FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Juan Agudelo doesn’t want to be sitting on his couch; not in mid-November as the Montreal Impact and Toronto FC battle it out in the Eastern Conference Championship, and not with Major League Soccer’s ultimate prize still a full month from being claimed.
No, Agudelo doesn’t want to be sitting on his couch, but unfortunately that’s where he’s been for the opening rounds of the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs after the New England Revolution missed out on the postseason for the first time since 2012. And it’s killing him.
“I’d pay for some games right now,” Agudelo said recently. “That’s what I want. More games.”
Agudelo’s longing to be on the field is primarily motivated by his desire to win, but the 23-year-old striker was also left frustrated by New England’s early exit on a personal note. He hit perhaps the richest vein of form in his career after returning from injury in late August, ending the season with six goals and three assists in his final eight appearances in all competitions.
It was a similar story in 2015, when Agudelo regained his spot in the Revolution’s starting lineup just before the playoffs and scored one of the best goals in MLS history in the Knockout Round against D.C. United, only to see the Revs eliminated with a 2-1 loss.
“I kind of cringe every time people say that because it’s unfortunate that once I do hit that run of form, an injury happens or the season ends,” Agudelo said. “It’s very frustrating for me. But I just have to realize how important it is to stay consistent.
“I’m telling you, I don’t know what it is. I’m confident that if I’m able to fix that, the sky’s the limit. But it’s really frustrating to be sitting on your couch thinking, ‘Wow, I’m really fit right now, but there’s nothing to show for it.’”
The good news for Agudelo is that consistency was likely his greatest area of development in 2016.
A one-time wunderkind – he was the youngest player to score for the U.S. National Team at 17 years old until Christian Pulisic recently broke the record – Agudelo has always had the talent. The question was whether he could harness it in stretches long enough to be a consistently top-level player.
Agudelo’s form at the end of the season suggests big strides in his maturation as a player.
“Early in the year, there was a little bit of inconsistency in terms of how he was playing,” head coach Jay Heaps said of Agudelo. “I talked about it with him. He wasn’t playing poorly – he was playing really well one game and then there might be a dip here or there.
“When he came back from his injury, there was a hunger there. You could see the way he was playing; he wasn’t taking anything for granted. He had a pretty significant knee injury, came back, worked extremely hard, and every time he stepped on the field, it was almost impossible to pull him off.
“When Juan’s playing like that, he’s a different player altogether.”
The challenge for Agudelo now is to carry that form into 2017, when he’ll be an eighth-year pro expected to help shoulder the load for the Revs through a 34-game schedule.
It’s a test that Agudelo is eager to face. And ace.
“Us players, we’re all going to stay in touch and build chemistry during the offseason,” Agudelo said. “Most importantly, we’ll stay fit, because we definitely have some time off. But I know a bunch of guys will be so ready for next year.”
