United 0, Galaxy 0: A downpour, the two biggest stars in MLS, a nearly-must-win scenario, a season-high 22,134 hopping fans, and assistant coach Chad Ashton taking the first-team reins for the first time in his United career after regular manager Tom Soehn came down with flu-like symptoms before the game -- to say that it was an exciting night at RFK would be an understatement. United came out strong, but sadly, the spotlight of the game fell mostly onto the referee. The stadium exploded in the eighth minute after a beautiful interplay through midfield ended with a fantastic finish by Luciano Emilio poking it into the back of the net -- but the goal was incorrectly disallowed for offside. (Emilio was at least a yard on.) A booking in the 11th for captain Ben Olsen's tackle on Beckham only intensified the crowd volume. United's quality in possession delivered plenty of chances, but Galaxy keeper Donovan Ricketts was up to the task and kept things scoreless. The second half saw the introduction of Jaime Moreno, and United continued to pressure the L.A. goal. But shot after shot, corner after corner, header after header just went wide or over. Of course, the referee again blowing a big call -- waving off a clear-cut penalty when Emilio was pushed down -- didn't help anything. United's firm grip on the game began to loosen in the final fifteen minutes -- L.A. began to push forward and created a couple of chances. But keeper Josh Wicks maintained the clean sheet by denying a couple of direct shots on goal, especially a Landon Donovan header from a Beckham cross in the waning minutes. The Black-and-Red bossed the game, but it was just not their night. It was hardly a surprise that two teams with 20 draws between them split the points -- though the lack of goals was disappointing.

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