Freddy Adu was on fire at D.C. United’s practice Tuesday.
While most of the team had already finished for the day, the 17-year-old attacker gave third-string goalkeeper Ryan McIntosh a stern test in the net with an endless barrage of 20-25 yard, left-footed blasts at the end of the training session.
“I’m just working on my technique,” said Adu. “Most of the time when we shoot, we try to hit it as hard as we can. Watching the World Cup, you see guys shoot the ball, and it’s just, ‘Man.’ Like [Czech midfielder Tomas] Rosicky’s goal against the U.S., he just hit the ball at the right spot, and it just dipped. It’s a clean strike. That’s what I’m trying to get.”
What Adu wants even more is simply to get the ball into the net. Adu has appeared in every D.C. United match this season — he’s sixth on the team in minutes played (960), fourth in shots (24) and second in assists (4) — but he’s yet to score a goal.
“It’s so discouraging when you’re getting yourself in the right spots but you’re not finishing your chances,” said Adu. “I think I’ll be fine. As long as the team’s winning, I’m going to keep getting more chances, and that’s the way it is.”
D.C. United (7-1-4) is unbeaten in its last six matches, and D.C. coach Peter Nowak isn’t discouraged by Adu’s absence from the scoresheet.
“If he’s not going to create the chances for himself or his teammates, then we’ll say yeah, maybe that’s the case,” said Nowak. “In this case, I’m not worried about anything because he creates the chances for himself, he create the chances for the other people, setting them up for the goal. This is most important to me.”
Nearly every one of Adu’s starts this season has come on the left wing. But Nowak has been happy with Adu’s fitness and frequently moves him into the middle late in a match, when the play often opens up and Adu can take advantage of the space.
“It’s important to give him some minutes in this kind of position so he will have all this experience around him,” said Nowak. “His game is not only being out wide.”
Adu’s “first love” is attacking midfield, but out on the flanks he’s picking up defensive nuances that have improved his game in areas he’s been deficient in the past.
“You can see it when you’re out wide. When someone has the ball in the middle, you can see where guys like Brian Carroll, Ben Olsen, Clyde Simms, where these guys put themselves in certain situations to cut off passing lanes,” said Adu.
Even so, it’s the glory on the players’ faces in Germany that have inspired Adu this week.
“Every day, that’s what I’m working on,” said Adu. “Not just this week. Every single day after practice, I’m going to try and hit about 50 balls just to try and improve my shooting.”
