With Wayne Rooney’s latest goal, D.C. United is closer than ever to a playoff berth.
Rooney scored in the 18th minute of Wednesday night’s match, sending a powerful free kick to the top-right corner of the goal and away from a diving goalie, and United held on to beat Toronto FC 1-0.
😳 THERE ARE NO WORDS. Bravo, @WayneRooney. #DCU | #DCvTOR 1-0 pic.twitter.com/CnIjDnuPLS
— D.C. United (@dcunited) October 18, 2018
It was the team’s fourth straight win. They’ve gone 6-0-1 in their last seven home games.
United, sixth place in the MLS Eastern Conference, now own 47 points in the standings, increasing their lead over Montreal Impact to four points.
That means United can clinch a playoff berth Sunday. Both D.C. and Montreal have two games to go; if United beat New York City FC on Sunday, or if Montreal loses to Toronto that day, the Impact are eliminated and United clinch.
When United acquired Rooney in July, they were one of MLS’s worst-performing teams — 2-7-5 when Rooney first stepped on the pitch at Audi Field. Now 13-11-8 with Wednesday’s win, it’s looking more and more like one of the greatest mid-season turn-arounds in recent sports history.
• Adam Zielonka can be reached at azielonka@washingtontimes.com.
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