FRISCO, Texas -- A couple of September signings could prove to be a big item when the Alan I. Rothenberg Trophy is handed out at Sunday's MLS Cup Final.
Say hello to Houston's Paul Dalglish and New England's Jose Manuel Abundis. Lumped into the "better late than never" category, they are two late-season additions who have enjoyed the postseason joy ride and have the potential to put their respective teams over the hump in the battle for MLS supremacy.
Dalglish has been in plenty of media demand since scoring two goals in last week's 3-1 victory over Colorado in the Conference Championship last week. He has four goals in his last six games dating back to the regular season and has firmly won the confidence of his teammates as an offensive force.
Dalglish didn't make his MLS debut until Sept. 10. Abundis, meanwhile, signed with the Revolution in September and had a game-winning goal against Colorado on Sept. 30 in his first game in the league. Although Abundis is a reserve while Dalglish has emerged as a prominent starter, there's always the chance Abundis could come off the bench and make a splash on Sunday.
Picking up players in mid-stream is an iffy proposition, but both clubs know there's a chance those speculative investments will pay a huge dividend in the biggest game of the season.
Dalglish has taken his offensive splurge in stride and just hopes the chemistry within Dynamo holds up for one more day.
"That's my job, to score goals," Dalglish said. "Between myself and Brian (Ching), we're expected to do that. Brian and I have gotten a lot of headlines because of the goals. That's what people want to talk about. But it takes 11 people and every one of them has been magnificent for the last few games."
Dalglish said his recent hot streak has bred confidence all the way around.
"When you score goals, you feel confidence and when you feel confidence, you tend to score goals," Dalglish said. "One feeds off the other."
Dalglish had high hopes when he arrived in Houston that he would be able to make an impact down the stretch.
"I felt I could add to the team, but the guys had done so well before I got here," Dalglish said. "I was just looking to step in and help give them a little push forward. Hopefully, I've done well enough to earn the respect of my teammates."
Houston coach Dominic Kinnear saw strong signs that Dalglish could contribute shortly after the Scotsman joined Dynamo.
"He has good movement," Kinnear said. "The way he times his runs, there's a fine line in him between being onside or offside. When you look at his two goals last week against Colorado, he had the movement in the box. He always kept his feet moving.
"You never really know what's going to happen when you sign a guy. The good thing was that he was with us for five days before we signed him and he looked very impressive. So, we thought he would add another option to our attack. He's not a guy who's going to go by four guys. He's relying on the other people around him and they've done their job, too."
Abundis came to New England after a decade as one of the more accomplished forwards in Mexico. He has 10 national team goals and scored 92 times in 301 top division appearances during his Mexican pro career.
New England coach Steve Nicol said Abundis would be a guy who's capable of coming on in reserve and providing an offensive lift.
"We signed him because he can score goals," Nicol said. "If he doesn't start, we could put him on and feel like he could add something. Every game that he has played for us, he has had a chance to score. We know that if we put him on the field, he's going to have that chance, because that's what he does best."
Robert Falkoff is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
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