Short John DiRaimondo Interview

John DiRaimondo is the young central midfielder brought to United in late March of last year. He has experience playing for Colorado and also had loan stints at Harrisonburg City Islanders and Richmond Kickers while with United last season. He scored two goals during his five games on loan with the Kickers and has been invited back to training camp by United this year according to Steve Goff. Below are a few questions John answered for the blog regarding his hopes for the new season and the complexities of playing at altitude.

Hey John, thank you so much for answering some questions for the blog.

1) As someone who played quite a bit at altitude while with Colorado, can you help describe the difficulties playing at Dick Sporting Goods Park and if altitude could be reason for United's struggles in away matches there.
John D: Playing at altitude is definitely a hard thing to do. The problem is that it takes the body a week or so to get acclimated to the altitude so there is really no way to go into a game in Denver and be fully prepared. Also, it isn't right down the block from D.C. and it is tough to travel such a far distance and then play at altitude.

2) What have been the best parts about coming to play for United?
John D: The best part about coming to play for United has to be representing a club with such a deep tradition and passion for the game. Also, playing in front of the fans at D.C. is great. There are very few places around the league that even come close to the atmosphere our fans bring at RFK.

3) What are your personal goals going in to next season?
John D: I think one of my personal goals next years is to contribute more. Unfortunately last year I didn't get a whole lot of playing time and this year I want to make sure I go into preseason, work hard, and hopefully get a chance to prove myself.

4) Which MLS player have you looked up to in your career so far?
John D: While in Colorado I really looked up to and admired Pablo Mastroeni. Not only is Pablo a great player, but he is also a great person. He really helped me with my game a lot and taught me what it takes to be a professional. In D.C. we have several great veteran players so I tried to learn from them, but I would have to say I looked up to Ben Olsen. I used to watch Ben play on the national team when I was younger and really admired the way he played so I was really fortunate to be able to play with him last year. He, like Pablo, is also just a good guy to be around.

5) What do you think are the biggest opportunities for the team to focus on in order to regain their status at the top of the league?
John D: I think this year with a new coach coming in it's a new start for the team. If we focus on being organized as a team and buying into the new system we will succeed. We have an extremely talented team, we just need to get out on the field and show it.

Thanks John, and good luck!
-Black and Red on Both Sides