Op-Ed \ John Haydon

Despite his talent, Etcheverry's temper is a detriment to D.C. United.

(Tuesday, April 24, 2001) -- It's time for D.C. United coach Thomas Rongen to read Marco Etcheverry the riot act before United's erratic captain leads the club into a downward spiral.

In April 14’s 2-0 loss at the Chicago Fire, Etcheverry not only lost his temper, but could have caused serious injury to a fellow player. In the later stages of the game against the Fire, Etcheverry deliberately directed a throw-in at the back of DaMarcus Beasley's head. The referee, who had already cautioned the midfielder, let that infringement go by, but it was clearly a cautionable offense.

Give credit to Beasley, 18, who kept his cool and walked away from the incident. Imagine if the roles were reversed. The hot-tempered Etcheverry might have decked the youngster.

Things got worse. In the dying minutes of the match, Etcheverry was ejected for head-butting Chicago's Demo Kovalenko. For a team to lose its captain in such a disgraceful manner in just the second game of the season is indeed an omen of bad things to come.

It's vital that Etcheverry demonstrate fully his stature this season because this is a very young United team that desperately needs leadership. He has the ability, more than almost anyone in Major League soccer, to singlehandedly dominate a match. Yet with stars Jaime Moreno, Eddie Pope and Ben Olsen all sidelined with injuries, losing Etcheverry to suspension for Saturday’s home battle with the New England Revolution was the last thing that was needed. That D.C. won the match doesn’t make Etcheverry any less culpable.

In many ways, Etcheverry's red card was "deja vu all over again." In last season's opener at RFK Stadium, the talented playmaker was sent to an early shower after a nasty tackle on Los Angeles Galaxy midfielder Mauricio Cienfuegos, and we all know it was downhill from there for the once proud "Black and Red." Etcheverry, who more than often displays brilliance on the field, is cursed with a bad temper and it's no wonder he is nicknamed El Diablo -- "The Devil."

Soccer is a contact sport and it's understandable for a player to lose his cool now and then. Many players carry memories of broken bones, concussions and contusions, courtesy of some dirty opponent in the past, but that does not excuse improper conduct the next time that person is fouled.

Etcheverry boasts a serious paper trail. In regular-season play, the United maestro has been ejected four times in his MLS career, tied for third all-time with defender Carlos Llamosa, behind New England midfielder Leonel (The Baron) Alvarez (6 red cards) and tenacious Miami defender Ivan McKinley (5 expulsions). In yellow cards, McKinley (42) and Alvarez (38) again beat out Etcheverry (35), while in the all-time caution points category, Etcheverry holds the third spot with 117 points behind Alverez and midfielder Geoff Aunger.

"For such a finesse player, Marco is higher than most in cautions,'' said one MLS official.

Compare Etcheverry's rap sheet to United defender Eddie Pope who has one red card and just six cautions in five MLS seasons. Defenders usually get more cautions than midfielders because they are the ones making the crunching tackles.

Etcheverry apologists say he is a passionate and emotional player who wears his heart on his sleeve. They argue that because he is one of the few truly gifted stars in a league full of mediocre performers, he faces more than his fair share of abuse from opponents. There's truth to some of that, but it appears that over the years, referees have been extra lenient with the Bolivian precisely because he is one of the league’s marquee players.

It hasn’t helped this year that teammate and countryman Jaime Moreno, a calming force for Etcheverry on the field, did not make his first appearance of the season in the second half Saturday after a long recuperation from knee surgery.

There are those who feel bad, and rightly so, that Etcheverry was sent off in a 1994 World Cup match in Chicago with only six minutes elapsed for a harmless tackle on German defender Lothar Matthaeus. That was the end of Etcheverry's World Cup experience and he seems have held a grudge against referees ever since.

It's time for Marco to stop whining about MLS game officials and to take a look in the mirror. Athletes should set an example especially if, like Etcheverry, they are making additional big bucks running soccer camps and clinics for young players.

Take the example of England striker Gary Lineker, the top goal scorer at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. Lineker faced a lot of tough defenders in his time and suffered all kinds of dirty tackles. Unlike Etcheverry, Lineker always got up off the ground, brushed the dust from his shorts a nd got back at his opponents the way it hurts most -- by burying the ball in the back of their net.

In his amazing career, the English striker scored 192 goals in 333 games for Leicester, Everton and Tottenham, plus 48 goals for the national team between 1984-92. Yet in all his playing days, Lineker never got red-carded. More amazingly still, Lineker never once received a yellow card.

Etcheverry is indeed a great player, but at D.C. United, more is expected of him, especially from a team as youthful as the current one is. He must set a standard of play and inspire his teammates. If the captain continues to lose his cool, he instead becomes a liability.

To paraphrase Rudyard Kipling: "If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it on you. . . you'll be a Man, my son!''

John Haydon is soccer columnist for the Washington Times and can be e-mailed at haydon@twtmail.com.

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