With D.C. United coming off the worst season in franchise history in 2013, things can only get better in 2014, right? One of MLS’ founding members had a torrid time, but they did win the U.S. Open Cup to salvage their season and they will now compete in the CONCACAF Champions League alongside MLS. Young coach Ben Olsen is in his third full season as boss and has made some top notch additions to his roster, as well as gutting the previous squad to build a new-look team in D.C.
News of a new stadium development moving forward and with a young crop augmented with talented veterans, 2014 should be a much better season for D.C. On paper, anyway. The four-time MLS Cup champions have seen their 1-95 rivals New York win the Supporters’ Shield last season, while other rivals Philadelphia also look to kick on. It will be an interesting season in the nation’s capital.
LATEST MLS 2014 SEASON PREVIEWS, HERE
Players In: Eddie Johnson (Trade for allocation money with Seattle), Davy Arnaud (Trade with Montreal), Sean Franklin (Taken in Re-Entry draft), Bobby Boswell (Taken in Re-Entry draft), Fabian Espindola (Taken in Re-Entry draft), Nana Attakora (Taken in Re-Entry draft), Jeff Parke (Traded for Ethan White and allocation spot), Christian Fernandez Salas (Free transfer from UD Almeria)
Players Out: Lionard Pajoy (Released), Carlos Ruiz (Released), Marcelo Saragosa (Released), Dwayne De Rosario (Released), Casey Townsend (Waived), Dejan Jakovic (Undisclosed, Shimizu S-Pulse), John Thorrington (Option declined), James Riley (Option declined)
Key Player: Eddie Johnson
If this man gets going early in the season, expect at least 10-15 goals from Johnson. The U.S. international forward fell out of favor at Seattle for many reasons but his quality is undeniable as he can operate out wide or in the center of attack.Johnson scored 29 goals in 65 games for Seattle over the last two seasons as the Floridian born attacker is lightning quick and always seems to find the right positions in and around the box.
His partnership with Fabian Espindola is likely to take D.C. close to the playoffs as the duo will cause plenty of problems, but the right kind of service must be given to both players. As we saw in the past with Kansas City, Johnson has the ability to explode onto the scene and the USMNT forward will want to hit the ground running in March to cement his spot in the U.S. squad for the World Cup this summer.
I think this is a great pick up and Johnson will thrive under Ben Olsen.
Manager: Speaking of Olsen, the talented young coach had a rough time last season and many thought he could be on his way out. But that Annus horribilis ended well when D.C. won the U.S. Open Cup and over the offseason Olsen wheeled and dealed to build an fresh squad at RFK Stadium. In 2012 a deep playoff run saw Olsen touted as the best up and coming coach in MLS, now he needs to work his magic again so the Black and Red have a season to remember.
Outlook: For D.C. United, anything will be an improvement on last season. United’s fans have been through a lot in recent years, but with stadium talk moving forward between the club and the city about the project at Buzzard’s Point and a whole host of new faces on board, 2014 promises to be the start of something much brighter. With a young coach eager to impress once again, a playoff spot will be the aim and it highly attainable this season.
