D.C. United Reacquire Former MVP Christian Gomez
Photo by Kyle Gustafson
So why break with precedent?
On Monday, United shipped out versatile midfielder Ivan Guerrero, a valuable designated player slot, and a 2010 second-round draft pick to regain the services of Christian Gomez—a striker who scored 39 times in 97 matches and won the league's MVP in 2006 for the Black-and-Red, but only started 17 games in Colorado last year. United also received the rights to goalie Mike Graczyk and an international roster slot in the deal.
Sure, it's great for nostalgia's sake. Gomez was a prolific lynchpin in United's most recent glories. But we can't help but feel that the trade might have been a bit of a reach for a squad desperate to make some sort of a splash. (It seems as if the commenters on Soccer Insider, uh, may concur.) Taking away the name value, United still just swapped an experienced, pass-first, gap-filler—a type of player that you can never have too many of—and a DP slot for a 34-year-old forward who hasn't scored in a league game since June, only played the full 90 six times last year, and rode the pine as an unused sub in eight of his teams' last nine 2008 games.
On the other hand, Guerrero impressed us last year with his ability to stretch defenses wide and track back on defense. While the former Coventry City man didn't light up the scoreboard, he was a vital peg in United's possession play.
On the plus side, the fact that United saw Guerrero as expendable means that they must feel comfortable with their current midfield corps; although with key cogs Fred and Ben Olson still battling through the preseason with nagging injuries, it'll be intriguing to see who, between Olson, Fred, Santino Quaranta, Clyde Simms, Joe Vide, and others, will get the starting nods when United open on March 22 at Los Angeles.