Jaime Can't Start

The DCU news today is that Jaime Moreno has been recalled to the Bolivian National Team. The Times and The Post both go with the story, each with different parts of Moreno's written statement. From the Times:

"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."

Steve Goff in The Post takes adds some detail:

"I've worked hard the last couple of years to earn this opportunity to get back on the national team," Moreno, 33, said in a written statement.

Goff goes on to add speculation about Kpene, Dyachenko, Fred, or Addlery seeing more time as Moreno is out.

When I wrote that Jaime should start a few weeks ago, this was precisely the situation I had in mind. United was going to be forced to play without Moreno for some time, so until then it made sense to have him start games. United will now get a good chance to evaluate their option while Moreno takes part in his well-earned National Team duties. I think this situation is somewhat analogous to Ben Olsen's World Cup duty last year. Ben was clearly a good player for us, but when he came back the issue of where he fit into the lineup appeared as Simms and Carroll had filled in well and the team was winning. United will be fortunate to have the same run of form away, but if they do it makes any potential transition of Jaime's role that much easier for everyone concerned. If ever there was a good time to lose a team leader (and there really isn't, but just go with me for a moment here) then this is it.