A breakaway in the 90th minute Tuesday against F.C. Dallas was a perfect opportunity for Alecko Eskandarian to cement his return to health. After missing four games with a lingering MCL sprain, the D.C. United forward finally was back on the field as a late substitute. Unfortunately, his lack of sharpness showed through, and he missed high and wide.
“I did everything I wanted to do, and the keeper nudged me a little bit right as I was going to shoot. It just threw my mechanics off a little bit,” said Eskandarian, “With the wet turf and everything, it wasn’t as easy as it seemed, but I definitely wanted it.”
Eskandarian’s five goals and two assists in 10 starts made him an early candidate for MLS comeback player of the year before the knee injury. He missed most of last season with a concussion.
“Obviously, he was a little rusty on finishing,” said United assistant coach Mark Simpson, but the coaches were pleased with Eskandarian’s 20 minutes on the field. “I think just his pain level has gone down. He took a [cortisone] shot last week, and that seemed to alleviate some of his pain laterally. So that’s a good sign.”
Eskandarian and Ben Olsen were both aiming to increase their chances to get back into United’s starting lineup by doing extra fitness work outside Thursday after the rest of the team had just a short weightlifting session indoors.
“Myself and Benny, we were like, ‘We don’t want the day off.’ Our coaches didn’t want us to, but we took it upon ourselves to just come out here and run,” said Eskandarian. “Obviously, we both want to be starters on Saturday.”
