D.C. United Approval Ratings: Chris Pontius
by Martin Shatzer on Dec 17, 2011 1:44 PM EST
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We're spending the first month or so of the D.C. United offseason grading each player on the roster with an approval rating. A vote for APPROVE means you were satisfied with the player's performance and want to see him back in D.C. next season. A vote for DISAPPROVE means you want United to move on without him. There is no middle ground, so please leave salary and contract implications out of your decision.
Chris Pontius was leading the team in starts and minutes when he suffered a season-ending leg injury against Chivas USA. He also happened to be having his best game of the season. Pontius notched three assists in that game before having to exit in the 73rd minute. All three goals were scored by Charlie Davies, but none of the three could have happened without Pontius' contribution.
The midfielder had seven goals and five assists in 25 starts and 2,114 minutes in 2011. All were career highs. He was a vital part of United's attack this year, and will continue to be in the future. His speed and energy on the left wing caused problems for opposing defenses, while his shooting is among the most powerful and accurate on the team. Pontius made his return to the U.S. National Team camp in August, and barring any setbacks, he should be on track to return to United for training camp in February, and hopefully return to international duty shortly thereafter.
The answer to this poll isn't tough. Actually, the answers to the last few polls haven't been tough. That will change very soon though. Stay tuned and prepare your responses on Santino Quaranta, Conor Shanosky, and Clyde Simms for next week.
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Having Pontius opposite Najar makes us a nightmare to defend, because you can’t just pinch in narrow and hope it works. I think he’d have hit 10 goals if he finished the season. Party Boy is one of our key players and we need to seriously consider sacrifice or whatever sorcery we can engage in to keep him healthy for a full season.
Writer on SBN's DC United blog Black and Red United | @ChestRockwell14 | KEEP UNITED IN DC
10 goals
Before I opened up the comments I was asking myself how many goals I figured CP’d have had on the season if he hadn’t been knocked out, and I too decided 10. I still think the playoffs without Jakovic would probably have been a bridge too far even with CP healthy, but I may be wrong about that.
2012
So if CP13 was on track for 10 goals this season before falling to injury, do we anticipate 10 from him in 2012? More?
Managing Editor for BlackAndRedUnited.com. Weekly Columnist for SB Nation D.C..
by Martin Shatzer on Dec 18, 2011 9:44 PM EST up reply actions
10 seems like a fair goal
Pontius is one of the best midfielders in MLS of any kind in terms of putting himself in position to score, and he’s not just a guy that relies on one thing (like, say, Dane Richards). I have a hard time demanding more than 10 goals from any winger in a 442, but if there’s a guy other than Donovan who can score that much from the wing, it’s Party Boy.
Back in 2007, we got 14 goals from Olsen and Fred as our wingers. That’s outstanding, and yet Pontius and Najar should be able to top that with relative ease if they stay fit and we find an adequate player to lead the line up front. If Boskovic fits in and De Ro maintains anything close to his 2011 form, this team should be a legit contender to lead MLS in scoring.
Writer on SBN's DC United blog Black and Red United | @ChestRockwell14 | KEEP UNITED IN DC
by ChestRockwell on Dec 20, 2011 9:49 AM EST up reply actions
Maybe, maybe not
I think if Pontius had opted not to go in for that loose ball at Chivas, we’d have been much closer to a playoff berth. Once Party Boy was hurt, our offense became utterly reliant on De Ro and Najar to score all the goals, with Wolff providing the cleverness off the ball.
As a rule of thumb, it’s pretty difficult to be a consistent offensive threat when you’re only able to create danger through 3 players. I suppose it’s been done before – United’s offense in the 90s was essentially Etcheverry, Moreno, and Diaz Arce/Lassiter, and when we played 352 the vast majority of our offense was from Moreno, Gomez, and Emilio – but those players were all central. Losing Pontius with our set of players meant losing our tactical balance. Teams could emphasize defending their left flank to deal with Najar, and we were more or less reduced to looking for goals via set pieces or moments of magic, which is not a way to win consistently even with De Ro in outstanding form.
Our defense was still letting in too many goals, which is why I don’t say we’d definitely have made the playoffs with a healthy Pontius. What I will say is that we’d have picked up several more points, and that last game against KC might have been a “win and you’re in” sort of game instead of being meaningless.
Writer on SBN's DC United blog Black and Red United | @ChestRockwell14 | KEEP UNITED IN DC
by ChestRockwell on Dec 20, 2011 9:37 AM EST up reply actions
Pre DeRo team MVP
When Pontius arrived in 09 he was “good for a rookie”. In 2010 he was hampered by injuries, and produced little. In 2011 Pontius raised his game, and became one of the best left sided attackers in the league. Pontius provides an excellent left counter punch to Najar’s right sided brilliance. I am very excited for a whole season of the Pontius, DeRo, And Najar triangle. We have a lethal attack when all three are healthy.
by DMV IX on Dec 17, 2011 5:54 PM EST via iPhone app reply actions
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