MLS

Preview: Wayne Rooney, D.C. United Take On The Tampa Bay Rowdies

Preview: Wayne Rooney, D.C. United Take On The Tampa Bay Rowdies

United begin a stretch of three games in a week as they wrap up preparations for the start of the 2019 MLS season, facing off against the Tampa Bay Rowdies.

Feb 16, 2019 by Wesley Davidson
Preview: Wayne Rooney, D.C. United Take On The Tampa Bay Rowdies

It’s back to the Sunshine State for D.C. United, this time to take part in the 2019 edition of the Suncoast Invitational hosted by the Tampa Bay Rowdies. The game, which begins at 7:30 p.m. ET, is set to be streamed by the Rowdies on their Youtube page. Al Lang Stadium will be the stage for matches involving the hometown club and MLS sides D.C., Philadelphia and Montreal.

Tampa Bay have undergone a squad overhaul ahead of the 2019 campaign and youth is the overarching theme. No player on roster is over the age of 28, and the club recently completed loan deals for two young talents from England’s second division, namely midfielder Jordan Doherty, 18, from Sheffield United and defender Caleb Richards, 20, from Norwich City. 

The United squad appears virtually set for the season and this tournament will provide a great opportunity to build chemistry, which is fortunately not as high a mountain to climb due to little turnover from last season. The Black-and-Red have filled one of their most glaring needs per Steven Goff of the Washington Post, by finding a backup for Wayne Rooney in MLS journeyman Quincy Amarikwa. The move for Amarikwa is not official yet, so don't expect him to suit up for the Black-and-Red against the Rowdies. 



Rooney will be looking to be back at full health and log meaningful minutes following a minor shin injury against Bethlehem. He recorded just less than half an hour in a substitute appearance against Cincinnati in the subsequent friendly. 

Additional squad depth was obtained with the signing of veteran midfielder/defender Chris McCann from Atlanta United. McCann is will likely not feature on Saturday as he still has work to do on the fitness front. 

Those hoping to see more of new signing Lucas Rodríguez will have to remain patient. The 21-year-old suffered a thigh strain, missing the tie with Cincinnati as a result, and he will likely return to full training next week.

Here is our predicted lineup for the Black-and-Red against the Rowdies:

4-2-3-1: Bill Hamid, Joseph Mora, Steven Birnbaum, Frederic Brillant, Leonardo Jara, Junior Moreno, Russell Canouse, Zoltan Stieber, Luciano Acosta, Paul Arriola, Wayne Rooney

This very well could be the starting day lineup come March 3 against Atlanta United. It seems most likely that head coach Ben Olsen will continue with the same formation that proved successful at the end of the 2018 season, with Jara being the only newcomer to the squad in the starting lineup.

Without McCann or Rodriguez to call upon, Olsen won't quite have a full bench for the Rowdies game. But in years past, he has typically given the starting lineup about 60 minutes in this game, as he likes to get the regulars on typical Saturday to Saturday rhythm.