When D.C. United travels to play Los Angeles this weekend, no Black-and-Red player will be more comfortable in The Home Depot Center than midfielder Chris Pontius. In front of a group of sixty friends and family likely to attend Sunday's match, the Yorba Linda, California product will look to continue his habit of playing well in The Golden State.
"It's special for me, my first game as a pro was in L.A. and that is something I'll remember forever," Pontius said while wearing a Dodgers baseball hat following Thursday's training session. "It's not necessarily that I try harder or do anything different when I play there, but I do enjoy seeing my family and friends and I know they enjoy watching me play."
Since opening its doors in 2003, the Home Depot Center has played host to some of the most important events in American soccer. Four times the site of MLS Cup, the semi-official training home of the U.S. men's national team has borne witness to plenty of pivotal moments. For Pontius, the shining facility has often brought out the best in his game. It has also seen him hit rock bottom.
It was at the HDC where Pontius scored his first professional goal, in his aforementioned debut against the Galaxy in March of 2009. A year later Pontius was in Carson again, this time after earning his first invite into Bob Bradley's national team camp. Last September, he racked up three assists - and was unquestionably the best player on the field - through the first 65 minutes of a match against Chivas USA.
Then, in the 66th minute, Pontius broke his right leg while colliding with Chivas defender David Junior Lopes. At the very beginning of what would be a long road to recovery, Pontius says he was lucky to be in such close proximity to his family. On Sunday, the 24-year-old wants to repay those closest to him for the support they lent six months ago.
"They kind of saw me down at times throughout the course of the injury," Pontius said of his family. "But I always surrounded myself with my family and friends and they kept pushing me on to come back.
I always want to play well in front of them, and I always want my team to play well in front of them."
Just a half-year removed from that Chivas match, Pontius is focused only on the positive aspects of his return to HDC. In fact, the always-cool Californian hardly acknowledges this trip as a return to the scene of his injury.
"I won't even think about it," replied United's winger, when asked whether the events of last September would enter his mind on Sunday. "It won't phase me."
Pontius and his teammates are scheduled for a 7:00 p.m. kickoff against Los Angeles on Sunday. The match can be seen on Galavision in the Washington area.
