Jaime Moreno has been called up to the Bolivian national team for a tournament later this month, meaning D.C. United’s all-time leading scorer will miss at least four games starting with Saturday’s match against the Chicago Fire at RFK Stadium.
Moreno left yesterday to join his countrymen for the 2007 Copa America tournament, which runs from June 26 to July 15 in Venezuela. The 12-team event is South America’s most prestigious tournament. Bolivia is set to play Venezuela, Uruguay and Peru in the opening round. If Bolivia advances, Moreno could miss more United games.
After a five-year absence from the team, the 33-year-old Moreno played for Bolivia in an exhibition game against Ireland last month. He has scored nine goals in 65 games for Bolivia.
“I am truly honored to once again have the opportunity to play for Bolivia in a prestigious tournament like Copa America,” Moreno said in a statement. “I’ve worked hard the last couple of years to earn this opportunity to get back on the national team.”
Moreno has scored three goals this season for United and is tied with recently retired Jason Kreis for Major League Soccer’s all-time scoring record with 108 goals.
The recent strong play of United veteran midfielder/defender Ben Olsen — United’s leading scorer — will help mitigate Moreno’s absence. Olsen scored three goals in Sunday’s 4-2 win over New York Red Bulls as the club extended its unbeaten run to six games. It was Olsen’s first career hat trick, and he was named MLS player of the week for the second time in his 10-year career. The other time was in the fourth week of the 2000 season, when Olsen earned a goal and an assist in extra time to seal a 3-2 win over the Chicago Fire.
“The focus is going to be on me, but the focus should be on a 90-minute performance from all these guys,” Olsen said after Sunday’s game.
Olsen is also a candidate to be called up by the U.S. team, which has been invited to play in the Copa America. That roster is expected to be named late next week.
“Benny’s performance was the end result of a great team effort on Sunday afternoon,” United coach Tom Soehn said.
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