2008 D.C. United season

The 2008 D.C. United season was the fourteenth year of the club's existence, as well as their thirteenth season in Major League Soccer and their thirteenth consecutive season in the top tier of the American soccer pyramid.

D.C. United
2008 season
OwnerD.C. United Holdings
CoachTom Soehn
Major League Soccer10th
MLS CupDid not qualify
U.S. Open CupChampions
CONCACAF Champions LeagueGroup Stage
CONCACAF Champions' CupSemifinals
Atlantic CupChampions
Top goalscorerLuciano Emilio (9 goals)
Highest home attendance35,979
vs. LA (Jun 29)
Lowest home attendance14,660
vs. HOU (Jul 23)
Average home league attendance19,835

To fans and the media alike, this year marked a downfall for the franchise, as well as end to what was considered a "second golden age" for the club in league play. The justification behind this involved the United failing to defend the Supporters' Shield, an awarded given to the MLS club with the best regular season record, for a third-consecutive year. With a 10th-place overall finish and a 6th-place finish in the Eastern Conference, United finished the lowest in the conference and league tables since 2002. With the subpar record, United failed to make the playoffs, having qualified since 2003.

Their performance league play reflected on the continental stage as well. Finishing as the 2007 MLS Supporters' Shield winners, United qualified for the inaugural CONCACAF Champions League. The tournament replaced the obsolete CONCACAF Champions' Cup, and was modeled similarly to its cousin tournament, the UEFA Champions League. In the Champions League, United continued their misfortunes, losing all their Group Stage matches at home, and only managing to pick up one draw at Costa Rica's Saprissa. United finished in the bottom of Group C, with a record of 0–1–5 (W-T-L).

In spite of the poorer performance in league and continental play, United excelled in the U.S. Open Cup play, ultimately winning the domestic title against Charleston Battery, 2–1. The domestic cup title was their first since their inaugural season. The U.S. Open Cup, a domestic cup tournament much similar to the FA Cup runs parallel to the regular seasons of all tiers of professional and amateur soccer in the United States. The tournament is open for entry for any soccer club, professional or amateur, that is affiliated with the United States Soccer Federation. For MLS clubs, the top six American MLS clubs overall in the regular season are admitted entry into the third round proper, or round of 16, in the tournament. By finishing 1st overall in the regular season, United booked a third round entry in the tournament proper. The club opened Open Cup play with wins against Rochester Rhinos of the USL First Division (second tier) and New England Revolution of MLS (first tier) in the third round and quarterfinals respectively. In the semifinals, United won in extra time to defeat Chicago Fire. In the championship, United defeated Charleston Battery of the USL Second Division (third tier) to win the Open Cup for a second time in club history.

Club

2008 roster

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK  USA Zach Wells
2 DF  ARG Gonzalo Peralta
3 MF  USA Joe Vide
4 DF  USA Marc Burch
5 MF  USA Quavas Kirk
6 MF  USA Domenic Mediate
7 MF  BRA Fred
8 DF  SLE Ibrahim Koroma
10 MF  ARG Marcelo Gallardo
11 FW  BRA Luciano Emilio
12 MF  HON Iván Guerrero
13 DF  USA Ryan Miller
14 MF  USA Ben Olsen
15 MF  RUS Rod Dyachenko
16 DF  USA Greg Janicki
No. Pos. Nation Player
17 FW  RSA Thabiso Khumalo
18 DF  USA Devon McTavish
19 MF  USA Clyde Simms
20 DF  USA Mike Zaher
21 DF  USA Pat Carroll
22 MF  USA Ryan Cordeiro
23 DF  COL Gonzalo Martínez
24 MF  USA Jeff Carroll
25 FW  USA Santino Quaranta
26 DF  USA Bryan Namoff
27 GK  LBR Louis Crayton
28 MF  ARG Jonathan La Rosa
30 FW  LBR Francis Doe
40 GK  USA James Thorpe
99 FW  BOL Jaime Moreno (captain)

