Striker sites league’s reputation as reason for arrival
In his first appearance in front of the media since becoming D.C. United’s biggest addition of the offseason, striker Hamdi Salihi said his respect for Major League Soccer helped convince him to come to Washington. For United, they were interested in Salihi’s goal-scoring exploits.
“In Hamdi’s case, part of it was about timing as well,” United general manager Dave Kasper said, “and the 5,000 phone calls we made each day didn’t hurt either.”
| Is De Rosario best in D.C.? |
| D.C. United welcomes the debate on which area sports team has the best player. After announcing a new contract for reigning MLS MVP Dwayne De Rosario, United president and CEO Kevin Payne said: “I can just tell you, as far as I’m concerned, Dwayne is the most accomplished professional athlete in Washington D.C. — actually by a pretty considerable margin.” De Rosario has won four MLS Cups (two with San Jose, two with Houston) and is a six-time MLS All-Star. |
Watching the 28-year-old Albanian — the first MLS player from his country — take part in his first training session with his new team Monday was a relief for Kasper. The GM said the final weeks and days of the January transfer window were “stressful” as United tried to lure Salihi to the United States over offers from teams in Russia, Germany and Turkey but primarily Scottish giants Celtic and Rangers.
While D.C. United made the most of last year’s blockbuster acquisition of Dwayne De Rosario, who captured MLS MVP with 16 goals and 12 assists, the team has lacked an in-form striker who prefers to score goals in and around the penalty box since Luciano Emilio was at his best in 2007, scoring 20 goals and being named MVP.
“We’ve been searching for the right No. 9 for this club for a while now,” United coach Ben Olsen said, “and we think we’ve found it.”
Enticed by 53 goals in 90 total matches with Rapid Vienna, D.C. United tried first to bring Salihi to the U.S. this summer after his current deal in Austria expired. When Salihi wanted to act sooner, his close friend and former Rapid teammate, Branko Boskovic, helped sell him on Washington.
“He explain to me everything,” Salihi said. “He say that ‘You come here, it’s everybody friendly, everybody is ready to help you and football is really good, is quality.’ He say to me all words I need to heard to convince me to come here.”
Financial troubles at Rangers also helped, and Salihi’s arrival marks just his second trip to the United States, his previous visit having come in 2003 when his hometown team in Albania, Vllaznia Shkoder, played an exhibition in Detroit, Michigan.
With 2014 World Cup qualification beginning later this year, Salihi expects to make at least a few trips back across the Atlantic Ocean to join up with his national team. He said that back home his new league is no longer considered among the lower tier of the sport.
“I want to go somewhere that people give respect for this, what quality I have,” Salihi said. “Like for 10 years, I can say [MLS is] every day growing up … and I think now in Europe they have more respect for MLS that you really have for MLS.”
