Let’s incorporate Pareja’s old team, FC Dallas. They spent most of 2022 being very well drilled and very good because 1) they basically never gave up cheap goals – the rest of their defense was great, so they never countered, and 2) Jesus Ferreira It was one of the absolute best seasons by a young striker we’ve ever seen.
I didn’t put “striker” in quotes there because the false 9 is still clearly a variant of the number 9, meaning he was actually a striker. Yes, he had a good time dropping from the front line to midfield to help add numbers and control the game. But he spent more time occupying centre-backs, breaking into the box and scoring goals. I think, in the long run, he will have the best position Sebastian Drusy– Like Shadow Striker. I will admit, however, that what Dallas needed last year (improved possession and improved defense through overall structure), Ferreira needed.
For all of Ferreira’s gifts, though, he has a ways to go before he’s a natural goalscorer in the box. He occupies centre-backs, yes, but he doesn’t beat them too much at the near post, and he rarely runs the channels in an “I’m going to get on the end of it through the ball” way. . There were signs of progress throughout the season, but only signs and nothing beyond that. His goals tended to come from late arrivals when the defense was already disorganized, rather than the kind of hard, off-the-ball runs that make the world’s best strikers, you know, the world’s best strikers.
And so I’m very confident that in order for Dallas to take the next step, Ferreira will have to take the next step as well. He doesn’t have to give up the false 9 stuff – keeping in mind that the core of his game is actually good. What he needs to do is add some faux-in-the-box layers to his game so that he can score more opportunistic goals instead of relying on well-worked team goals.
Alan Velasco A big step forward and can play a big role in it. He was very good for a young attacker last year. In 2023 he needs to be very good, period.