Transfers

In
Date Player Position Previous Club Fee/Notes Ref
January 18, 2008 Ryan CordeiroMF / FW University of Connecticut2008 MLS SuperDraft, Round 3 selection[1]
January 22, 2008 Gonzalo PeraltaDF Almirante BrownFree, Discovery Player
January 29, 2008 Marcelo GallardoMF Paris Saint-GermainFree[2]
March 1, 2008 Pat CarrollDF West Virginia UniversityFree
March 15, 2008 Quavas KirkMF Los Angeles GalaxyTraded for Greg Vanney[3]
March 27, 2008 James ThorpeGK Franklin Pierce CollegeDevelopmental contract[4]
April 17, 2008 Mike ZaherDF Toronto FCTraded for undisclosed SuperDraft pick
April 23, 2008 Francis DoeFW New York Red BullsWaived by New York, free transfer[5]
June 30, 2008 Craig ThompsonMF Houston DynamoFree[6]
July 16, 2008 Joe VideMF San Jose EarthquakesFree
July 31, 2008 Iván GuerreroMF San Jose EarthquakesTrade for partial allocation
August 7, 2008 Louis CraytonGK BaselUndisclosed[7]
September 15, 2008 Ryan MillerDF / MF Cleveland City StarsFree[8]
September 16, 2008 Greg JanickiMF Pittsburgh RiverhoundsLoaned, subsequently signed developmental contract[9]

In
Player Pos. From Start End Ref
Ibrahim KoromaDF KallonSeptember 1, 2008January 31, 2009
Thabiso KhumaloMF / FW Pittsburgh RiverhoundsSeptember 1, 2008January 31, 2009[10]

Standings

Major League Soccer

Conference Standings

Eastern Conference
Pos Club Pts GP W L T GF GA GD
1 Columbus Crew 57 30 17 7 6 50 36 +14
2 Chicago Fire 46 30 13 10 7 44 33 +11
3 New England Revolution 43 30 12 11 7 40 43 –3
4 Kansas City Wizards 42 30 11 10 9 37 39 –2
5 New York Red Bulls 39 30 10 11 9 42 48 –6
6 D.C. United 37 30 11 15 4 43 51 –8
7 Toronto FC 35 30 9 13 8 34 43 –9
2008 MLS Cup Playoffs
2008 MLS Cup Playoffs (Wild Card)

Overall Table

Pos Team Pld W L D GF GA GD Pts
1 Columbus Crew (SS, E1) 30 17 7 6 50 36 +14 57 2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League Group Stage 2
2 Houston Dynamo (W1) 30 13 5 12 45 32 +13 51
3 Chicago Fire 30 13 10 7 44 33 +11 46 2009 North American SuperLiga 4
4 Chivas USA 30 12 11 7 40 41 −1 43
5 New England Revolution 30 12 11 7 40 43 −3 43
6 Kansas City Wizards 30 11 10 9 37 39 −2 42
7 Real Salt Lake 30 10 10 10 40 39 +1 40 2008 MLS Cup Playoffs
8 New York Red Bulls 30 10 11 9 42 48 −6 39 2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League Preliminary Round 3
9 Colorado Rapids 30 11 14 5 44 45 −1 38
10 D.C. United 30 11 15 4 43 51 −8 37 2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League Preliminary Round 3
11 FC Dallas 30 8 10 12 45 41 +4 36
12 Toronto FC 30 9 13 8 34 43 −9 35
13 LA Galaxy 30 8 13 9 55 62 −7 33
14 San Jose Earthquakes 30 8 13 9 32 38 −6 33
Source:

(SS) = Supporters Shield winner; (E1) = Eastern Conference champion; (W1) = Western Conference champion

CONCACAF Champions League

Group A

Club Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
Marathón 6411125+713
Cruz Azul 631284+410
Saprissa 631279−210
D.C. United 6015413−91

