It might be a little early to proclaim that he's all the way back, but if Eddie Johnson's performance against D.C. United (one goal, two assists, numerous havoc-inducing moments) over the weekend was any indication, we might be seeing the return of the phenom that broke onto the scene back in 2004-05, as opposed to the dead-weight striker we've seen for the last year and a half.
As noteworthy as the Johnson show was, the weekend was full of standout performances from strikers in general. This could be the most spirited race for the individual goal-scoring title in quite some time, with the likes of Taylor Twellman, Brian Ching, Carlos Ruiz, Jeff Cunningham and new kid on the block Luciano Emilio all looking capable of posting huge numbers. Here's some other observations from the weekend:
1. Josmer Altidore rebounded from an average effort in Week 1 to show why everyone's so high on him (Red Bull staffers have compared him to Chelsea's Didier Drogba). His near-post headed goal against Dallas was a superb finish and his cheeky dummy that set up Clint Mathis' goal showed great instincts. As for the Red Bulls, they surprisingly flourished even with Claudio Reyna sitting out as rookie Dane Richards continues to make a huge impression. With the Red Bulls also looking as if they've fleeced the Wizards in acquiring Dave Van Den Bergh for a ridiculously low price of a third-round supplemental draft pick, the Red Bulls could be poised to surprise all season long.
2. D.C. United have been easily the most disappointing team so far, managing to make a mockery of all the preseason projections that had them winning the title. No one expected the D.C. defense to be a fortress, but so far it's been shambolic. Other than importing some new defenders to help Bobby Boswell, the only short-term remedy might be switching to a four-man back line.
3. As bad as D.C. has looked, expansion team Toronto FC has looked worse. Naturally, one always expects some growing pains with first-year franchises, but given some of the attacking talent that coach Mo Johnston acquired in the offseason, there was room for optimism. The problem for Toronto is twofold. First, to no one's surprise the defense is a sieve and needs an infusion of talent. Second, matters are made worse by a midfield that seems to enjoy allowing the opposition to saunter unimpeded through the middle of the park. Considering Toronto has Richard Mulrooney and Paulo Nagamura in the lineup the midfield deficiency is surprising, but if ever a team needed its first-round pick on the field, it's Toronto. Rookie midfielder Maurice Edu can't return soon enough from injury. The other thing that would help is if Johnston started looking for more defensive acquisitions as opposed to his 999th forward.
4. I meant to talk about this last week, but MLS needs to change the way it currently scores assists. I'm talking specifically about the farcical awarding of an assist on Sasha Kljestan's goal for Chivas last week to rookie John Cunliffe. If you didn't see the goal, basically Cunliffe received the ball with his back to the goal and with no one around him laid it off all of one yard to Kljestan, who took at least two touches before unleashing a long-range shot into the corner of the net. Thus, according to statisticians, Cunliffe's 'play' had as much impact as say if Christian Gomez dribbled past seven guys and squared it for a striker to score into an empty net. I have equal issue with the assist given in general to corner kick takers. It's one thing when it's a clearly-designed play such as the Mathis near post corner against FC Dallas from which Altidore scored, but in general most corners are hoofed into the box in the general vicinity of a teammate and ill-deserving of an assist.
5. Finally a word on the Edmundo to Red Bulls rumor, as the Red Bulls continue their neverending quest for that elusive big-name foreign striker -- this time propositioning the legendary prolific (and also well-known head case) Brazilian striker Edmundo. Edmundo told Brazilian newspapers last week that he had only been using the MLS offer as a negotiating ploy for leverage (now that's unheard of) and had been shocked to learn that the Palmeiras directors are actually willing to let him go. In a show of emotion rather ill-fitting for a man nicknamed "The Animal", Edmundo pleaded his case by crying on Brazilian television and announcing that he was so hurt, that he actually was now willing to "seriously" consider the Red Bulls' offer. Good to know.
Jen Chang
