosed reasons. After a couple months of interviews and expanding the search to Europe, D.C. United officially announced the signing of former Argentine player and current head coach of Beerschot, Hernán Losada, on January 18, 2021.[1]

On the player front, D.C. United declined options on six different players, letting their deals expire. The team also traded Ulises Segura to expansion side Austin FC for cash considerations. Meanwhile, the team signed D.C. United Academy and Loudoun United defender Jacob Greene to a Homegrown Contract. Later, the team picked up forward Adrien Perez from LAFC in the MLS Re-Entry Draft, and acquired Jon Kempin from Columbus to add depth to their goalkeeping corps in exchange for their third-round pick in the 2021 MLS SuperDraft. D.C. added a few more players during the offseason, signing both of their first-round picks in the SuperDraft (Kimarni Smith and Michael DeShields) to first-team deals and later adding Dutch forward Nigel Robertha. In addition, the team took in two players on loan: American defender Brendan Hines-Ike from KV Kortrijk in Belgium, and Venezuelan forward Jovanny Bolívar from Deportivo La Guaira.

With multiple players injured or recovering from injury during the preseason, D.C. signed two additional defenders just before the season-opening match: the veteran and former DCU Academy graduate Andy Najar, and Mexican defender Tony Alfaro, and put them both on the gameday roster.

MLS Season[edit]

With multiple prospective starters on the injury list or not match-fit to Losada's liking, Losada was forced to be creative with his opening day lineup. Among those decisions: Chris Seitz was given the start in goal, Alfaro started at CB despite being signed only a few days prior, and Erik Sorga was given the starting job as the main striker. DC fell behind early as their opponents, NYCFC, got the first goal 15 minutes into the match. Shortly after that, DC woke up and scored a pair of goals from outside the box, with Hines-Ike and Canouse each scoring a goal before the end of the first half. DC would end up winning their first match of the season 2-1. The match was also notable for giving Robertha and Perez their first minutes in a D.C. United jersey, along with Najar's return to the field for D.C. since leaving in 2013, as they were subbed in late into the match.

The following match against the New England Revolution used the same starting lineup, but it turned into a grinding affair with neither team really able to pull ahead. The only action was Hines-Ike accidentally deflecting a Revolution cross into his own net to give DC their first loss of the season, 1-0.

Management team[edit]

PositionName
Chairman Jason Levien
Co-Chairman Stephen Kaplan
General Manager Dave Kasper
Technical Director Stewart Mairs
Head coach Hernán Losada
Assistant coach Nicolás Frutos
Assistant coach Oka Nikolov
Assistant coach Chad Ashton
Goalkeeping coach Zach Thornton

Roster[edit]

