CASA GRANDE, Ariz. – Swags is back.
On Monday morning, in his first training session since rejoining the New England Revolution, Juan Agudelo showed precisely why the Revs coveted his services so highly. First he went vertical to smash home a bicycle kick in a small-sided game. Later, he glided in at the back post and leapt to hit a left-footed volley back across goal, providing teammate Donnie Smith with a simple finish.
“It was a good start,” Agudelo said with a grin after the session.
To listen to Agudelo, his return to the Revs actually feels more like a continuation than a beginning. Although he spent the past 14 months trying to kick-start a career in Europe – stifled largely by an inability to obtain a UK work permit – Agudelo always had the sense that Foxborough was home.
The 22-year-old striker pointed to his successful first stint with the Revs, when he registered seven goals and two assists in 16 appearances in the second half of 2013, and the relationships that he built with both head coach Jay Heaps and his teammates as the impetus which brought him back to New England.
“I just felt so comfortable,” Agudelo said. “It was one of my best times, on and off the field, when I was with the Revs. To know that we have, in my opinion, the best coach in MLS – to come back to that sort of guy that I had a relationship with and a bunch of guys that I have really good relationships with, I feel like I’m home.”
The statistics support Agudelo’s belief that his brief first tenure with New England was the most fruitful of his young career. After racking up 11 goals in 62 combined appearances with the New York Red Bulls and Chivas USA – a strike rate of 0.18 goals per game – Agudelo’s seven goals in just 16 appearances with the Revolution gave him a remarkable strike rate of 0.44 goals per game.
That’s one of the reasons Agudelo is so excited about a return to New England; not only will he be combining with familiar players like Lee Nguyen, Kelyn Rowe, Charlie Davies and Diego Fagundez again, but also newer additions like Jermaine Jones and Teal Bunbury, both of whom he’s suited up alongside with the U.S. National Team.
“I’m really excited,” Agudelo said. “With such key players that have come into the team that have helped, like last year, push it on, hopefully I can help any way that I can to finish the job.”
Agudelo is, of course, referencing last year’s run to MLS Cup, which the Revs dropped in heartbreaking fashion to the LA Galaxy. Even from Europe, Agudelo said he followed New England’s run to the final closely and was gutted when they fell just short.
While Agudelo was keeping tabs on the Revs, they were keeping tabs on him. They monitored his situation closely as he finished up a successful loan spell with FC Utrecht in the Netherlands last May, then had his application for a UK work permit denied for a second time.
As Agudelo patiently tried to sort out his future, the Revs made sure to let him know that they’d be more than happy to welcome him back to the club if he chose to return stateside. In the end that’s exactly what Agudelo did, putting pen to paper on a new deal late last week.
“They kept in touch for a long time,” Agudelo said. “Luckily we were able to work something out where everybody was happy.”
The protracted nature of Agudelo’s move means he’s been without a club for the past eight months or so, and he hasn’t played in a competitive match since a May 3 appearance with FC Utrecht. As such, Heaps noted that the Revs would be patient with Agudelo as he works his way back to full fitness.
But based on Monday morning’s training session, he might not be far off. A consistent training regimen has kept Agudelo sharp and in shape, and he feels like he’ll be 100 percent sooner rather than later.
“I haven’t been just sitting on my couch,” Agudelo said. “I can’t stay away from football. I’ve been all over the place training and keeping myself fit with individual people. I feel really fit.”
