Juan Pablo Angel has given the Red Bulls wings. (Mike Stobe/Getty)
Soccer: John F. Molinaro
Juan Pablo Angel gives MLS a credibility boost
Last Updated Friday, June 8, 2007
by John F. Molinaro
Major League Soccer fans are anxiously counting down the days until David Beckham arrives in August, but another high-profile international player has already taken the league by storm.
Former Aston Villa striker Juan Pablo Angel, who joined the New York Red Bulls after the regular season started, has scored six goals in his first five games, including a two-goal effort in Wednesday's 2-1 win over Toronto FC at BMO Field.
Thanks to Angel, named MLS player of the month for May, New York sits in first place overall and is off to one of its best starts in franchise history.
Angel signed a three-year, $4.5-million US deal with New York in April, parting ways with Aston Villa in April after spending seven seasons in the English Premiership.
He joined Aston Villa in 2001 on a transfer from Buenos Aires club River Plate, a move that raised many eyebrows because the Premiership has been a league where South American players have historically struggled.
Angel was a rare exception.
Thanks to an array of brilliant skills, born of countless hours of practice in Colombia and honed in the fast-paced first division in Argentina, Angel thrived in the Premiership, often lauded as the best league in the world.
His best season came in 2003 when he bagged 23 goals in 38 games, and in total he scored 62 goals in 205 games in the Premiership.
Angel fell out of favour with Aston Villa last season - he only scored four goals in 23 games and was relegated to the reserve team at one point - so it didn't come as a big surprise when he left the club.
But at 31 years of age, Angel still has several good years left in him and he could have easily caught on with another English team.
Instead, he signed with New York, a decision most critics viewed as an admission that he could no longer cut it at the elite level and was looking for an easier league to play in where he make a ton of money in the twilight years of his career.
Angel refutes that assumption. And he goes to great lengths to defend the standard of play in MLS.
"I think it's very good. I think people have a misconception of this league. It's very tough, very physical ... I wasn't expecting to just drop in and perform like this but I'm really enjoying it here," Angel told CBC Sports Online.
Toronto FC fans saw first-hand that Angel still has plenty of game after he single-handedly lifted New York to victory over the expansion franchise on Wednesday night. Outplayed for the first 60 minutes of the contest, the Red Bulls appeared to be dead and buried before Angel wielded his magic.
The stylish forward scored on a beautiful bending free kick from 25 yards that left Toronto goalkeeper Srdjan Djekanovic rooted to the spot in the 69th minute, and the Colombian added another two minutes later, this time on a classic poacher's goal, when he snuck in behind the defence and scored an easy tap-in.
It was a performance that left no doubt in the mind of Toronto coach Mo Johnston as to whether or not the Colombian's best days are behind him.
"You see the movement, you see the class on the first goal and then obviously ghosting in on the back post on the second goal. You can't teach that. He's a world-class player," Johnston said.
Toronto midfielder Carl Robinson, a native of Wales who played against Angel in the Premiership, was also impressed.
"I think he's been superb for the league. He's an excellent finisher, but his all-around play is good, too. You can see he's a top quality player," said the Welshman.
What's refreshing about the mild-mannered, soft-spoken Angel is that he's clearly not in New York just to collect a paycheque. Angel knows his presence in MLS gives the league a major credibility boost and, like Beckham, he understands he has a responsibility to play an active role in helping to promote the league and grow the game's popularity in the U.S.
"David's a great player, a great professional, so when he comes he's going to play his part in this league. Our duty here is to do well, to respond to the expectations ... and hopefully this league will keep growing and bring more quality players," Angel said.
Robinson, who like Angel heard suggestions that he was looking to take it easy when he left England and joined Toronto earlier this year, is hopeful that more European stars will follow the example set by the Colombian and sign with an MLS club when they still have plenty of quality years left in them.
"Juan's made the move here and people have questioned it, saying it's taking a step down compared to playing in England, but you're talking about top quality players coming over. He's done it and David [Beckham] is coming over in a few months, and people will look at that and will follow," Robinson said.
Like the famous energy drink company that owns the New York team, Juan Pablo Angel has given the Red Bulls and Major League Soccer wings.
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