Squad No.NameNationalityPosition(s)Date of birth (Age)AppsGoalsAssistsSigned from
Goalkeepers
1Chris SeitzGK (1987-03-12) March 12, 1987 (age 34)800 Houston Dynamo
21Jon KempinGK (1993-04-08) April 8, 1993 (age 28)000 Columbus Crew
24Bill HamidGK (1990-11-25) November 25, 1990 (age 30)23800 Midtjylland
Defenders
3Chris Odoi-AtsemRB (1995-05-27) May 27, 1995 (age 25)3010 Maryland Terrapins
4Brendan Hines-IkeCB (1994-11-30) November 30, 1994 (age 26)110 KV Kortrijk (loan)
13Frédéric BrillantCB (1985-06-26) June 26, 1985 (age 35)6734 New York City FC
14Andy NajarRB (1993-03-16) March 16, 1993 (age 28)831011 Los Angeles FC
15Steve BirnbaumCB (1991-01-23) January 23, 1991 (age 30)16383 California Golden Bears
23Donovan PinesCB (1998-03-07) March 7, 1998 (age 23)1000 Maryland Terrapins
28Joseph MoraLB (1993-01-15) January 15, 1993 (age 28)5103 Saprissa
33Jacob GreeneLB / RB (2003-03-23) March 23, 2003 (age 18)000 D.C. United Academy
35Michael DeShieldsCB (1998-04-23) April 23, 1998 (age 23)000 Wake Forest Demon Deacons
93Tony AlfaroCB (1993-06-15) June 15, 1993 (age 27)100 Reno 1868
Midfielders
4Russell CanouseDM (1995-06-11) June 11, 1995 (age 25)5722 TSG 1899 Hoffenheim
5Júnior MorenoDM (1993-07-20) July 20, 1993 (age 27)5005 Zulia
7Paul ArriolaRM (1995-02-05) February 5, 1995 (age 26)681412 Tijuana
10Edison FloresAM / LW (1994-05-14) May 14, 1994 (age 26)1404 Monarcas Morelia
11Yamil AsadLM / LW (1994-07-24) July 24, 1994 (age 26)55127 Vélez Sarsfield
18FelipeCM (1990-09-30) September 30, 1990 (age 30)1701 Vancouver Whitecaps FC
27Moses NyemanCM (2003-11-05) November 5, 2003 (age 17)1100 D.C. United Academy
30Kevin ParedesMF (2003-05-07) May 7, 2003 (age 18)1701 D.C. United Academy
31Julian GresselRM (1993-12-16) December 16, 1993 (age 27)2320 Atlanta United
Forwards
9Ola KamaraST (1989-10-15) October 15, 1989 (age 31)2770 Shenzhen
16Adrien PerezFW (1995-10-13) October 13, 1995 (age 25)100 Los Angeles FC
17Kimarni SmithFW (1998-03-14) March 14, 1998 (age 23)000 Clemson Tigers
19Nigel RoberthaFW (1998-03-13) March 13, 1998 (age 23)100 Levski Sofia
20Jovanny BolívarFW (2001-12-16) December 16, 2001 (age 19)000 Deportivo La Guaira (loan)
22Griffin YowFW (2002-09-25) September 25, 2002 (age 18)1220 D.C. United Academy
29Yordy ReynaST (1993-09-17) September 17, 1993 (age 27)500 Vancouver Whitecaps FC
50Erik SorgaST (1999-07-08) July 8, 1999 (age 21)1810 Flora

Transfers[edit]

In[edit]

DatePositionNo.NameFromFee/NotesRef.
November 25, 2020DF33 Jacob Greene D.C. United AcademyHomegrown Player[2]
January 6, 2021FW16 Adrien Perez Los Angeles FC2020 MLS Re-Entry Draft[3]
January 8, 2021GK21 Jon Kempin Columbus CrewTraded for third round pick in the 2021 MLS SuperDraft[4]
February 5, 2021DF35 Michael DeShields Wake Forest Demon DeaconsSigned from the 2021 MLS SuperDraft[5]
March 8, 2021FW17 Kimarni Smith Clemson TigersSigned from the 2021 MLS SuperDraft[6]
March 23, 2021FW19 Nigel Robertha Levski Sofia[7]
April 15, 2021DF14 Andy Najar Los Angeles FC[8]
DF93 Tony Alfaro Reno 1868[8]

Out[edit]

DatePositionNo.NameToFee/NotesRef.
November 30, 2020MF25 Mohammed Abu VålerengaEnd of loan[9]
GK36 Earl Edwards Jr. New England RevolutionOption Declined[9]
DF91 Oniel Fisher L.A. GalaxyOption Declined[9]
FW20 Gelmin Rivas Al-ShortaOption Declined[9]
DF44 Axel Sjöberg San Antonio FCOption Declined[9]
December 13, 2020MF8 Ulises Segura Austin FC$150,000 GAM[10]


Loan in[edit]

No.Pos.PlayerLoaned fromStartEndSource
4DF Brendan Hines-Ike KortrijkMarch 10, 2021December 31, 2021[11]
20FW Jovanny Bolívar GuairaMarch 10, 2021December 31, 2021[12]


MLS SuperDraft picks[edit]

Main article: 2021 MLS SuperDraft
2021 D.C. United SuperDraft Picks
RoundSelectionPlayerPositionCollegeStatus
14 Kimarni SmithFWClemsonSigned to first team[6]
15 Michael DeShieldsDFWake ForestSigned to first team[5]
232 Logan PanchotMF/DFStanfordSigned with Loudoun United FC[13]

Non-competitive[edit]

