D.C. United boss Wayne Rooney was not pleased after his side's 3-0 victory over FC Cincinnati, who are currently in the driver's seat of the Supporters' Shield race and first in the Eastern Conference table.
While the D.C United supporters celebrated their team's triumph, their head coach was left frustrated in the dugout, knowing that his side could've been better.
This is hardly a surprise when you look at the legendary Englishman's trophy-laden career with Manchester United that featured stops along the way with Everton (where he first played coming up), Derby County, and D.C. United. Rooney expects more from his team just as he he had high expectations during his playing career.
"Because we didn’t do what I asked [the players]," Rooney said in a post-game interview when asked about why he was not impressed. "I think we got complacent. I’ve talked to players all the time about focus and concentration."
The Eastern Conference team are having a quiet yet solid season. Although they sit in ninth in the East with 26 points, they're only three points off from the inconsistent Atlanta United, who sit in sixth place. A positive string of results could see D.C. surge up the standings - but Rooney insists that they have to maintain focus and concentration for longer periods to do so.
"Our focus, concentration has to be there, and it was. As I said, it was in the first half. And I really believe if we have that focus [for entire games], we can beat any team in the league. If we don’t, then we start playing as individuals and not as a team, and we won’t do so. We need to improve that."
Rooney's squad will have the chance to rectify their coach's statements when they take on the second-placed team in the Eastern Conference, Nashville SC and MLS MVP candidate Hany Mukhtar, on July 1.
This article was originally published on 90min as Wayne Rooney: D.C. United got "complacent" in 3-0 triumph over Cincinnati .
