Allsopp and Cristman leading starting attack
They’re big. They’re blond. And they’ve both scored goals, providing one of the few bright spots in an otherwise awful start to the year.
Which means there should be little doubt that target forwards Adam Cristman and Danny Allsopp, who were raised in cities 10,000 miles apart, should find themselves paired together again when D.C. United (1-6-0) hosts Colorado (3-3-1) on Saturday.
“We seem to work well,” said Allsopp. “We probably look similar and stuff, but I think there is some differences in the way that we play. We both support each other well on the field so that’s good.”
Listed at 6-foot, 180 pounds and 6-1, 190 pounds, respectively, Cristman and Allsopp both are strong enough to body up to defenders and gather the ball. But they’ve also shown the ability to pick spots, make sharp attacking runs and put shots on goal.
They’re assumption of the team’s starting attacking roles also wasn’t exactly what United had planned coming into the season. But Chris Pontius has been sidelined for most of the last month with a hamstring injury, 36-year-old Jaime Moreno has shifted into a more limited role as a substitute and recently re-signed Luciano Emilio is still working himself back into shape.
The result has been an open door for Melbourne’s Allsopp, who has rounded into form since his winter arrival to become the first Australian to score in Major League Soccer, and Richmond-area product Cristman, who is repaying head coach Curt Onalfo for trading for him twice, both in Kansas City and D.C.
“We both have U.Va. roots,” Cristman said of Onalfo. “He’s a family guy and a man of faith, and those things are all things that I respect and admire, and it allows me to connect with him. The fact that he’s shown his confidence in me has allowed me to put all those worries that kind of nag players behind and just work as hard as I can.”
