Wed Oct 15 22:50:29 2008

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D.C. faces must-win vs. Revs at RFK Stadium

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Washington, D.C. (Sports Network) - D.C. United, winless in its past seven Major League Soccer fixtures (0-4-3), faces a must-win situation when it hosts the New England Revolution on Thursday at RFK Memorial Stadium.

D.C. (10-14-4) is currently two points out of the last playoff spot with just two games to go in the regular season, meaning a loss - even a tie - would be devastating to the team's chances of making the playoffs.

New England (12-9-7) is playing for its own playoff positioning even though it has a spot in the 2008 MLS Cup playoffs clinched. The Revs will play the Chicago Fire in an Eastern Conference Semifinal series, but needs points to ensure that it will have home field advantage.

The Revs will have to find a way to generate offense without captain Steve Ralston, who broke his leg in a 1-0 loss at Kansas City last week. Ralston is the team's leading scorer with 8 goals and 7 assists.

"Now we know he's going to be out ... so we need to sort out what we're going to do from here on. A lot of what we do goes through him so we're going to have to adapt to that," New England defender Jay Heaps said.

"It's normally a 6-8 week kind of deal and MLS Cup is six weeks away," Ralston said. "The earliest it could be would be that game. But T.O. (Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Terrell Owens) came back earlier than that."

United, which earned a 0-0 draw at Houston last week without a number of key players, won't be shedding any tears for the Revs. United will be without midfielders Ben Olsen and Marcello Gallardo for the rest of the season. Also, winger Fred is questionable and forward Luciano Emilio is probable, both with hamstring injuries.

"It's a good turning point for us," United coach Tom Soehn said of earning a point on the road last week. "We've gotten two results on the road, and now we go back home. Give credit to Houston, they're a good team. To get a result [at Robertson Stadium], you know you have to defend hard. We were passionate about the way we defended, and knowing what it takes to get a result, so it was a real positive step for us, and our guys are really fighting for each other right now."

If United does get a win on Thursday, they will have to also get a win at Supporters' Shield winners Columbus in its last game of the regular season on Oct. 26. The Revs close out their regular season a day earlier against one of the teams United is fighting with for a playoff spot - Kansas City.