The groundwork has been laid, the foundation solidified, and we bravely move on to advanced Spanglish! A note: I am seriously considering producing certificates of completion for all the loyal students – of course I will have to come up with an exam to verify that you actually read the articles. For new readers, please peruse the basic courses before continuing.

We move on to a point of contention between the Anglo and Latin cultures: the playmaker. The preferred formation in MLS and the EPL is a 4-4-2 with two trashmen in the middle, interceping passes, tackling, and cleaning up messes. This scheme pushes the creativity to the flanks, where run-cross-head is the name of the game.

While profoundly democratic – no one player controls the offense- it can also lead to confusion. Can everybody lingering at the far post really get a head to ball? Really? In contrast, in Mexico and La Liga most teams field at least one creative midfielder in the center. This player is known as either an “enganche” or an “armador.”

“Enganche” literally means hook, and refers to a player who slows down the offense and organizes it. For a worst case example, look to Real Madrid’s Guti. While capable of magical moments, he also shortcircuits the offense with misplayed passes. For a best case scenario, look to Boca Jr’s Riquelme. His vision for width and slide-rule passes keeps Boca’s offense in movement.

“Armador” is largely synonymous with “enganche,” and has nothing to do with your oak armoire where you hide your nocturnal reading under a stash of socks. However, there is one slight difference: the term “enganche” is normally associated with a slow-footed playmaker, while an armador may occasionally run at the defense. So for a armador, think Diego Maradona in his prime, well before he decided to (mis)lead the Argentina national team.

Does the concept of an armador or enganche make you uncomortable? Can you trust all that power in one player’s hands? Is it, gasp, tyrannical? Yes. And when Riquelme has an off day, Boca looks terrible. But when he is on his game, the direction and movement are a joy to watch. Unless you are Serbian.

As a general rule, the playmaker wears the coveted #10 jersey. And in Italian, I´ve been told that the term is “treqartista,” however I can´t personally confirm this is not a synonym for orquestra.

Well that concludes the first intermediate class and I know what you’re thinking – very little Spanish. Well, the armador/enganche is so central to the Latin game that, gasp, even the wobbled MLS-era Claudio Reyna received praise from Telemundo commentators. Therefore it’s important.

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