Just about entire roster is available against Revolution By qualifying for the Summer Olympics with the Honduras under-23 national team, Andy Najar will have the chance to put his talents on display for European clubs on a grand stage in London this summer.
His day-to-day place in the D.C. United lineup isn’t quite as assured. He returned from Olympic qualifying to a roster that could be at its deepest all season this weekend on the road at New England (2-3-0).
“There’s a competition building in the team,” Najar said via interpreter. “The coaches don’t know exactly who they’re going to put in. Unfortunately, there are only 11 spots. I’m going to continue to work here in practice because this is where the decisions are being made.”
| Up next |
| D.C. United at Revolution |
| When » Saturday, 4 p.m. |
| Where » Gillette Stadium, |
| Foxborough, Mass. |
| TV » CSN+ |
Najar and Chris Pontius started the season opener for United (1-2-2) on the wings, but since that game Nick DeLeon has emerged as a legitimate candidate for MLS rookie of the year, and Danny Cruz has shown the mettle that helped Houston get to last year’s MLS Cup final.
At goalkeeper, there has been no drop off since Joe Willis took over when Bill Hamid joined the U.S. team for its failed Olympic qualifying bid. On defense, Brandon McDonald has returned from a one-game suspension, creating a three-way battle with Emiliano Dudar and Dejan Jakovic for the two center back positions, though Dudar appeared to tweak his left hamstring in training Thursday. Marcelo Saragosa also is back with the team after a family medical emergency sent him back to Brazil, and he has traded time with Perry Kitchen at defensive central midfield.
“You can’t keep everybody happy,” United coach Ben Olsen said. “I realized that pretty early in this job. You can coddle them and play psychologist all you want. At the end of the day, they’re not going to be happy.”
With 10 games in the next six weeks, including three in the next nine days, Olsen will have plenty of chances to rotate his players.
“It’s a little bit different than the last couple years where you felt like if you needed depth, you didn’t have great choices,” he said.
That dissatisfaction prompted United to part ways in the offseason with a number of players, including Clyde Simms, who has been a solid addition to the Revolution midfield so far this year.
Just as United was without McDonald last week after a retroactive punishment handed down by the league, New England first-year coach Jay Heaps will be without veteran Shalrie Joseph on Saturday after he was similarly suspended one game for a tackle in the Revolution’s game last week against FC Dallas.
“They look like more of a soccer team than your traditional New England smash-mouth team,” Olsen said. “That’s a credit to Jay and what he’s trying to build there. I’ve got a lot of history with Jay, both as a teammate and playing against him. In a lot of ways we’re cut out of the same mold. We’re both highly competitive and obnoxious players on the field.”
