D.C. United: Wayne Rooney right about Luciano Acosta

Wayne Rooney has stated that Luciano Acosta deserves more credit for his performances last season. The D.C. United star is absolutely spot on.

The sensational rise and rise of D.C. United in the second half of last season was one of the major stories of Major League Soccer.

It helps they had one of the biggest names in world football leading the line and are one of the more storied franchises in the league, but their course was far from a smooth one and it was an exhilarating ride while it happened.

The man largely named responsible for this resurgence is Wayne Rooney.

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It is fair enough. He scored 12 goals and assisted another seven in just 20 appearances and was deservedly nominated for league MVP. It is no coincidence that D.C. United went 11-3-4 in the 18 games that he started. Rooney was undoubtedly critical to D.C.’s turnaround.

But he was not the only player to improve his performances in the latter stages of the season — and he was not the only factor either. The opening of Audi Field and playing 14 of their last 18 games at home, where they boasted a 13-2-2 record.

In fact, this week, speaking with ESPN FC prior to Media Day in Los Angeles, Rooney highlighted the performances of Luciano Acosta as a key reason for the turnaround in D.C.’s form:

"“A lot of people say I come in and I done well to turn the team around. But for me, Luciano Acosta was incredible. It was a joy to play with him. And I think he was a massive reason why we done so well, also.”"

Across the season, Acosta scored 10 goals and recorded a sensational 17 assists. Only Boreck Dokal had more assists in all of MLS. 19 of those 27 direct involvements in a goal came after Rooney’s arrival in early January. Rooney and Acosta had a sensational connection, with the busy midfielder buzzing around the graceful but powerful Rooney, who could hold up the ball and thread passes into space, but it would be unfair to solely focus on the impact of Rooney.

Rooney gets the headlines because, well, he’s Wayne Rooney. Like Zlatan Ibrahimovic, he will be the centre of attention simply because of who he is. His career has earned him that right and his profile is such that anything he does will be celebrated and adorned, whether it is worthy of it or not.

Acosta does not carry the same star power. That’s not to say that he is an unpopular or unknown player. Simply that Rooney is a world star, one of the greatest players of his generation. It is natural that Acosta must play from the shadows a little.

But that should not diminish his performances and production. Acosta was one of the best attacking players in MLS last season. The statistics prove it, but you would rarely hear anyone say it. But Rooney is saying it. And he is absolutely right when he does.