CHESTER, Pa. — The opportunity David Accam was waiting for came in a familiar setting a week ago.
The winger, who was relegated to the bench after a slow start to the 2018 campaign, made his first extended appearance for the Philadelphia Union since May 30 in the wild 4-3 victory over his former side, the Chicago Fire.
Now with Ilsinho injured, Accam is ready to return to the starting lineup and prove his worth to manager Jim Curtin and the coaching staff.
“It’s been tough because I came here and wanted to be playing every game,” Accam said. “It wasn’t so, but credit to the other guys who are doing well. You have to wait patiently for your chance and I did. I was just working hard and I knew my chance would come. I’m just ready to take the chance I get.
“Every player wants to play from the beginning. For me, I’m just happy I’ll have a lot of minutes to get back into my game and try to help the team. I’m always ready and I know the coach will call upon me to help the team.”
The 27-year-old midfielder provided the Union with a massive boost in the Eastern Conference playoff race last Wednesday, as he bagged a 95th-minute, game-winning goal to help the club earn its third win over its closest competition for the sixth playoff spot.
“For me, it was great,” Accam said. “We wanted to win this game because we know the difference it makes on the table. I’m happy I did my part to help the team win.”
Accam’s celebration showed mixed emotions, as he leapt in the air with his teammates surrounding him before stopping and respecting his former club.
“I still have great respect for the (Fire) and I didn’t really mean to celebrate like that,” Accam said. “I was just caught in the moment.”
Although they didn’t participate in league play over the weekend, the Union got a nice tune-up for Wednesday’s U.S. Open Cup quarterfinal against Orlando City by knocking off Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt in a friendly.
“You don’t want to stop completely and go straight into a game,” Accam said. “The game on Saturday was a good exercise for us. Hopefully we’ll be sharp to go into Wednesday.”
Although Accam is the frontrunner to replace Ilsinho in the starting lineup, he isn’t the only qualified winger, as the depth built up by the club makes every training session a worthy competition.
“We have a lot of quality players on the wings,” Accam said. “For a wing guy, you have to come in every day and show your quality.”
But with the opportunity ahead of him Wednesday, and in Saturday’s league clash at home with the LA Galaxy, Accam is ready to take back the starting job.
“You’re hungry to start a game and that’s what’s been happening,” Accam said. “I’ve been working hard in training, but most of the wingers are doing well in games. It was just about being patient and working hard and now it’s my time to take it.”