Evan Whitfield wasn’t included on the U.S. roster for the Olympic qualifying tournament, but a strong season with the Chicago Fire earned him a trip to Australia.
Evan Whitfield’s Olympic dream died last spring. His performances for the U.S. under-23 team, by his admission, hadn’t been great, and he had yet to prove himself in Major League Soccer.
He wasn’t part of Clive Charles’ 18-man roster – nor one of two alternates who stepped in when Joey DiGiamarino and Sasha Victorine pulled out with injury – for the CONCACAF qualifying tournament last April in Hershey, Pa.
That he’s in Australia today, part of the American team in the men’s soccer competition, is credit to many things, among them his skills and the work he’s put in developing his game this season with MLS’s Chicago Fire.
The Fire’s season-long battle with injuries also has played its part, providing playing time the flank-defender might not have otherwise accrued. It’s what he’s done with that time that has fashioned his return to Charles’ squad.
“I thought I had lost my shot at the Olympics,” Whitfield said. “What’s been great this season is that from the beginning, I’ve earned my minutes and played well. I’m definitely feeling better about my game now than I was before qualifying.”
He’s emerged as a solid MLS wing-defender in 25 appearances (11 starts) for the Fire this season, scoring twice and assisting on seven goals in the process. He started the four Chicago games preceding his departure for the Sydney Games, contributing a goal or assist in each.
Reassessment of back after qualifying
“I think Evan went through a stretch just prior to naming the qualifying roster [in which he had] a confidence problem,” said U.S. assistant coach John Ellinger. “We reassessed what was needed – we wanted to be double-deep all across the back – and his play for Chicago has been outstanding. That had a lot to do with him being named to the Olympic team.”
Said Fire coach Bob Bradley: “We’ve always felt Evan is a very talented young player with great speed who is very, very competitive, like a lot of young players. He needed fine-tuning just in terms of playing a little smarter, a little more under control, making better decisions on the field. I think that he clearly has made progress, and that’s evident by the fact he moved into the lineup and played well.”
Whitfield’s play has helped the Fire, despite injuries to key personnel, notch the second-best record in MLS heading into the playoffs.
He was brought into the Olympic team to provide depth on the right flank. He’s slated to back up Frankie Hejduk at right back, but he also can play in the wide midfield role.
Whitfield was in Europe when the Fire selected him in MLS’s ’99 draft, signing with Belgian First Division club KAA Gent after his senior season at Duke. He saw action in two league games, one as a starter, during his half-season with the club.
“It was something I always wanted to do since childhood,” said Whitfield. “It didn’t turn out that great, but I accomplished something I set out to do.
“I can’t say much negatively about the experience. It didn’t work out, so I guess that’s a negative. The weather was real poor, and I felt a little isolated being so far from home. … It’s one thing to go over there for a month or a few weeks, but immersing yourself into the culture, it’s a big eye-opener.”
Whitfield had trials with Sint-Truiden and Lommel when Gent declined to exercise its option on his contract, but he “wasn’t really interested in continuing the experience at that time.” He returned home and did little until Charles selected him for the Pan-American Games in July.
“It was a tough time,” he said. “I’d left Gent in May, went straight back to Phoenix, hadn’t played for anybody, hadn’t trained with anybody, and I got called in [for the Pan-Am Games]. I really hadn’t done anything since May – I was struggling a bit, thinking a little bit about finding another team in Europe, about signing with the Fire. It was a personally stressful time.”
A turnaround in 2000
He didn’t play his best, and he was sent off in a 2-1 loss to Honduras.
“I talked to Clive and John after the trip, and they felt it was necessary I get into a team,” Whitfield said. “Floating around wasn’t helping me much.”
He signed with Chicago but arrived too late to make an impact (or see playing time) in ’99, but he accompanied the Project-40 Select team to Portugal in December and arrived at spring training this season ready to show what he could do.
“I had a decent preseason, not great,” he said. “Bob started working me into the lineup, 20 minutes here and there. I started getting some confidence in my play, and lately, I think, I’ve been playing real well.”
“It’s not like it’s been a perfect, smooth path upward,” Bradley said. “He had some good games the first 8-10 games of the season, then he seemed to fall back a little bit, and in recent weeks has regained form and confidence and done well for us.”
It paid off in his Olympic selection, but Whitfield will miss the start of MLS postseason to compete in the Sydney Games.
“It’s kind of bad,” he says. “I’m starting to get into a bit of a groove with the Fire, put in a lot of good minutes … it’s tough to leave a team like that. But it’s the Olympics.”
by Soccer America senior editor Scott French