Part of the problem of being a feeder league is the disappointment that eventually one day players that have grown up through one’s youth academy might move on. While transfer fees are great, there is nothing quite like losing a top player. D.C. United appear to be on the verge of losing one of their best players as Bill Hamid has reportedly received interest from European clubs.
Over a series of tweets on January 3rd, Washington Post beat writer Steve Goff revealed that the 23 year old goalkeeper had “received interest from England and Italy.” No further information has been revealed as to what particular teams are interested in Hamid but with the European transfer market set to open this week it is expected that more rumors may come up.
As a goalkeeper, Hamid possesses many of the skills that top European clubs desire. He is still very young for the position (24,) but is already a seasoned professional at the position. In 2014, he became the first-ever Homegrown Player to make 100 appearances in MLS.
Beyond just making coach Ben Olsen’s starting eleven, 2014 was a career-year for Hamid. He posted career-bests in saves (110,) Goals Allowed (34,) and shutouts (10). Especially during the early part of the 2014 campaign United relied heavily on Hamid to keep the team in matches and give them opportunities to gain points.
After a very poor 2014 for both Hamid and United, both he and the club turned things around in 2014. After helping lead the club to the Eastern Conference Regular Season Title (17-9-8,) Hamid was awarded with the 2014 MLS Goalkeeper of the Year.
In addition to the postseason accolades, Hamid has found himself as the clear number three goalkeeper in Jurgen Klinsmann’s US Men’s National Team fold. Despite a poor performance in an October friendly against the Republic of Ireland, it is expected that Hamid will be called in for the US Men’s National Team’s upcoming fixtures against Chile (1/28/2015) and Panama (2/8/2015).
If D.C. United were to lose Hamid, it would certainly impact the club’s off-season decisions. United already traded away Joe Willis to the Houston Dynamo in December and their only other goalkeeper on the roster, Andrew Dykstra, is returning from a season-ending ACL injury.
One name to keep an eye on: former San Jose Earthquakes goalkeeper Jon Busch. Busch led the league in saves last season and was one of the very few bright spots for the ‘Quakes last season. He is 38 years old and would only be a short-term solution but could serve as a temporary solution if/when the team loses Hamid.