Preseason[edit]

March 20 D.C. United 1–1 Greenville Triumph SC Cary
14:00 ESTSmith Goal 29'ReportMcLean Goal 27'Stadium: WakeMed Soccer Park
Attendance: 0
March 26 D.C. United 5–1 Loudoun United FC Washington
15:00 EST
  • Kamara Goal 19'
  • Brillant Goal 30'
  • Unsigned Player Goal 72'
  • Unsigned Player Goal 88'
  • Unsigned Player Goal 90'
ReportAmoustapha Goal 84'Stadium: Audi Field
Attendance: 0
March 31 Philadelphia Union 2–0 D.C. United Chester
3:00 pmFontana Goal 3', 37'
Bedoya Yellow card 74'		ReportMoreno Yellow card 67'Stadium: Subaru Park
Attendance: 0
April 4 D.C. United 1–2 New York City FC Chester
15:00 ESTSmith Goal 29' (Flores)
Moreno Red card 44'		ReportCastellanos Goal 25' (Þórarinsson), Red card 44'
Jasson Goal 50'		Stadium: Power Training Complex
Attendance: 0
April 10 New York Red Bulls 1–1 D.C. United Harrison
13:00 EST
  • Goal 63' (pen.)
  • Sorga Goal 52'
Stadium: Red Bull Arena
Attendance: 0

Midseason[edit]

The schedule will be announced in the Winter of 2020–21.

Competitive[edit]

Major League Soccer[edit]

Main article: 2021 Major League Soccer season

Standings[edit]

Eastern Conference[edit]
PosTeam
  • v
  • t
  • e
PldWDLGFGAGDPts
9Inter Miami CF41215505
10Philadelphia Union411234−14
11D.C. United410349−53
12Toronto FC[a]301248−41
13Chicago Fire FC401339−61
Updated to match(es) played on May 9, 2021. Source: MLS
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) total wins; 3) total goal differential; 4) total goals scored; 5) fewer disciplinary points; 6) away goal differential; 7) away goals scored; 8) home goals differential; 9) home goals scored; 10) coin toss (2 clubs tied) or drawing of lots (≥3 clubs tied)
Notes:
  1. ^ Canadian clubs cannot qualify for the 2022 CONCACAF Champions League through the MLS regular season or playoffs.
Overall table[edit]
PosTeam
  • v
  • t
  • e
PldWDLGFGAGDPts
21Philadelphia Union411234−14
22Portland Timbers410348−43
23D.C. United410349−53
24Toronto FC301248−41
25Chicago Fire FC401339−61
Updated to match(es) played on May 9, 2021. Source: MLS
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) total wins; 3) total goal differential; 4) total goals scored; 5) fewer disciplinary points; 6) away goal differential; 7) away goals scored; 8) home goals differential; 9) home goals scored; 10) coin toss (2 clubs tied) or drawing of lots (≥3 clubs tied)

Results summary[edit]

OverallHomeAway
PldPtsWLTGFGAGDWLTGFGAGDWLTGFGAGD
4313049 −510021 +103028 −6

Source: [1]
Pld = Matches played; Pts = Points; W = Matches won; T = Matches tied; L = Matches lost; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; GD = Goal difference

Results by round[edit]

Round1234
GroundHAAA
ResultWLLL
Source: D.C. United schedule
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Match results[edit]

