When DC United acquired winger Jared Stroud in December 2023 via trade from St. Louis City, it was one of the first moves of a club makeover. With new general manager Ally Mackay onboard, Stroud was considered one of the main keys to the new philosophy of how DC United played. A year later, Stroud is one of the veterans of a team that wants to complete its turnaround by getting past the final game of the regular season and into the playoffs.

“Yeah…last season was a tough way to end the season because we did so well on that back half to get to that point and then to to have that last game where we just fell short was really upsetting,” Jared Stroud said in comments made exclusively to The District Press. “I think the first two months, just for me, regardless of what people the coaches were saying or anything was just tough to to swallow and accepts. But, then we…have used it to to turn that hunger into, ‘I don’t want that to happen again.'”

With Troy Lesesne joining the team as head coach in January 2024, Stroud was one of the quick standouts in training camp before the 2024 season, and became the main constant in the lineup. And, he was creative in the attack and found his teammates, logging 5 goals and a career high 10 assists across all competitions last season. He was also the model of consistency. Stroud appeared in all but one match for D.C. United last season, starting in 32 league matches. That allowed for him to really develop chemistry with his teammates quickly, and Stroud said his immediate connection with right back Aaron Herrera helped him make an impact on offense.

“[Me] and Aaron made a really good connection on the right side and it was able to to produce a lot of crosses and a lot of chances,” Stroud said. “[That] connection and obviously Troy [Lesesne] giving me some freedom on the right side to create and having Christian [Benteke], Jacob [Murrell], [Dominique] Badji, these guys up top were good in the air for me to serve to coming on my right foot.”

The 28-year-old New Jersey native combines creativity and terrific crossing ability with an aggressive work rate that’s infectious. Stroud said that a lot of his game is inspired by a DC United great who used to play on the same field he does now. “I used to love watching the England team back when I was a kid, I’m actually remember [Wayne] Rooney was the player I used to watch,” Stroud exclaimed. “He was always really chippy and he not only attacked a lot and obviously he scored great goals…but he defended hard [and] always worked hard. [He] was my idol growing up. I always had his England Jersey and tried to replicate what he did in in my backyard or whenever I could play on the field and I think that’s always just just translated into my my MLS career, just having that work rate, never giving up, and just trying to play like that.”

That gels well with the aggressive, pressing style that Troy Lesesne and the Black-and-Red desires to play. Stroud recognizes that the process takes some time, but believes that it will eventually lead the team back into the playoffs. “It’s not something that that’s gonna produce results overnight,” Stroud said. “[But] we…have moved in a direction not just on the field, but off the field as well to to try and push this club in a new direction and it’s been a a tough challenge…[We] need to to keep keep making strides forward and keep getting better and we think throughout this season, the hope and the goal is to turn those results from last year, um, into into more wins.”

Jared’s belief in the system and his ability to generate offense through the attack is exactly how he’s quickly moved from one of the new guys to a veteran who has earned the trust of head coach Troy Lesesne. “[Jared] understands what we’re looking for and he’s really talented in a lot of areas to do a lot of the dirty work and make make the opposition feel really uncomfortable and then be creative in the final third,” Lesesne stated during Thursday’s team press availability. “[He’s] someone that that I lean on when the picture’s not exactly right in video sessions or on field to be able to voice what he sees. And so that that’s where Jared comes in is he knows when things are right, he knows when things are off.”

Being one of the trusted veterans so quickly didn’t change Stroud’s mindset. He continues to be a guy that his teammates can look up to via his work ethic in practice and in games. “No messing around, no 50%, no lack of effort, just just giving 100% every day,” Stroud says when asked about his approach to being one of the team veterans. “[That’s] what Troy expects of me, and that’s what I expect of myself. I think if I can do that, then the younger guys and all the players can look at [me] and say, ‘Okay, yeah, he he gives it every day.’ I think that’s that’s a good quality, uh, to have, and something that I strive for every day, and not something that I do every day, but something that I try to do every day.”

D.C. United is back in the U.S. Open Cup this year, and coupled with the regular season, it gives the team a couple of chances to lift a trophy in reigniting the club’s tradition of excellence. Stroud recognizes that trophies are what will help shape his career when it’s all set and done. “[As] I get older, I’m realizing that you’re judged a lot in your career based on trophies and I want to win one…you have to have that that that winner’s mentality and that hunger for a trophy.”

The mentality, the work rate, the results…it’s what Jared Stroud focuses on the most. And the hope for D.C. United is that he can be one of the key pieces of a trophy-lifting team. They seek to get back to it this weekend against the Columbus Crew with a chance to knock off a top team and continue to grow as a club.