D.C. United goalkeeper Bill Hamid warms up before a match in November of last year. Photo by Francis Chung
It’s been a pretty slow off-season for D.C. United, but things are beginning to heat up—it’s hard to believe that the team’s first training session of 2013 is just over a week away! Here’s a roundup of some developments in the past couple of days:
Andy Najar Loaned Out: Converted right back Andy Najar, who’s been training with R.S.C. Anderlecht since mid-December, will remain with the Belgian team through the month of January. He’ll be available for Anderlecht’s matches during that month—they’ll have a friendly against Dutch club Heracles on Friday and face Gent in a Belgian Cup match the following week—before returning stateside to rejoin his teammates at their Florida training camp.
“This is another very good opportunity for Andy to gain valuable experience with a top European club,” D.C. United General Manager Dave Kasper said in a statement issued by United earlier in the day. “We look forward to his return for the second half of our pre-season.”
This isn’t Najar’s first experience training and playing overseas: he had a one-week trial with with EPL side Tottenham Hotspur in 2011 and has represented Honduras internationally on multiple occasions. It is, however, the first time that a European side has made serious overtures towards the United Academy product, and whether Najar will remain there beyond the month-long loan remains to be seen. His departure would leave a hole in United’s backfield that they won’t have very long to plug. At this point, though, it’s purely speculative: even if RSCA wanted to retain Najar’s services, they’d have to come to terms with the league and United on a transfer fee. They could also wait until the end of their season and make a move for him when the international transfer window opens in June. Either way, Najar wouldn’t be let go for chump change, and he’d be sorely missed by United’s fans if he left.
Hamid Called Up: Another United Academy product who’s made waves internationally, so to speak, is goalkeeper Bill Hamid, who on Sunday received an invitation to the U.S. Men’s National team camp in Carson, California. The 25-man roster will begin training on Monday ahead of a friendly with fellow CONCACAF members Canada on January 29; they’ll follow that up with the opening match of hexagonal play in World Cup-qualifying against Honduras on February 6.
Hamid bounced back from both injuries and a poor showing during Olympic qualifying to have a career year in 2012, posting eight shutouts. His 1.03 goals against/game average was among the league’s best. His only other appearance internationally came in a 1-0 victory against Venezuela last January.
Both Perry Kitchen and Chris Pontius had also been considered as possible call-ups. Kitchen missed the cut while Pontius tweeted late on Sunday that he’d been forced to pull himself out of camp due to a nagging groin injury he suffered during MLS play last November.
