United: From Fair to Middling
Team’s First Half Marked by Injuries, Shuffling of Lineup, Lack of Scoring
Washington Post
Friday, July 15, 2005; E03
By Steven Goff, Washington Post Staff Writer
At the midway point of the MLS season, D.C. United isn’t much different
than it was last year: a .500 record, fickle scoring efficiency,
a revolving lineup and a promising teenager aching for playing time.
The biggest difference, however, is a shift in expectation.
Last year, coming off four losing seasons, United’s goal was to
return to respectability. However, winning the league title with a
torrid three months of soccer fueled the promise of a fast start this
season. It didn’t happen and, with a 6-6-4 record and a fifth-place
standing in the six-team Eastern Conference, United’s fans are
beginning to express disappointment and concern.
Here’s a breakdown of United’s first-half failures:
· Biggest Disappointment: Alecko Eskandarian. What has happened to
United’s emerging striker? He led the team in goals a year ago and was
named the MLS Cup most valuable player, launching himself into U.S.
national team contention and becoming a favorite to win the 2005 MLS
scoring title. But knee and quadriceps injuries hampered him early in
the season, and when scoring opportunities did emerge, he failed —
12 appearances, 661 minutes, 0 goals, 1 assist. The latest setback
is post-concussion syndrome.
Forwards: C-
Eskandarian isn’t scoring. Jaime Moreno has maintained his creative
flair, but five of his team-high seven goals have come on penalty
kicks. Adu has shown occasional flashes of brilliance when he’s played
up front. Santino Quaranta was just starting to come around when he
got called up to the national team. Nana Kuffour is raw. Jamil Walker
has been a disappointment, although a three-goal performance Monday
against minor league Rochester (N.Y.) helped his fading cause.
· Outlook: It’s looking as though New England and Chicago will
battle for first place in the East and Columbus will finish last,
leaving D.C., Kansas City and New York/New Jersey to scramble for the
final two playoff spots. United is about to enter a crucial stretch:
vs. San Jose (unbeaten in seven straight), at Kansas City (where
D.C. hasn’t won in four years), at Los Angeles (undefeated at home)
and at Chicago (7-2-1 at home). If that weren’t enough, jammed into
the schedule is a July 28 exhibition against one of the best teams
in the world, English champion Chelsea.
United Notes: Near the end of practice yesterday, Eskandarian was
awaiting crosses in the penalty area when a high ball approached him.
“No headers!” he yelled at the passer.
It’s not a normal response from a usually fearless striker, but
Eskandarian has still not fully recovered from the concussion he
suffered June 18 — an injury that might sideline him for a fourth
straight match tonight when United faces surging San Jose at RFK.
“I tried a couple headers [Wednesday] and it probably wasn’t the
smartest thing to do,” he said. “So I told the guys not to give me
any headers [yesterday] because I don’t want any more headaches. If
I’m going to head the ball, I might as well wait until [tonight]
and worry about the headaches after the game.”
Said Coach Peter Nowak: “We need to be very, very careful. We don’t
want to be in a situation where [Eskandarian plays and] we regret
the decision.”
Meantime, Moreno remains questionable after missing last weekend’s
match against Kansas City with an ankle injury. Moreno, the team’s
scoring leader with seven goals and four assists, participated in
full workouts yesterday.
“I want to play, but at the same time,” he said, “I don’t want to
cause some other problem.” . . .
Gomez was named one of seven reserves on the MLS all-star team,
which will face English club Fulham on July 30 in Columbus, Ohio.
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