One of the trademarks of a good forward is knowing that no matter how many chances don't go your way, the next one is always going in.
Tesho Akindele proved on Friday night that despite missing a couple chances he would've liked to have had back in Sunday's scoreless draw at Columbus, he's got the short memory that all strikers need, scoring his second goal of the season in FCD's 2-1 win over Philadelphia.
"It felt great," Akindele said about scoring his second goal of the year. "As a striker you’ve got to believe in yourself. If you don’t believe in yourself, you’re not going to score. I had confidence in myself and it paid off."
Akindele had a couple guilt-edged chances in Sunday's goalless draw in Columbus that certainly kept him up that night, but the 22-year-old showed he's going to be a big part of Oscar Pareja's side for years to come with a comprehensive performance on Friday night in front of a sold out Toyota Stadium.
"Sometimes we don't notice how a rookie can come back from a performance like he had at Columbus," head coach Oscar Pareja said after Friday's win. "He knows that those [chances] are normally back of the net. He didn't lose confidence. Today he looked in my eyes and said 'I'll get those goals back.' That shows character and we trust him and he's showing us that we were not wrong."
Adding to Akindele's joy was his first goal in front of the Toyota Stadium faithful. Friday's July 4th match saw the sixth-largest crowd in stadium history with Akindele scoring the first of what will surely be many in Frisco.
"It’s fantastic. I had a goal and assist away, so finally a home crowd you get to celebrate with some noise," said Akindele "When you’re away, nobody’s cheering for you so it’s a lot better to score here."
