Having dispossessed an unwitting Genoa defender, Sampdoria’s Luis Muriel dribbled the ball towards the box. Spotting his chance, the Colombian slotted an angled shot past the goalkeeper into the corner, sending the supporters behind the goal in the Gradinata Sud into delirium. 

With a contract extension in hand, Ben Olsen must work on finding the right tactics to help D.C. reach their full potential.

At the end of the 2016-17 campaign, Benevento shocked Italian football by reaching the top-flight through the playoffs in what was their maiden outing in Serie B. It was no surprise that there were wild parties in the streets upon their promotion to Serie A, but what followed was an unmitigated disaster in terms of results — a case of too much, too soon. 

The year is 2007 and D.C. United are fresh off the heels of a third Supporters’ Shield and a disheartening playoff defeat to the New England Revolution in the conference finals. Sure, the narrow 1-0 loss left supporters grasping for words at the thought of what could have been, but the league’s original champion had officially returned to center stage for the first time since 1999, and expectations were again boiling over in the nation’s capital.

A look at the best and worst of the past week in Italian football. Let’s get into it!

A 2-1 win over S.P.A.L. on Dec. 29 saw A.C. Milan break a goal drought that had lasted though their previous four matches, the team’s longest run in the Italian top flight without scoring since 1984. It would also be their last encounter before the winter break, the lack of matches over this period giving often under-fire boss Gennaro Gattuso plenty of food for thought. 

“I still get goosebumps,” said Inter fan Angelo Ruggeri of watching his team take on their crosstown rivals AC Milan back in August 2011.

D.C. United, with as positive an outlook as they’ve had in years, is aiming high. With Lucas Rodriguez arriving soon from Argentina and Wayne Rooney heading a new generation of DCU positivity, coach Ben Olsen faces the pressure of maintaining last season’s run of success.

It’s been just over a month since Gregg Berhalter was named head coach of the U.S. men’s national team, and the 45-year-old tactician is currently engrossed in his first training camp at the helm. Initial reactions to the hire were certainly complicated, but for now it is a wait-and-see game for those eager to find out what sorts of significant changes the former Columbus Crew skipper can bring in 2019.

The MLS offseason is in full swing, complete with transfers, call-ups to national team camps and fans hypothesizing about which players their respective teams might select in Friday’s SuperDraft. In addition, supporters can now solidify plans for following all the action with this week’s full schedule release for the league’s 24th season.