FRISCO - When Designated Players come to MLS they’re expect to be the best -not only in their team- but in the League. Through his first month in MLS, Carlos Gruezo has fit the mold.
His range, aggressiveness, and ball-recovering skills had already been put to test at the international level; and he was expected to bring that into Oscar Pareja’s midfield from day one. Five matches into the 2016 season, it can be said his exploits were as advertised. With 396 minutes under his belt, Gruezo is leading MLS in tackles. Out of the 29 he’s attempted this season, he’s got the ball back 24 times, an 83 percent success rate. With him on the field, FCD are now 4th in the league in tackles per game, averaging 32.4 ball-recovery attempts every 90 minutes.
“Carlos is aggressive,” Oscar Pareja said. “He’s a player that has intensity, and I like it. He’s doing a great job in getting the ball back to us. It’s important for us. He has that instinct to be the final player to get the ball back.”
For the former Stuttgart player, however, the importance lies in putting his statistics in the context of what all of his team-mates are trying to do.
“My team’s work has put me in a position to recover a lot of balls,” said Dallas’ number ‘7’. “It’s a group effort. There’s eleven of us in the field and we’re all trying to as many balls back as we can. In my position, it’s important to steal the ball.”
Coach Oscar Pareja agrees. The first thing he wants from his defensive midfielders is getting the ball back.
“I expect that from him and from Victor [Ulloa], Kellyn [Acosta] and Juan [Ortiz],” he said. “I’m glad to see that they’re scoring high in ball recoveries which is one of my strengths in the middle. We don’t see the team isolated that way, we analyze the unit getting the ball back through players that are intense, like Carlos. I like when the team gets the ball back quick and Carlos is doing it.”
There’s another thing Carlos is doing aside from tackling. It should come as no surprise that trying to get the ball back comes hand-in-hand with fouls, where Gruezo is also currently the league leader with 14.
“It’s part of the game,” says Gruezo. “If fouls aren’t made, most teams would find it easy to attack. Resorting to tactical fouls to stop counters is something that needs to be done.”
Where Gruezo is realistic in his approach towards fouling, his coach seems to display a more romantic view when it comes to taking players down.
“You see different ways to recover the ball. Through fouls, through stopping the game… I don’t like that,” he said. “In order for us to get the ball back, we need to recover the ball. I like that more than blocking it or stopping the play. I encourage them to recover the ball. This is a team that develops ways to get the ball back with class. Get the ball back, recover it so we can play. So we’re working on that. ”
There’s another thing Pareja’s working at. Always looking for improvements, ‘Papi’ is happy with the way his Gruezo and his midfielders are defending, but wants to see more once they recover the ball.
“I would like [Gruezo] to link-in more [in the offensive phase],” he explained. “I’m working with him and Victor and Kellyn on that part. I know it’s demanding. It’s hard to be that box-to-box player. When you don’t have the ball you need to work, and do what is possible to get the ball back in your feet. [But] at the same time you have a coach in the line that is demanding that you go and get it again, or pass the ball to someone. I want them to glue-in to the rest, get together, and be part of the offensive phase. I’m demanding, but I know we’ll get there because we have the capacity to do it. But the work they’re putting in is remarkable, and I’m very pleased with it.”
If the results from the first month of the year are any indication, good things are ahead for this midfield.
