The resurrection of one of Major League Soccer’s most decorated franchises, D.C. United, was supposed to coincide with the arrival of a legitimate goal scoring threat wrapped in a Designated Player tag, Eddie Johnson. Johnson arrived in D.C. on December 17, 2013 with his impressive club and international numbers, which included 93 career goals (64 in MLS, 19 for US National team), 206 club team appearances including spells in Europe with Fulham, Cardiff City and Preston North End, and 59 appearances for the U.S. Men’s National Team, including his time as a member of the 2006 USMNT World Cup squad. Based on that resume and what fans had seen from him the past two years in Seattle, it looked like D.C. had the striker they were missing last year to go along with the additions of Bobby Boswell, Sean Franklin, Fabian Espindola and Chris Rolfe, to name a few. Unfortunately, his impact on D.C. has not been what anyone expected, and has instead been marked by inconsistent play and immature antics on and off the field. At this point his outbursts have surprisingly have not affected the team negatively in the overall standings.
Here are all of Eddie Johnson’s 2014 distractions on a team currently competing for the Supporters’ Shield:
- The “honeymoon” phase between E.J. and controversy only lasted until April 28, when he was fined for “hands to the face/head of FC Dallas defender Zach Lloyd.”
- One week later he got himself into some hot water with his teammates, organization, and fans when he mentioned in an MLSsoccer.com article that “In Seattle – and no disrespect to the guys that are here – I felt like I didn’t have to run as much because we had better guys that had more quality on the ball.” He ended up gathering his teammates the following day and explaining how his words were taken out of context. Luckily the team seemed to have accepted the apology and moved on, however, the seeds of doubt had already been planted in some fans’ eyes.
- After getting snubbed from the USMNT World Cup roster, he went out in his next game and got himself suspended and fined for a reckless challenge against Montreal Impact Goalkeeper Troy Perkins, and for actions that violated the hands to the face/head of an opponent policy.
- The morning after the worst performance of the season for D.C. United, a 3-0 loss to Real Salt Lake, E.J. got into a twitter spat with some fans. The most famous in the D.C. area has been one fan who wrote, “This town rewards players who hustle even when their production is down (see: Bryce Harper, RGIII)”. Johnson’s response, “Lol. I’m not here to please your town buddy”. Johnson later apologized to the fans and blamed it on frustration after a tough loss.
- Just a few days later on Wednesday, August 13, MLS announced that E.J. would be suspended two games and fined for violent conduct towards Real Salt Lake player Carlos Salcedo.
While Johnson’s antics have not endeared him to the local fan base, his on the field play has not been all that bad. He hasn’t been scoring at the pace D.C. may have expected, but he still has been a significant force on the field when he has been able to stay on it and keep his head. His stat sheet currently shows 19 games played with 4 goals and 2 assists, however he does a lot more while on the field, such as keeping teams honest. They know he can strike at any time so he demands attention when he’s on the field; this allows teammates such as Fabian Espindola, Luis Silva, or Chris Rolfe the ability to make plays. He has only played the full 90 minutes in 10 of his 19 games (the last four in a row included), but has only been subbed off before the 80th minute 4 times this season. He is being given every opportunity to succeed by the team and his teammates.
Eddie Johnson didn’t arrive with the best reputation and, as mentioned earlier, the team has continued to make strides with or without him. As E.J. sits out this weekend’s Eastern Conference clash with Sporting Kansas City, he will have an opportunity to see that while this team is not the same as his Seattle teams from the past two years; it certainly is a formidable one that has the opportunity to make a special run this season. It will be up to Eddie if he decides to be part of that journey.
