Ben Olsen Q&A - Part I
In part I of our 2011 season review with United Head Coach Ben Olsen, the Black-and-Red boss discusses his thoughts on the team's overall progress, Dwayne De Rosario, the importance of Branko Boskovic and the evolution of Charlie Davies.
What were your overall impressions of United’s 2011 season?
[The season] was both disappointing and encouraging. Going into this year, I think we knew it was going to be an up-and-down season, we knew at times we were going to be successful and at other times we were going to struggle to find our identity. We had inconsistencies from young players, but overall I feel like we made a huge step forward this year. I found out a lot about what guys are going to help this club in the future and what we need to add to that mix to make this a better team.
Your roster is the youngest in Major League Soccer in terms of the players that contributed throughout the year. How does that experience in 2011 benefit those players and the club as a whole moving forward?
First and foremost, they got an unbelievable year of experience. Rarely do that many young guys get to play that many minutes in real games. I think that’s invaluable for those players moving forward. At times [the team’s youth] hurt us, but, again, the experience our young guys got was great for their individual futures and the club’s future. Now, I’ve got to add some pieces to our youth next year to help, because I think at times we were too young out there. That’s something that will be addressed in the offseason, but, overall, it was a very encouraging year for our young guys.
Brandon McDonald and Ben Olsen
dcunited.com
What kind of pieces do you want to add this offseason to support the team’s young nucleus?
You’re always looking for character pieces, guys that are winners and that have been through it. You want guys that bring experience to that youth. We have some of those types of guys, but I’m still looking to add more of that. We’re going to continue adding key pieces to make this team better – guys that have athletic qualities and are faster and stronger. I think we realized this year we weren’t dangerous enough up top, at times, and, certainly in the back, we had plenty of lapses. We’ve got to get some guys in here that can help us in the defensive end and continue to build our back four.
One guy that was dangerous up front this year was Dwayne De Rosario. What are your thoughts on his contributions to the team?
I don’t see any reason why he shouldn’t be League MVP. He was a big part of our success and he came in and did what Dwayne does – make special plays and entertain. It was a joy to have him this year and, hopefully, the fans will be able to enjoy him again for the next couple of years.
Another attacking piece you’ll have back next season is Designated Player Branko Boskovic. How is his progress coming along?
Branko is training again and it’s nice to see him out here. He’s not all the way back yet [from a knee injury], but he’s getting there. He’s been here a couple of years now and I think he’s really beginning to understand our League. Sometimes sitting out enhances your understanding of what you need to do to be successful in this League. I’m very excited for him to be back, we’re working on getting him as fit as possible, and, hopefully, he’s flying at the beginning of next season to help us. He was a big missing piece this year; we could have used him down the stretch. We’re looking forward to having him back.
What did you think about Charlie Davies’ contributions to the team?
The first thing I’ll say about Charlie is that he’s done great this year. From the situation he was in to where he is now, it’s remarkable. He’s made an unbelievable recovery from an awful accident and he scored 11 goals. It’s very impressive and he still has a way to go as a player – he’ll tell you that as well – but that doesn’t undermine the fact that he had a great year.
Between De Rosario, Boskovic, Davies and others, can the team bring in another big attacking player?
We’re all sitting down now as staff and evaluating what we need. We’re going to evaluate the whole roster, and for places where we think we can improve, we’re going to get the best guys for those positions. That was a big plus this year – finding out exactly where we need reinforcements, where we need starters, and which guys we’re going to commit to now and rely on in the future.
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