DC United survive second half onslaught to beat Columbus Crew

DC United survived a second-half onslaught from Columbus Crew to claim a 2-0 victory in the MLS.

United broke the deadlock after 15 minutes as Fabian Espindola scored his first goal of the season from Chris Rolfe's assist.

Espindola nearly added a second four minutes later, but his shot was saved by Steve Clark.

Kei Kamara had Columbus's first scoring chance, but his shot was blocked in the 36th minute and Mohammed Saeid missed the target from 18 yards a few minutes later.

Espindola was in the thick of the action once again, setting up Sean Franklin to double DC's lead before half time.

Columbus started the second half well, with Federico Higuain narrowly missing a header in the 53rd minute. Kristinn Steindorsson then volleyed wide and Higuain was denied by Bill Hamid as the Crew pressure built.

Columbus continued to push for a goal in a dominant second-half performance, but the DC defence held firm as Tony Tchani's long-range shot was saved before Kamara headed over the bar from six yards.

Saeid and Higuain again had chances in the closing 10 minutes as Columbus outshot their opponents by 13 to nine, but Columbus's profiglacy, coupled with Hamid's performance in the DC goal, ensured that the capital club claimed the spoils.