Nick De Leon’s adventure at right-back will continue on Saturday night as United host Dom Dwyer and Sporting Kansas City (photo credit: Graham Green)
Defending is never a pretty subject but it is a damn important. As a whole, the work done on this sector of the pitch is one of low praise and high scrutiny. Either a defender or goalkeeper’s work goes unnoticed or every error is scrutinized. There is very little room for error.
D.C. United over the past few years seems to have been the exception to the rule. Over the course of the last three seasons United have put together a very effective back four and goalkeeping combination. Since their 2014 revamp which saw management draft Steve Birnbaum and sign Sean Franklin and Bobby Boswell United have finished in the top ten in Goals Allowed each season. Having one of, if not, the best goalkeepers in the league in Bill Hamid has helped.
So with the 2017 season about to kick off today against Sporting Kansas City (7pm EST MLS Live) let’s take a look at what supporters can expect from the defense and from the goalkeeper position.
D.C. United goalkeeper Bill Hamid last season had a performance for the ages against Sporting Kansas City. Can he do it again in the friendly confines of RFK Stadium (photo credit: Graham Green)
#1 Bill Hamid will be their starting goalkeeper
Although there was some question as to whether Hamid would start against Sporting due to a knee injury it is expected that the former Homegrown Player will be in action. In United’s final preseason match against the Philadelphia Union Hamid showed some signs of rust but for the most part appeared to be in form.
Against Sporting what will be interesting to see is how Hamid handles Dom Dwyer. Dwyer will likely spend the better part of the match trying to find space in between Birnbaum and Franklin. Assuming Benny Feilhaber can find Dwyer (that was not always a given last season) that should give the Englishman some opportunities alone against Hamid. Hamid normally likes to push his opponents wide in these instances and go big. The big concern with that is that Dwyer has shown an uncanny ability in pinpointing low shots into the back of the net.
First match aside 2017 could be a very huge season for Hamid. With opportunities at both the national team (Brad Guzan and Tim Howard have not exactly lit the world on fire for the United States as of late) and club level open this could be the season where he finally gets the recognition that he has deserved.
United’s Sean Franklin will make the jump from right-back to center-back this season (photo credit: Charlotte Thomas)
#2 The Sean Franklin-Steve Birnbaum center-back combination
For the better part of the past three seasons D.C. United supporters could not even look at their scorecard and know who was starting in defense. Taylor Kemp, Bobby Boswell, Steve Birnbaum, and Sean Franklin. Sure there may have been a Kofi Opare or Jalen Robinson appearance here or there but for the most part the lineup remained unchanged. At a time when things were quite chaotic on the other end of the pitch it provided a measure of stability and a sigh of relief for a supporter base who appreciate knowing the ins and outs of their squad.
But at the end of 2017 Olsen did something interesting: he moved Nick De Leon to right-back. That threw off the traditional order of things. That move spelled the end of Franklin’s tenure at the position and created a new dynamic for the club. The gamble paid off giving United some additional flexibility on counter-attacks while showing that De Leon was very effective at limiting wingers chances from the outside.
The one downside to this move is that it threw the traditional order of things out of whack. Franklin in the offseason made the move to center-back and for at least the time being has taken over Boswell’s spot. While much of the focus has been on Boswell, a now former captain and fan favorite, moving to the bench the real question is how Birnbaum and Franklin will function as a unit.
What Olsen seems to be looking towards is having a little bit more speed at the position. Boswell hasn’t really lost a step but as compared to Franklin he doesn’t have the same quickness off the ball. In a league that is getting younger and where the pace is getting much faster Olsen is making the gamble that Franklin can make the adjustment and build an immediate rapport with Birnbaum.
The one concern about this move is that both Birnbaum and Franklin like to move up on the attack. While in theory that should benefit United in terms of set pieces and attacking chances the drawback is that it could leave them susceptible on the counter-attack. Against Dwyer on Saturday and going forward they are going to need to plan their movements carefully. One small misjudgment or one missed tracking assignment and it could be off to the races for the opposition.
Being named captain means more difficult assignments for Steve Birnbaum in 2017, including marking NYCFC’s David Villa more often (photo credit: Jennifer Jordan-Harrell).
#3 Steve Birnbaum as team captain
It is amazing to think that just three years ago that Steve Birnbaum was a rookie switching his time between the United bench and the Richmond Kickers. Although he was a first round draft pick in 2014 Birnbaum didn’t start at first for D.C. spending most of his time on the bench or out on loan. But an injury to Jeff Parke gave him the opportunity to start and he hasn’t looked back since. Since becoming a full-time starter he has made 85 appearances across all competitions for the club becoming an integral part of the team and moving up the ranks as one of the best center-backs in the league.
This season brings a new challenge for Birnbaum: captaincy. Although the position itself at times can be a bit overstated it represents a tonal shift for D.C. Over the past three seasons the club has relied on players with extensive experience to lead the club. Although Birnbaum is not exactly a rookie he is still very young. This move, coupled with the additions of Patrick Mullins, Luciano Acosta, Ian Harkes, and Chris Durkin represents a move towards the club getting younger and thinking towards the future.
But clubs cannot just rely on young players. In order to succeed in MLS teams need a balance of younger players with something to prove and veterans with experience in high-pressure situations. United has both of these so the emphasis now shifts towards getting all parties on the same page. Birnbaum seems to cross both sets of players so having him as captain seems to be a good decision by Olsen. Although one game does not make or break a season the season opener against Sporting KC will provide a good litmus test as to how the club’s chemistry.
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A couple of quick notes for the D.C. United and Sporting Kansas City match..
United midfielder Luciano Acosta will be a game-time decision. Acosta picked up a bit of a knee injury in United’s final preseason match against the Union and the club has been rather coy about whether he will start. If he is unable to go look for Julian Buescher or Sebastian Le Toux to replace him in a likely 4-1-4-1.
D.C. also made a couple of roster moves this week, sending forward Alhaji Kamara and goalkeeper Eric Klenofsky on loan to the USL’s Richmond Kickers. Kamara was signed by the club last season and has sparingly since the July move (although he did score the game-winning goal against Sporting last season). Klenofsky was drafted by United at this year’s SuperDraft.
Look for Sporting to use Graham Zusi at right-back tonight. KC coach Peter Vermes has been flirting with putting the USMNT international at the position during the preseason. If Zusi starts along the back four look for Saad Abdul Salaam to be Vermes’ first move off of the bench.
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