THE TREATMENT BOB BRADLEY encountered during his two trips to Argentina in the past year pleasantly surprised him. From Boca Juniors coach Carlos Bianchi sifting through a postgame media herd, shaking Bradley's hand, to a taxi driver who took time out from watching his son train in order to chauffeur Bradley to the airport, people of all different positions and status gave a warm welcome.
''The people are very friendly, even the people with the bigger clubs,'' Bradley said. ''They are so down-to-earth, so eager to help us and you don't always get that when you travel around, especially with big clubs.''
More MLS coaches – and perhaps their teams – might be sampling Argentine hospitality in the coming years, partly due to the positive experiences of the MetroStars this spring and Kansas City last year, but also because the dire economic situation there has only fueled the country's habit of exporting players.
Players at the top clubs in Argentina are making about one third what they made before the crisis, most of the smaller clubs are paying even less, and many are unable to pay wages on time, according to Martin Mazur, editor of El Grafico, Argentina's esteemed sports monthly. Mazur said via e-mail that when the economy began to turn for the worse in 2000, players started considering numerous destinations they would not have before.
''Switzerland's Second Division, Spain's Third Division, Bulgaria, Poland, Italy's Third Division, El Salvador, Honduras, Ecuador, China, Armenia and Russia were among them,'' Mazur said. ''Players no longer dream of lifting the world trophy, they just dream to leave happy and get rid of this on-going and never-ending problem in our crisis-hit country.''
SO-SO 14. The recent crisis touched off a burst of emigration among the general population – estimates have 200,000 Argentines moving out of the country in 2001 and 2002 – but the country's soccer players have found work abroad for decades. According to Clarin, more than 600 Argentines were playing soccer abroad in 2002. Mexico had the most players: 95. Spain had the most in Europe: 88.
In eight years, MLS has had 14, assuming midfielder Jorge ''Gallego'' Vazquez makes his debut for New England shortly.
Vazquez will make Argentina the country with the most representatives in league history, at least temporarily. Those 14 do not include forward Ariel Graziani, who was born and raised in Argentina but changed his citizenship to Ecuador, where he now plays and continues to score goals. Graziani piled up 44 goals and 105 points in 88 MLS games, but the list of Argentine MLS vets includes few stars.
The best of the 14 has been right back Diego Sonora, who appeared in three All-Star games and quietly notched 35 points in 105 games. Of the rest, only defenders Mario Gori and Ricardo Irribarren played more than two seasons and six played one season or less. In 1997, five Argentines joined the league and did not return the following year: Alejandro Farias (New England), Sergio Miguez (Columbus), Daniel Peinado (Dallas), Silvio Rudman (Columbus) and Leonardo Squadrone (New England).
During the next four years, the only Argentine to sign with MLS was Marcelo Herrera, who had 14 points in 17 games for Miami, but then departed. Ernesto Motta, the MetroStars' director of Hispanic media and a radio broadcaster who laid the groundwork for the team's smooth visit, believes the reason for the gap was the preferences of coaches.
''In my opinion, the soccer in MLS is too fast,'' Motta said. ''Most coaches, especially in the first few years, wanted strong players who can run all the time, and South American players are not like that.''
LATEST WAVE. One fringe benefit to the Wizards' trip to Argentina last year came in the form of Dario Fabbro, albeit after wading through lengthy contract and visa particulars. Fabbro is the first Argentine forward in MLS and last season he totaled six goal and, three assists in 16 games.
''Last year he had a difficult time fitting into our tempo,'' Wizards coach Bob Gansler said. ''Obviously, they play a very fast tempo down there, but they don't necessarily all play both sides of the ball. This year he started out extremely well, but he's had some injuries that have slowed him down. I would expect to see good things from him before the year is out.''
This year, the MetroStars utilized a new, informal relationship with Boca Juniors – their de facto hosts during their visit – to bring two players young enough not to count against the senior international limit of three. Boca loaned defender Juan Forchetti and midfielder Jose Galvan, both 22, to MLS for its entire 2003 season with the option to purchase their rights altogether or return them this fall.
The arrangement raised some eyebrows among other MLS clubs, but Gansler said he approves of any ''new wrinkle'' that improves the league.
''We thought that they were both very, very good guys, hard-working, motivated guys and we knew we would have periods when our more experienced guys would be missing,'' Bradley said. ''To have one or two younger guys with a little more experience would be good.''
Bradley has tried to ease both in gradually, allowing them time to adjust to the soccer and life in the United States. An injury to Steve Jolley, however, likely forces Forchetti into a prominent role.
Vazquez, 33, ended up in New England in part because he is a friend and former teammate of Fabbro. Renato Capobianco, the team's director of soccer, said Fabbro's agent brought Vazquez to the Revolution's attention, and Coach Steve Nicol was able to see the midfielder when the team traveled to Brazil for preseason.
''Jorge has this terrible habit of passing to guys on his team,'' Nicol joked. ''He'll be a good connection from the middle to the front and he's been some places nobody else on the team has been, so he brings a street savvy, almost a Joe-Max [Moore]-type presence that is going to improve everyone.''
THE CHALLENGE. Forchetti and Galvan were not the best players Bradley saw during his scouting.
''There were times when we'd bring up a player's name and they would say, 'We think he's good, too,''' Bradley said.
Since Argentines must acquire a visa before coming to the United States, bringing players here for trials is exceptionally difficult.
Gansler said that scouting players and finding Fabbro was just one benefit of his team's two-week stint in Buenos Aires last year.
The River Plate-Boca Juniors game his team saw during its visit ranks at the top of Gansler's personal list of best game atmospheres.
''Without a doubt, the most engaging, goose bumps up and down your spine type game,'' he said. ''It was like another worldly kind of experience.''
D.C. United's Ray Hudson, who visited Buenos Aires in 2000, also raved about the soccer-crazed culture and the ease of scouting many games because of the plethora of clubs in and around the city.
But one of the pitfalls of such an environment so thick with soccer is figuring out who to pay when it comes time to sign a player.
''It's not just Argentina, but it's certainly the case there – sometimes you can't figure out which part of this poor lad's body belongs to whom because there are so many agents, coaches and clubs with a portion of his contract,'' Hudson said.
Gansler noted that his team's trip took place during a chaotic, crime-riddled time, yet like Bradley, the generosity and courtesy they received helped them feel secure.
''Some of the more skittish guys on our team had their reservations about going down there,'' Gansler said. ''But we never saw any [crime] and hey, that was an awfully good preseason.''
The Wizards chose not to return this year only for variety's sake, he said.
''It's sad that it is that way, but they're in bad shape,'' Gansler said. ''Their pain opens up some options for us because we really can't spend the kind of money the big European clubs do. And there sure are a lot of quality players there, playing a very exciting brand of soccer.''
by Soccer America Senior Editor Will Kuhns