Edgar Castillo. Arturo Alvarez. Francisco Torres. What do these young men have in common? They are all moderately successful hispanic players that were born in the US. This alone is a major accomplishment given the anglo-angled pay-to-play Olympic Player Development (OPD) program.
Yet sadly, slighted by the mainstream, victim to horrendous hate crimes, not all of these Hispanic Americans have picked up the phone to answer Uncle Sam’s call.
But these young men are not mere puppets, metaphors of the brief re-splintering of American society before burning forever Latino. I prefer Clarence Seedorf’s separation of sport/society rather than making scarecrows out of athletes. Rather, to put it bluntly, each player’s decision is one of simple convenience.
Arturo Alvarez played ball at various levels for the US youth soccer team, but never has gotten a crack with the senior team. For FC Dallas a few years back, he seemed a shoe-in for Gold Cup duty. However, like Justin Mapp of Chicago, his stock has dropped off after indifferent form in San Jose.
Unlike Justin Mapp, though, he can claim dual nationality and sign up for the El Salvador national team.
Will the US miss him? Last I checked, the Red, White & Blue was not an assembly line that churned out crafty wingers by the dozens. Bobby Convey? So 2006. DeMarcus Beasley? I liked his PSV stuff, but since then he’s dropped off a cliff. Stuart Holden is delicious veal in need of seasoning, while Robbie Rogers is, well, a marathon runner stuck spinning circles.
Don’t pretend we don’t need depth, and don’t pretend it doesn’t hurt. Just a little bit.
Edgar Castillo points to gaping holes in the tiny soccer talent net tossed by MLS teams and the US national squad. The kid was left back for Club America, who happened to just beat Chelsea, yet was called by the Mexico National Team before Suni Gilati could say quesadilla.
How is this possible? Well, if you’re parents aren’t willing to shell out $10,000 plus a year on travel and hotel, you have no chance of playing at a high level at a young age in the US. Well, unless you are one of the dozen kids chosen for the Bradenton academy.
This one hurts because the US left back pool is so shallow you could lay down face first without drowning. Jonathan Bornstein? Matches up well against crafty dribblers, but struggles with powerful goliaths. Heath Pearce? The opposite. Right now Carlos Bocanegra out of position is the best option, and he does not have speed to spare.
Last Francisco Torres makes his living in the Mexican league and grew up a Texican, yet has chosen to don the red, white, and blue. After a stuttering performance against Costa Rica, US fans are less than enthused. But we have Ricardo Clark, they cry! We have Michael Bradley! We have Benny Feilhaber!
No one can dispute one simple fact: in the span of two years, center mid went from a black hole to a logjam. Even Pablo Macaroni, with two World Cups to his credit, cannot get a call-up. However, injuries happen. Player dip inform. Over the course of a condensed tournament, fresh legs count.
Thus, I give Mr. Torres “la bien venida.” And I hope he gets playing time and sets an example for the coming wave of wildly talented Hispanic American soccer players.
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