A rejuvenated DC United side return to action in the Leagues Cup when they play host to Mexican outfit Mazatlan at Audi Field for a place in the round of 16 on Friday.
The Black-and-Red have turned their fortunes around since suffering a humiliating 5-0 loss against Orlando City in MLS on July 7 and will head into the weekend looking to secure a fifth competitive victory on the bounce.
Match preview
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DC United turned in a performance of the highest quality in their final Leagues Cup group-stage tie as they cruised to a 3-0 victory over Mexican side Santos Laguna last Thursday.
Christian Benteke opened the scoring two minutes before the half-hour mark to hand the hosts a dream start to the contest before Theodore Ku-DiPietro and Cristian Dajome netted second-half goals to cap off a solid team display.
This followed a penalty-shootout victory over Atlanta United in the Group K curtain-raiser on July 27 after the Black-and-Red had played out a thrilling 3-3 draw in normal time with their league rivals at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Back home, DC United have turned a corner in recent weeks, claiming back-to-back victories over Nashville and Minnesota United, having failed to win 11 consecutive MLS games preceding this run.
This upturn in form has reignited Troy Lesesne's men's push for a playoff spot as they now sit 13th in the Eastern Conference standings, just two points adrift of ninth-placed Atlanta in the playoffs qualification places.
DC United will head into Friday's tie looking to make it five straight competitive wins for the first time since October 2018 and surpass their 2023-24 League Cup run when they suffered a round-of-32 exit at the hands of Philadelphia Union.
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Mazatlan, on the other hand, left Nashville stunned in their Group I finale last Thursday as they picked up a 2-0 victory over the MLS outfit when the two sides squared off at Geodis Park.
With elimination staring them in the face, teenage winger Ramiro Arciga took matters into his own hands as he netted two quick-fire goals shortly after half time to hand the Gunners three huge points.
Prior to that, Mazatlan were on a run of eight consecutive games without a win across all competitions, claiming three draws and losing five, including a 1-0 defeat at the hands of New England Revolution in their Leagues Cup opener.
Head coach Victor Vucetich will hope that his side can continue from where they left off at Geodis Park as they now aim to go one step further than last season's Leagues Cup round-of-32 exit.
Mazatlan picked up group-stage victories over Austin FC and Juarez to finish as Group H winners before suffering a 2-1 defeat at the hands of FC Dallas in the first knockout-stage tie courtesy of goals from Alan Velasco and Eugene Ansah.
Team News
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DC United remain without the services of 29-year-old midfielder Russell Canouse, who continues his long journey to full fitness after sustaining a severe knee injury last October.
He is joined on the Black-and-Red's injury table by American forward Kristian Fletcher, who is recuperating from an ankle problem while fellow countryman Conner Antley has been out of action since coming off injured against Atlanta United back in May.
Benteke was one of the standout players against Santos and the Belgian centre-forward, who boasts 16 goals in MLS this season, should spearhead the hosts' attack once again.
First-choice goalkeeper Hugo Gonzalez was forced off injured shortly before the half-hour mark against Nashville last time out and the 34-year-old is a major doubt for Mazatlan.
In his absence, Ricardo Gutierrez should start in goal on Friday while we expect an unchanged back four of Alonso Escoboza, Luis Sanchez, Facundo Almada and former Club America full-back Bryan Colula.
Arciga caught the eye with his performance against Nashville and the 19-year-old winger should retain his role in the visitors' attack, teaming up with Brian Rubio and Yoel Barcenas.
DC United possible starting lineup:
Bono; Herrera, Mcvey, Peltola; Dajome, Stroud, Klich, Rodriguez, Santos; Ku-DiPietro, Benteke
Mazatlan possible starting lineup:
Gutierrez; Escoboza, Sanchez, Almada, Colula; Del Prete, Sierra, Meraz; Barcenas, Rubio, Arciga
We say: DC United 2-0 Mazatlan
DC United have put together a fine run of results in recent weekend and will be looking to keep the juggernaut rolling. While we expect Mazatlan to put up a fight off the back of a stunning display against Nashville, we are tipping the Black-and-Red to come away with the desired result in front of their home supporters.
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a DC United win with a probability of 39.49%. A win for Mazatlan had a probability of 36.78% and a draw had a probability of 23.7%.
The most likely scoreline for a DC United win was 2-1 with a probability of 8.55%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-0 (7%) and 2-0 (5.58%). The likeliest Mazatlan win was 1-2 (8.21%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (10.71%). The actual scoreline of 1-2 was predicted with an 8.2% likelihood.
Joshua Ojele