Match results

MLS
Win Tie Loss
D.C. United playing Houston Dynamo in the 2008 SuperLiga.
DateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorersRef.
March 29, 2008 Kansas City Wizards A 0–2 10,385 [11]
April 5, 2008 Toronto FC H 4–1 20,161 Emilio, Quaranta, Gallardo, Moreno [12]
April 12, 2008 Real Salt Lake A 0-4 13,193 [13]
April 17, 2008 Columbus Crew H 1–2 13,329 Namoff [14]
April 26, 2008 Real Salt Lake H 4-1 23,269 Moreno (2), Quaranta, Gallardo [15]
May 4, 2008 Colorado Rapids A 0-2 13,115 [16]
May 8, 2008 Chicago Fire H 0–2 18,605 [17]
May 17, 2008 Chivas USA A 1–3 13,113 Gallardo [18]
May 21, 2008 Toronto FC A 0-1 19,791 [19]
May 24, 2008 Toronto FC H 3–2 18,647 Peralta, Moreno, Emilio [20]
May 29, 2008 New England Revolution A 2–2 8,159 Emilio, Fred [21]
June 7, 2008 Chicago Fire A 1–2 19,256 Moreno, Emilio [22]
June 14, 2008 New York Red Bulls H 4-1 18,622 Emilio (3), Simms [23]
June 22, 2008 San Jose Earthquakes H 3–1 17,922 Simms, Martínez, Emilio [24]
June 29, 2008 Los Angeles Galaxy H 4–1 35,979 Moreno, Emilio (2), Gallardo [25]
July 23, 2008 Houston Dynamo H 0–2 14,460 [26]
August 2, 2008 Kansas City Wizards H 2–0 18,731 Emilio, Moreno [27]
August 10, 2008 New York Red Bulls A 1-4 15,038 Moreno [28]
August 16, 2008 Chicago Fire A 0–1 19,560 Fred [29]
August 20, 2008 New England Revolution A 1-2 14,962 Moreno [30]
August 23, 2008 Colorado Rapids H 3–0 17,283 Vide, Quaranta, Kirk [31]
August 30, 2008 New York Red Bulls H 0–0 15,616 [32]
September 6, 2008 San Jose Earthquakes A 1-2 10,121 Quaranta [33]
September 13, 2008 FC Dallas H 2–2 19,890 Moreno, Quaranta [34]
September 20, 2008 Los Angeles Galaxy A 2-5 27,000 McTavish, Khumalo [35]
September 28, 2008 FC Dallas A 0-3 12,138 [36]
October 4, 2008 Chivas USA H 0–3 28,145 [37]
October 12, 2008 Houston Dynamo A 0–0 17,531 [38]
October 16, 2008 New England Revolution H 2–1 16,672 Doe (2) [39]
October 26, 2008 Columbus Crew A 0-1 19,591 [40]

CONCACAF Champions' Cup
See also: 2008 CONCACAF Champions' Cup
Win Tie Loss
RoundDateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorersRef.
QF March 12, 2008 Harbour View A 1–1 6,985 McTavish [41]
QF March 18, 2008 Harbour View H 5–0 12,394 McTavish (2), Emilio (2), Fred [42]
SF April 1, 2008 Pachuca A 0–2 18,642 [43]
SF April 9, 2008 Pachuca H 2–1 17,329 Dyachenko, Niell [44]

CONCACAF Champions League
See also: 2008–09 CONCACAF Champions League
Win Tie Loss
RoundDateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorersRef.
GS September 16, 2008 Saprissa H 0–2 6,105 [45]
GS September 24, 2008 Marathón A 0-2 8,000 [46]
GS October 1, 2008 Cruz Azul H 0–1 7,124 [47]
GS October 9, 2008 Saprissa A 2–2 10,000 Doe, Dyachenko [48]
GS October 21, 2008 Cruz Azul A 0-2 4,265 [49]
GS October 29, 2008 Marathón H 2–4 7,156 Doe, Janicki [50]

U.S. Open Cup
See also: 2008 U.S. Open Cup
Win Tie Loss
RoundDateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorersRef.
R3 July 1, 2008 Rochester Rhinos H 2–0 2,752 Burch (2)
QF July 8, 2008 Chicago Fire H 2–1 (a.e.t.) 4,118 Doe, Namoff [51]
SF August 12, 2008 New England Revolution H 3–1 6,797 Emilio (2), Quaranta [52]
F September 3, 2008 Charleston Battery H 2–1 8,212 Emilio, Fred [53]

References
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