Sporting KC’s Dom Dwyer still confident despite slow start

Sporting Kansas City striker Dom Dwyer pumped his fist in the air and then jogged back toward the center of the field inside the StubHub Center in Los Angeles. Before he got there, he met teammate Graham Zusi, who briefly lifted him off the ground in celebration.

On an evening last September, this was the only on-the-field acknowledgment that Dwyer had become the top single-season goal scorer in Sporting KC history. Dwyer insisted there were more on the way, and he finished the year with 22 goals.

A special season.

But its encore has yet to take flight.

After setting the scoring record in 2014, Dwyer has only one goal through seven matches in 2015 heading into today’s 7:30 p.m. tilt in Houston. It’s a small simple size, sure, and it’s worth noting he has seen two goals waved off by referee’s calls.

But is it cause for alarm?

“It’s obviously not gone my way,” Dwyer said. “But I’m not concerned. I’ve always been confident.”

The ever-optimistic Dwyer says the goals will come, and when they do, he believes they will come in bunches. His teammates and coaches echoed similar statements this week.

But there’s no dismissing the lack of opportunity this season. Relatively speaking, of course.

During his record-setting 2014 campaign, Dwyer averaged one shot on goal for every 57 minutes he was on the field. In the first seven matches of 2015, that number has dipped to one shot every 90 minutes.

The quality of those shots has seemingly become more difficult, too. He’s putting only 33 percent of them on target this season, compared to 43 percent last year.

Asked if he would classify his shot quantity and quality as equal to last season, Dwyer paused, then quipped, “Would you?”

The reason for the decline in those numbers may be a rather simple one. After a 22-goal season, Dwyer isn’t exactly a secret weapon across the league.

“It’s obviously a different ballgame for him now,” Sporting KC midfielder Benny Feilhaber said. “It’s not his first year on the scene, where he’s able to find those spaces and people are a little unaware of it.”

Sporting KC coach Peter Vermes expressed displeasure in the way teams have been allowed to defend Dwyer this season.

“I don’t think the referees give him the same respect they give other forwards in the league,” Vermes said. “I think he gets beat up in games quite often. I think they think because he’s a stocky, strong guy, that, you know, guys are allowed to be able to tee off on him. I think it’s ridiculous.”

Dwyer said teams have undoubtedly been more physical with him this season, a concept he claims he doesn’t mind, “as long as it’s called the same way on the other side of the field.” But the style has taken a toll on his body early in the season.

“I’ve been battling a few things recently,” Dwyer said. “I said this week that my body is starting to feel a little bit better. I’ve been in a bit less pain and been able to move better and sharper. Give me a couple of days, and you should see it in Houston.”

Because he expected Dwyer to see a rash of double- and even triple-teams this season, Vermes made a point last offseason to bolster his options surrounding Dwyer. He added Krisztian Nemeth, who scored his second goal in last week’s 2-1 loss to the LA Galaxy.

Dwyer says the added weaponry, along with mainstays such as Feilhaber and Zusi, could offer him more openings in the near future.

“Things are going to come together,” Dwyer said. “I’m very excited to see this conversion in a month. We’ll see if people are still saying the same thing.”

This story was originally published April 24, 2015 at 1:00 PM with the headline "Sporting KC’s Dom Dwyer still confident despite slow start."