April 17 1 D.C. United 2–1 New York City FC Washington, D.C.
20:00 EST
  • Brillant Yellow card 9'
  • Hines-Ike Goal 39'
  • Canouse Goal 44'
  • Gressel Yellow card 77'
Report
  • Castellanos Goal 15', Yellow card 74'
  • Tinnerholm Yellow card 82'
Stadium: Audi Field
Attendance: 4,500
Referee: Ted Unkel
April 24 2 New England Revolution 1-0 D.C. United Foxborough
20:00 EST
  • Traustason Yellow card 32'
  • Hines-Ike Goal 48' (o.g.)
  • Kaptoum Yellow card 60'
  • Farrell Yellow card 80'
  • Buksa Yellow card 89'
Report
  • Canouse Yellow card 25'
  • Moreno Yellow card 58'
  • Hines-Ike Yellow card 90+4'
Stadium: Gillette Stadium
May 1 3 San Jose Earthquakes 4-1 D.C. United San Jose
22:00 EST
  • López Goal 1', Yellow card 69'
  • Cowell Goal 26'
  • Marie Yellow card 35'
  • Yueill Goal 43', 85'
  • Remedi Yellow card 88'
Report
  • Alfaro Yellow card 18', Goal 31'
  • Nyeman Yellow card 68'
Stadium: Earthquakes Stadium
May 8 4 Columbus Crew 3-1 D.C. United Columbus
13:30 EST
  • Zelarayán Goal 20'
  • Afful Yellow card 29'
  • Williams Yellow card 30'
  • Francis Yellow card 58'
  • Brillant Goal 63' (o.g.)
  • Alfaro Goal 83' (o.g.)
Report
  • Asad Yellow card 42'
  • Kamara Goal 82'
Stadium: Historic Crew Stadium
May 13 5 D.C. United v Chicago Fire Washington, D.C.
20:00 ESTStadium: Audi Field
May 16 6 D.C. United v Orlando City Washington, D.C.
20:00 ESTStadium: Audi Field
May 23 7 D.C. United v Philadelphia Union Washington, D.C.
19:00 ESTStadium: Audi Field
May 29 8 Inter Miami v D.C. United Fort Lauderdale
TBD ESTStadium: Inter Miami CF Stadium
June 19 9 D.C. United v Inter Miami Washington, D.C.
20:00 ESTStadium: Audi Field
June 23 10 CF Montréal v D.C. United TBD
TBD ESTStadium: TBD
June 27 11 New York City FC v D.C. United Harrison
18:00 EDTStadium: Red Bull Arena
Note: Match played at Red Bull Arena instead of Yankee Stadium due to venue conflict.
July 3 12 D.C. United v Toronto FC Washington, D.C.
17:30 ESTStadium: Audi Field
July 17 13 Philadelphia Union v D.C. United Chester
19:30 ESTStadium: Subaru Park
July 21 14 Chicago Fire v D.C. United Chicago
20:00 ESTStadium: Soldier Field
July 25 15 D.C. United v New York Red Bulls Washington, D.C.
20:00 ESTStadium: Audi Field
July 31 16 FC Cincinnati v D.C. United Cincinnati
19:30 ESTStadium: West End Stadium
August 4 17 Columbus Crew v D.C. United Columbus
19:30 ESTStadium: New Columbus Crew stadium
August 8 18 D.C. United v CF Montréal Washington, D.C.
20:00 ESTStadium: Audi Field
August 15 19 Nashville SC v D.C. United Nashville
19:00 ESTStadium: Nissan Stadium
August 18 20 New England Revolution v D.C. United Foxborough
19:00 ESTStadium: Gillette Stadium
August 21 21 D.C. United v Atlanta United Washington, D.C.
20:00 ESTStadium: Audi Field
August 28 22 D.C. United v Philadelphia Union Washington, D.C.
20:00 ESTStadium: Audi Field
September 11 23 New York Red Bulls v D.C. United Harrison
19:00 ESTStadium: Red Bull Arena
September 15 24 D.C. United v Chicago Fire Washington, D.C.
20:00 ESTStadium: Audi Field
September 18 25 Atlanta United v D.C. United Atlanta
15:30 ESTStadium: Mercedes-Benz Stadium
September 25 26 D.C. United v FC Cincinnati Washington, D.C.
19:30 ESTStadium: Audi Field
September 29 27 D.C. United v Minnesota United Washington, D.C.
20:00 ESTStadium: Audi Field
October 2 28 Orlando City v D.C. United Orlando
19:30 ESTStadium: Exploria Stadium
October 16 29 D.C. United v Nashville SC Washington, D.C.
19:30 ESTStadium: Audi Field
October 20 30 D.C. United v New England Revolution Washington, D.C.
20:00 ESTStadium: Audi Field
October 23 31 New York City FC v D.C. United Harrison
19:30 ESTStadium: Red Bull Arena
October 27 32 D.C. United v New York Red Bulls Washington, D.C.
20:00 ESTStadium: Audi Field
October 30 33 D.C. United v Columbus Crew Washington, D.C.
19:30 ESTStadium: Audi Field
November 7 34 Toronto FC v D.C. United Toronto
TBD EDTStadium: BMO Field

U.S. Open Cup[edit]

Main article: 2021 U.S. Open Cup

The U.S. Open Cup might be played in Fall 2021 depending on the COVID-19 situation.

