It is now official: Charlie Davies, the former Team USA star forward that had his career sidetracked by a serious car accident in 2009, will play for D.C. United this summer. The team announced that it has finalized its acquisition of Davies on loan from French club FC Sochaux for the 2011 season, giving the Black and Red much-needed scoring up front.
The team will formally introduce Davies in a press conference at 2 p.m., but announced the news in a press release.
"We are really pleased to have concluded a deal that will bring Charlie to United," said General Manager Dave Kasper. "Charlie spent 10 days with us in our first pre-season camp and underwent a full battery of physical and medical testing. He simply looks terrific. Coming in, we weren't sure where he would be, but he's great physically, has impressed with his mental approach and we're excited to see him on the field with us this season."
Davies has been training with the team in Fort Lauderdale since the beginning of February, and passed a medical examination over the weekend. From there, D.C. United simply needed to finalize the loan arrangement and some contractual issues in order to bring Davies into the fold. D.C. United had the first chance at Davies because they were atop the MLS allocation list.
Davies' status as a rising U.S. soccer star was postponed in 2009 when he got into a serious car accident on the George Washington Parkway while training with the U.S. National Team. Davies survived, but sustained serious injuries, while a passenger in his car was killed. He tried to come back, but could not recover in time for the World Cup.