When the MLS All-Stars face powerhouse Manchester United tonight at Red Bull Arena, a concussion will rob fans of any chance to see Javier Hernandez, and Red Bull teenager Juan Agudelo of facing the striker he patterns his game after.
Agudelo is an American prospect brimming with potential, the latter a Mexican striker who went from a frustrated 20-year-old ready to quit the sport into a worldwide star in just three years _ and the best-case scenario for what many hope Agudelo can someday become, if he’s not crushed by the weight of great expectations.
The 18-year-old New Jersey product wasn’t voted to the all-star game by the fans, but selected by MLS commissioner Don Garber despite not being a full-time starter. Coach Hans Backe and mentor Thierry Henry say he has star potential, but caution it’ll have to be nurtured and allowed to grow at its own pace.
“I will keep on saying it; you guys need to leave him alone,’’ Henry said. “He’s still young. I went through the same thing. He plays, doesn’t play; he should play, he shouldn’t play, whatever. Now whatever Juan Agudelo is going to do is going to be really big anyway. The guy’s a young kid; he has all the talent to be (special).
“Right now, let him work. I can tell you I see stuff in training from him that tells me he can be a great player; but let him grow, let him work out and be the player he can be. The expectation is really big in this country. Landon Donovan soon is going to retire, so you guys are thinking “Who is going to be the next one?” Hopefully it is going to be him; but it can only be him if you let him grow.’’
That is a sentiment Backe has professed since arriving at the club last season, and a mantra he’s preached to everybody that would listen since Agudelo got his first U.S. National Team call-up last November. But after the then-17-year-old scored the game-winner at South Africa in his debut, Backe has known the hype would start and wasn’t even surprised an all-star nod followed this year.
“He’s home-grown. He’s a talented player. He gets a lot of (stories) about him becoming the future player for the U.S. I’m not surprised at all,’’ said Backe. “He’s a player for the future, only 18-years old, and (the game is at) Red Bull Arena, so I have no problems with that.
“(But) let him grow in his own way. He’s only 18; he has a future. He’s no end product; he has a long way to go. Of course there are difficulties, when he is the target for approaches and appointments, he can lose focus. But we just have to work with that. That’s the way it is.’’
While Agudelo has had several impactful games for the U.S. and played in this summer’s Gold Cup, starting for country hasn’t guaranteed him the same for club. He started just nine of the Red Bulls’ 22 games this year, with Backe bringing him along slowly and giving more playing time to English newcomer Luke Rodgers, whose veteran savvy has made him a better partner for Henry.
“Nobody gave me anything; you have to work. That’s what I tell him,’’ Henry said. “He has everything you want to be a great striker, he can hold the ball he can pass, he can put the ball in the right place, he’s good on the ball. But let him grow and be the player he can be, and in the near future he will be a star for the U.S…and whatever (club) team he will be playing for.
“The main point is for him to be in Europe, no disrespect, but that’s where you’re going to have to go show what you can do. But you guys are going to have to let him grow and be the player he can be. (The all-star berth) is nice; you’ve got to learn from your experiences. I’m not saying you have to cover him and be extra-nice. But you’ve got to understand the guy is young and he’s already doing well.’’
Henry knows a thing or two about being a goal-scoring phenom. He won a World Cup with France, led Arsenal to the first undefeated season in the English top-flight in over 100 years and left for Barcelona as the club’s all-time leading scorer. But he was the same way Agudelo was when he was a youngster at Monaco, brought along slowly and chafing the whole while.
“I couldn’t understand it at the time, because I wanted to play every game. And that’s the attitude of Juan,’’ said Henry. “I used to score a goal, and the game after the boss (Jean Tigana) would put me on the bench. And I was like what? Really? I couldn’t understand it because I was young, crazy, you want to play every game.
“I didn’t understand the guy was trying to protect me. When I saw him three years after, I thanked him for that. I couldn’t understand it, people are coming up, saying to me why are you on the bench? And you kind of believe it at the time. But he was right. But sometimes you don’t see it; you want to play.’’
Bit by bit, Agudelo has made subtle improvements in his game. He’s incorporated some of Rodgers’ vaunted workrate, and is trying to learn to time his runs better and create space for his teammates. With five goals and an assist in just 968 minutes, he’s trying to get his tactical awareness up to par with his technical skill.
And that’s where Hernandez comes in. The 23-year-old Mexican _ who suffered a concussion at yesterday’s practice _ was a revelation last season for United, in his Premier League debut. The signed him under the radar before last summer’s World Cup, but he poured in 20 goals and provided to be a lethal sniper in the box.
Hernandez is also a player that Agudelo has not only idolized but tried to learn from, albeit afar. Agudelo poured over video of Chicharito _ the so-called Little Pea _ and watched him first-hand in the Gold Cup, where Mexico beat the U.S. in the final. And while Agudelo praised the entire United lineup, it’s Chicharito that has tried to emulate.
“If I could list the whole roster, I would. It’s amazing, just every single player on Man U, because I’ve been watching them, since I was little. I’m just honored to step on the field with them,’’ said Agudelo, who studied Hernandez.
“(I’m improving at) making runs. I learned so much just from watching films of Chicharito. He just knows how to get in the right spots, and it actually worked out when I (scored a brace) against Toronto. I just tried to get myself in the box for the goal, and stretch for the ball. That’s what I’ve been trying to do.’’
To be fair, Agudelo is no Chicharito, a reserve on an MLS team that got bounced in the first round of last year’s playoffs and sits third in the Eastern Conference, against a Manchester United starter who had seven goals in the Gold Cup to be named MVP. But Chichrito is five years older, and may never have blossomed as he has if not given the time.
Backe was Sven-Göran Eriksson’s assistant in Mexico from 2008-09, and saw Hernandez when he was the age Agudelo is now.
“I’d say Chicharito has a bit more pace. He’s not as physically strong as Agudelo,’’ Backe said. “He’s probably I could say technical-wise, he’s better than Agudelo. (But) Agudelo is stronger and more direct.’’
It was back in 2008 that Hernandez _ unable to get playing time for Chivas _ considered quitting soccer altogether. He scored just once in 2006-07, and went scoreless in six appearances in 2007-08 and ten appearances during the 2008 Apertura, at 20-years-old.
It wasn’t until the 2009 Clausura that he started to show his promise, and has improved exponentially since. Agudelo went through his own ups-and-downs, pulled in and out of the lineup during the Gold Cup.
“It just showed me I have s lot to learn,’’ said Agudelo. The Red Bulls _ and U.S. Soccer in general _ are hoping he does just that, at his own pace.
