Coaches of slumping teams typically face a choice familiar to gamblers with a cold hand: either stay the course in the hopes of eventual vindication, or take dramatic steps to shake up established routines and habits.
D.C. United boss Curt Onalfo has thus far espoused the former approach as he tries to guide his 0-4 side to better results. But with a virulent injury outbreak set to coincide with a busy run of matches, the Black-and-Red may have little choice but to ring a few changes and try new methods in their increasingly urgent search for a victory, starting with Wednesday’s U.S. Open Cup play-in match against FC Dallas.
“I don’t know if we can even shuffle a lot of players right now, with the injuries we have,” said hamstrung attacker Chris Pontius last week. “But we’ve got to find a way to win. The players that we have in are the players that we have. We have to find a way.”
United’s injury list is nine players deep and the team faces three league matches in quick succession starting this weekend, all of which would turn a cup qualifier into a nuisance for many MLS clubs. But Onalfo’s humbled squad sees little room to marginalize any competitive match, especially one that potentially offers a route into CONCACAF Champions League.
“Every game at this point is important,” defender Devon McTavish said. “It’s one of the goals of the team, of the organization, to get back into international play and Open Cup’s a good way to do that. So at this point we’re just trying to get a win no matter what it’s in.”
Dallas’ visit could nonetheless open doors for several players on the periphery who are eager for a chance to make an impression and spark another deep run in the nation’s oldest cup competition, which United won in 2008.
“Sometimes when you’re on the outside looking in, when you’re watching, you feel like you can help the team,” explained winger Boyzzz Khumalo, who has played just 53 minutes this season. “Sometimes you just need that little spark. I’m not saying I’m the spark, I’m just saying something different. Maybe something can change.”
A few eyebrows were raised around RFK Stadium last week when quotes attributed to Khumalo in a story on an African news website implied that the South African was discontented in D.C. and considering a move home. Like most reserve players around the world, Khumalo readily admits he would like more opportunities for playing time, but says he was badly misquoted by a journalist friend in his home country. The 29-year-old striker seems likely to figure in Wednesday’s lineup, where his creativity could add another dimension to the D.C. attack.
“Every time there’s a game, I want to be part of the team,” Khumalo said. “I think I can help every time we have a game. When I’m given my chance, I have to go out there and prove that I deserve to be there. I believe there’s going to be a turning point—something’s going to happen. It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.”
