United Coach Ben Olsen during DC United's 4-0 win over the Chicago Fire at RFK Satdium in Ocober. (John McDonnell/The Washington Post)

With maybe an hour to spare before air travel ground to a halt, D.C. United dodged the blizzard Friday by hopping on a re­arranged, delayed and de-iced flight to Florida.

Consider it the first victory of the season.

With RFK Stadium’s snow-entrenched training grounds 1,000 miles behind it, United settled into the comfort of Bradenton’s IMG Academy for the start of preseason workouts and a campaign the club hopes won’t end until the first flurries fall next December.

While most of MLS’s 20 clubs are building toward the regular season openers March 6, United and three others have more urgent matters: the CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinals against in-season Mexican opponents, starting Feb. 23. That allows just four weeks to regain fitness, rediscover rhythm and rally around a lineup.

United will visit Queretaro in the first leg, then host the return match March 1.

[How Americans abroad fared this past weekend]

But before turning their attention to that international tournament, General Manager Dave Kasper and Coach Ben Olsen must finish assembling the squad. They retained the entire back line and front line but remain deficient in the heart of the formation and must solve goalkeeping issues as well.

Since losing to the New York Red Bulls in the Eastern Conference semifinals in November, United has mostly targeted the midfield, addressing the flanks by trading for a pair of seasoned attackers, Lamar Neagle (Seattle) and Patrick Nyarko (Chicago).

Despite extensive searches in Latin America and Europe, camp opened with lingering voids in central midfield. After getting by for years without a true playmaker, United has prioritized an influential attacker. It also needs to replace Perry Kitchen, a five-year starter who declined a new contract and is seeking a European employer.

The wish list includes Leonardo Gil, from Estudiantes in Argentina; for weeks, United has been pursuing a one-year loan deal with an option to purchase. At defensive midfield, Costa Rica national team member Ariel Rodriguez, from Alajuelense, is on a tryout. Several other players, whom the club won’t identify, are also under consideration.

“We need additions in the center of the field, no question,” Olsen said. “And we will have additions at some point.”

Central players Davy Arnaud and Markus Halsti have returned, and Julian Buescher arrived from Syracuse via the college draft. But Arnaud, who turns 36 this summer, will go slowly after missing the final two months of the 2015 season with a concussion and Halsti, a Finland national team player, is seeking to bounce back from an underwhelming first year in Washington.

[United invites several to preseason as trialists]

United has the available funds, known as targeted allocation money, to soften the impact of higher-priced signings. The question is whether it can close deals before the Champions League and regular season begin.

“It’s constant,” Olsen said of the search. “We certainly could use one or two signings, but we also like who we are. It’s important in the first few weeks of camp to evaluate what you have, then narrow the areas of need.”

One clear area of need is goalkeeper. With starter Bill Hamid out four to six months after knee surgery, the club is seeking both depth and competition for back-up Andrew Dykstra. MLS free agents Chris Konopka and Paolo Tornaghi are in camp, and others are likely to pass through over the coming weeks.

“There is a good chance we’ll sign another goalkeeper,” Olsen said. “But we have a lot of faith in Andrew. He has been waiting for this chance for some time. It’s his job to lose.”

Top prospect Morris joins Sounders

The MLS draft took place Jan. 14, but the most significant instance of a player jumping from college to the league arrived a week later.

Already in Jurgen Klinsmann’s U.S. national team plans, Stanford junior forward Jordan Morris was clearly primed for the next level; the only question was whether he would choose MLS or the German Bundesliga.

As a Seattle homegrown prospect, Morris was exempt from the draft. If he was going to stay in the United States, he would join the Sounders. But Morris, as arranged by U.S. assistant Andi Herzog, spent time training with Germany’s Werder Bremen, seemingly considering a move abroad before ultimately signing with Seattle last week.

“It was a great experience [in Germany], but I always knew that I wanted to come home,” Morris said. “My time over there was a good experience and a cool one, but it reaffirmed that I wanted to play in front of my home town — in front of the 45,000 fans.”

Said Sounders General Manager Garth Lagerwey: "I understood it was going to be a longer process, and at the end of the season I knew it was going to come down to what Jordan wanted to do. . . . Jordan needed to get some information and new experiences, then decided what he was most comfortable with.”

Chelsea handles rival Arsenal

Diego Costa gave Chelsea a ­1-0 victory over 10-man Arsenal, damaging its rival’s bid to dethrone it as Premier League champion.

Chelsea already looked the livelier team when it gained a man advantage in the 18th minute after Per Mertesacker’s red-card lunge on Costa.

Five minutes later, Arsenal’s defense was breached when Costa evaded defender Gabriel, who had been brought on to replace forward Olivier Giroud after Mertesacker’s dismissal. The move by Manager Arsene Wenger sparked boos.

Arsenal’s first home league loss since the opening day of the season leaves Leicester as the leader by three points.

Key stat

24: Consecutive games in which Barcelona is now unbeaten across all competitions (19-0-5)

Quotable

“We managed to turn a really good performance ino a bit of a shambles.” — Norwich City Manager Alex Neil, after his side’s 3-1 lead on Liverpool turned into a 5-4 loss