Statistics[edit]

Appearances and goals[edit]

Numbers after plus–sign (+) denote appearances as a substitute.

No.PosNatPlayerTotalMLSMLS CupU.S. Open Cup
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
4MFRussell Canouse00000000
5MFJúnior Moreno00000000
7MFPaul Arriola00000000
8MFUlises Segura00000000
9FWOla Kamara00000000
10MFEdison Flores00000000
11MFYamil Asad00000000
13DFFrédéric Brillant00000000
15DFSteve Birnbaum00000000
22FWGriffin Yow00000000
23DFDonovan Pines00000000
24GKBill Hamid00000000
27MFMoses Nyeman00000000
28DFJoseph Mora00000000
29FWYordy Reyna00000000
30MFKevin Paredes00000000
31MFJulian Gressel00000000
50FWErik Sorga00000000
  • Last updated: November 24, 2020
  • Source: Soccerway

Top scorers[edit]

RankPositionNumberNameMLSMLS CupU.S. Open CupTotal

Top assists[edit]

RankPositionNumberNameMLSMLS CupU.S. Open CupTotal

Disciplinary record[edit]

No.Pos.PlayerMLSMLS CupU.S. Open CupTotal
Yellow cardYellow card Yellow-red cardRed cardYellow cardYellow card Yellow-red cardRed cardYellow cardYellow card Yellow-red cardRed cardYellow cardYellow card Yellow-red cardRed card

Awards[edit]

Awards will be announced as the season begins.

References[edit]

  1. ^ "D.C. United Name Hernán Losada as Head Coach". D.C. United. Major League Soccer. January 18, 2021. Retrieved January 18, 2021.
  2. ^ "D.C. United Sign Academy Product Jacob Greene as 15th Homegrown Player in Club History". D.C. United. Major League Soccer. November 25, 2020. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  3. ^ "D.C. United Acquire Forward Adrien Perez". D.C. United. Major League Soccer. January 6, 2021. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
  4. ^ "D.C. United Acquire Goalkeeper Jon Kempin from Columbus Crew SC". D.C. United. Major League Soccer. January 8, 2021. Retrieved January 8, 2021.
  5. ^ a b Anderson, Jason (February 5, 2021). "D.C. United signs first round pick Michael DeShields". Black And Red United. SB Nation. Retrieved February 7, 2021.
  6. ^ a b "D.C. United Sign Forward Kimarni Smith". D.C. United. Major League Soccer. March 8, 2021. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  7. ^ Goff, Steven (March 23, 2021). "D.C. United acquires Dutch forward Nigel Robertha from Bulgarian club". Washington Post. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
  8. ^ a b Goff, Steven (April 15, 2021). "Andy Najar signs with D.C. United, returning to his MLS roots". Washington Post. Retrieved April 15, 2021.
  9. ^ a b c d e "D.C. United Announce End-of-Season Roster Decisions". D.C. United. Major League Soccer. November 30, 2020. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
  10. ^ "D.C. United Acquire $150,000 in GAM from Austin FC for Ulises Segura". D.C. United. MLS. December 13, 2020. Retrieved December 13, 2020.
  11. ^ "D.C. United Acquire Defender Brendan Hines-Ike from K.V. Kortrijk". D.C. United. Major League Soccer. March 8, 2021. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  12. ^ "D.C. United Acquire Venezuelan Forward Jovanny Bolívar from Deportivo La Guaira". D.C. United. Major League Soccer. March 9, 2021. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  13. ^ "Loudoun United FC Sign Defender Logan Panchot Ahead of the 2021 USL Championship Season". Loudoun United. USL Network. April 30, 2021. Retrieved May 2, 2021.

External links[edit]

  • D.C. United