NASHVILLE — D.C. United’s loss of injured striker Christian Benteke for multiple weeks overlapped with the most demanding stretch of the MLS season — brutal timing for a team on pace to miss the playoffs again and a young coach coming under growing pressure to reverse course.
Benteke is United’s best player and one of the league’s greatest forces. Suffice to say, he has become almost indispensable to Troy Lesesne’s master plan.
Without its focal point, United must find inelegant ways to earn points on the road. Saturday’s effort crept along at an effective if unsightly manner for the visitors before ending in a 0-0 draw with Nashville SC at Geodis Park — D.