CHESTER, Pa. -- D.C. United head coach Ben Olsen was upset about a lot of things following Fridayās 1-0 loss to the Philadelphia Union on a stoppage-time goal.
But Luciano Acosta wagging his finger in Olsenās face after being taken out of the game in the 61st minute didnāt appear to be one of them.
So what exactly happened there?
āHe was complaining he wasnāt getting the ball enough,ā Olsen said. āAnd heās got a point. But this is part of the process -- him figuring us out, his teammates figuring him out.ā
Itās indeed been somewhat of a rocky first MLS season for Acosta, a 21-year-old midfielder on loan from Boca Juniors. The dynamic playmaker showed his considerable talent by winning MLS Goal of the Week in April, but he hasnāt scored any other goals besides that and was held out of the starting lineup for a recent five-game stretch.
Still, despite his frustration bubbling over Friday, Acosta was diplomatic afterwards about his encounter with Olsen.
āI understand and respect the decision,ā he said. āThere wasnāt really anything that serious. We were just trying to say something to each other and neither of us understood what each of us was saying.ā
Acosta admitted that he āwasnāt feeling comfortableā on the ball throughout Fridayās game and āthatās why he made that decision to take me out.ā
Olsen seemed to agree with that assessment.
āI think he was forcing it a little bit, and those are growing pains,ā the D.C. head coach said. āBut itās not just him. Weāve gotta find him more as well. Thatās part of the process. Heāll figure it out.ā
And with five months still left in the season, thereās plenty of time for that to happen.
āI still think heās got to make the right choice more and play simple because guys are going to double-team him and triple-team him,ā Olsen said. āSo heās gotta make life easier on himself.
"But heās a good little player and heās gonna be good in this league. Itās just not always gonna be perfect.ā