By AVI CREDITOR
WASHINGTON --Vurnon Anita's goal in the 87th minute broke a 1-1 tie and gave Dutch champion Ajax a 2-1 victory over D.C. United in an international club friendly in front of 10,728 at RFK Stadium Sunday evening.
Anita took on rookie defender Ethan White, cut back to his left foot and tucked his low shot from inside the area inside the far post to snap the deadlock.
D.C. looked like it would escape with a draw after rookie forward Blake Brettschneider leveled the score a 1-all in the 58th minute. He finished off a feed from Joseph Ngwenya, who took the ball from Anita deep in Ajax' own end. Brettschneider hit a first-time ball off his left foot from six yards to score in the 58th minute.
Uruguayan international midfielder Nicolas Lodeiro knifed through the center of the defense and found an open Miralem Sulejmani on the left, where he finished from inside the area to open the scoring.
D.C. leveled the playing field from that point on, and nearly equalized on the scoreboard in the 18th minute with a couple of chances.
Brandon Barklage nearly caught goalkeeper Kenneth Vermeer off his line from 40 yards with a powerful shot, but the Ajax keeper recovered and made a diving save. Chris Pontius' goal-bound header off the ensuing corner kick was cleared off the line by an Ajax defender.
"I think we had a little bit of a hard time figuring out the first 10-15 minutes. Their formation, their style of play is very different than what we're used to in MLS," said D.C. captain Dax McCarty, who played the first 45 minutes. "Once we figured it out and settled down, unfortunately after they scored a goal, I think we played them pretty even and created some decent chances."
Fred, a halftime substitute, missed wide on a golden chance on the other side of the break, and Brettschneider, also a halftime substitute, was denied on a one-time volley from inside the area. Vermeer lunged to his right to deny the rookie forward in the 56th minute just moments prior to his game-tying goal.
D.C. was forced to make some lineup alterations with Charlie Davies and Josh Wolff both nursing injuries. Ngwenya started up top with Santino Quaranta in their absence.
Another wrinkle in the lineup involved Perry Kitchen. The rookie was given his first professional start at defensive midfield, where he starred at his one season at the University of Akron. He had played exclusively as a centerback and right back during the MLS season and held his own against a technically sound opponent.
"He's a hard-nosed kid that doesn't fear much," D.C. coach Ben Olsen said. "Anywhere I've put him so far he's done a good job. Where we go from here, we'll see."
Ajax also fielded a lineup that was at less than full strength. Dutch international goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg was not available for the match with a broken thumb, and rising midfield star Christian Eriksen did not accompany the team to the United States, as he is on international duty with the Denmark Under-21 national team. Gregory van der Wiel, Jan Vertgonhen and Siem de Jong started the match on the bench and entered in the second half, with van der Wiel playing the last 14 minutes.
Ajax has one more stop on its American tour, as it plays the Portland Timbers at Jeld-Wen Field on Wednesday. Lodeiro won't be available for the match, as he'll be with the Uruguay national team -- along with Seattle Sounders midfielder Alvaro Fernandez -- in preparation for its pre-Copa America friendly against Germany.
D.C. will follow Ajax's lead, resuming its league schedule at Portland on Saturday.
NOTES: Olsen said that Davies and Wolff were both "doubtful" for the Portland match. ... D.C. officials said that the team would be releasing a statement from the secretary general of the Honduran federation on Monday that should shed further light onto the situation involving Andy Najar and the country's CONCACAF Gold Cup roster. Najar declined to comment about the matter after the match.
