Branko Boskovic doesn’t know why he’s been relegated to a role on the bench, where he’s expected to find himself for the third straight game when D.C. United kicks off against FC Dallas on Friday night. But it hasn’t changed his approach.
“I try to work, but you know, sometimes they have another thing in head,” Boskovic said Thursday after training. “I cannot speak about what they want. They decide like this, and I respect that, and continue to work and try to play from first minute. Now it’s like this. Maybe I don’t look fit, or I don’t know what, I don’t play good. I don’t know what is the problem.”
Here’s what United coach Ben Olsen said when asked about his philosophy for handling Boskovic, one of the team’s three highest-paid players: “He was out a long time, and I think I maybe threw him in a little early. Right now, I think the best role for him is to continue to limit some of his minutes. He’s going to be fine. He’s going to continue to get better and fitter and he’s going to be a big part of this.”
Boskovic showed signs of rust and imprecision as he made his first start since a knee injury in April in D.C.’s season opener against Kansas City. In the last two games, he’s come off the bench for the final 30 minutes, and in each match United has played better soccer during that stretch than it did in the first 60 minutes. Much of the talk this week has been about how D.C. appeared to turn a corner over the final half hour against Vancouver, a stretch that included Boskovic finding Hamdi Salihi’s head with a corner kick – which was saved in fantastic fashion by Whitecaps goalkeeper Joe Cannon – and taking a trio of open shots himself.
“We know how Branko likes the ball,” teammate Dwayne De Rosario said. “It’s just him getting into the rhythm into the team and the league more than anything else. We’re just going to keep trying to feed him and put him into the areas where we know that he’s best suited for and most comfortable at. We know that when his chance comes, he’s going to take it, and hopefully he opens the doors for us.”
But with each passing game, there are fewer opportunities for Boskovic to earn the team’s blessing before his contract runs out this summer.
“Maybe if I score or get an assist,” said Boskovic. “I think the team, we are better, especially in Vancouver. But we need to improve tomorrow, and it’s not easy. We will see.”
