In the middle of a three-game stretch over nine days, DC United has opted to rest a couple of their starters against Sporting Kansas City. Dwayne De Rosario is starting the match on the bench and Charlie Davies was given the entire day off and is not even in the 18. Blake Brettschneider will see his first action since July 30 and Santino Quaranta returns to the starting lineup in their places.
Sporting Kansas City Vs. DC United: Lineups
DC United will be relying on another reserve in goal, although not necessarily by choice. First-year goalkeeper Joe Willis will receive his second start in three games as Bill Hamid is nursing a quadriceps injury. In Willis' first MLS start, he made five saves and registered a shutout against the Vancouver Whitecaps.
Sporting KC, which is currently locked in a fight with United for one of the final playoff spots, counters with what is essentially a first-choice starting lineup. Jimmy Nielsen is apparently fully recovered from getting hit in the head with a bobble-head doll on Wednesday. Coach Peter Vermes is going with a bit of a new look for this one, as Omar Bravo appears to be the starting central midfielder behind the forward trio of Kei Kamara, Teal Bunbury and CJ Sapong.
Sporting KC starters: Nielsen; Myers, Cesar, Besler, Sinovic; Espinoza, Zusi, Bravo; Kamara, Bunbury, Sapong. Bench: Kronberg, Thomas, Harrington, Aiyegbusi, Diop, Stojcev, Saad
DC United starters: Willis; Kitchen, Jakovic, McDonald, Woolard; Najar, Simms, Quaranta, Pontius; Wolff (c), Brettschneider. Bench: De Rosario, Ngwenya, King, da Luz, White, Burch, Cronin
See More:
