On Fire: Emilio Sparks United Run

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THOUGH D.C. UNITED coach Tom Soehn warned that his club "still has a lot of room to make up" following its miserable start, prospects have brightened considerably following a 2-0-1 stretch that concluded with United's first road victory in nine months.

For starters, last weekend's 2-1 win at arch-nemesis Chicago lifted United (4-7-1) out of the Eastern Conference cellar. It also featured the rebirth of 2007 MLS MVP and 2008 bust Luciano Emilio, who seems to have rediscovered how to play soccer.

After weeks of listless and ineffective play, the Brazilian once again is a force. He has goals in three straight games and was critical against the Fire, setting up Jaime Moreno's opener and scoring the stoppage-time winner with a run that revealed his renewed confidence. Playing down a man following Bryan Namoff's late ejection, D.C. could have stayed conservative and held on for the draw. Instead, Emilio raced down the left, took on two defenders and slipped a shot just inside the post.

"He's a lot sharper right now. ... He's following up plays and trying to create things himself, showing signs of what made him an MVP," Soehn said. "I don't think he came in as fit as last season, and it took him a little bit to get it together."

Getting used to new teammates, for everyone, also has been an issue. United's spine, from goalkeeper Zach Wells to playmaker Marcelo Gallardo, changed entirely from 2007. Soehn said expectations still were high at the start, but it now appears that those may have been unrealistic.

"We're looking for more consistency, and we've started to become a little more consistent in our performances," Soehn said. "But if we think we're there, we're not. We have do all the little things that made us better."

United now "has to rely on every result being so important" because of its slow start, and it will have the benefit of an extended home stand to make up some ground. Saturday night's game against New York is the first of six straight at RFK — three in MLS followed by three SuperLiga matches.

Written by Express contributor Brian Straus
Photo by Jonathan Newton/The Washington Post