The final score did not reflect the balance of the game, much to the chagrin of Colorado Rapids head coach Pablo Mastroeni, who saw his team surrender an 87th minute equalizer against D.C. United on Saturday at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park.
In team captain Drew Moor’s 300th MLS appearance, Colorado had every opportunity to take a much-needed win from the (now) Eastern Conference leading United, but a late penalty led to the goal that would send the Rapids off the pitch with a draw.
Afterwards, Mastroeni had this to say about the match…
Mastroeni: “It was a silly foul that we committed there in that part of the field. We didn’t handle that situation right. It’s a game that is unforgivable; it doesn’t give you any breaks. For the better part of that game, we were fantastic. We deserved so much more from that game. We controlled every aspect of it. You’ve got to strike when your chances come. We had two great chances on goal in injury time.”
Mastroeni: “Our guys worked their tails off, created really good opportunities, and shut down a dynamic attack in [Álvaro] Saborio and [Fabian] Espíndola. To not come away with a win, our guys are gutted and I am gutted for them. We did everything that we wanted to achieve tonight. At the end of the day it’s one play that bites us in the tail. Now we’ve got to recoup.”
Mastroeni: “I can’t fault them for their performance – it was fantastic. In the first half we dictated where we wanted to play, and where we wanted them to play. I think we started the second half out all right and then jumped into a shell. The couple of changes we made gave us a bit more life, then they scored, and we came up again. It just wasn’t our night.”
