David Pierce
Olympia, Wash.
What’s it like to go from being a semi-famous forward in the USISL to being one of the top strikers in MLS? Are you surprised at your sudden shot to stardom?
GS: When you play in that position — center forward — you have to be optimistic. You have to be positive that you can score goals at any level, because if you don’t believe in yourself, then you’ll never do it. So, I wasn’t surprised — I just had to do the job that I knew I could do, and then things would go my way.
PB: They sure have — you’ve gotten off to a great start this season. It was too bad your back-heel shot didn’t go in this past weekend (against the San Jose Clash).
GS: Oh, yes. That was bad luck — it would have been just what we needed, because I thought that we definitely played much better than San Jose and I thought that we deserved to win.
Christiann Svanberg
Wolverhampton, England
Living in England, I hear many different views on the quality of MLS. The one you hear the most is that the quality is not very high. This is supposed to be because soccer is not nearly as popular as the other mainly “American” sports and hence it does not get as good athletes. Is this true and if so can it be changed?
GS: I think that we are not yet at the level of the European leagues, because (MLS) is just a league that is building up. But, for a league that is just starting, we have great players — including some that have played in the World Cup — and a very, very good level of play. I think the big difference is just the number of years that some players here have had in soccer, and I think that, in the future, this is going to be a very good league, a very strong league. The eyes of the whole world are on the United States, and many players want to come here. I definitely believe that in the near future there will be the same level of play as there is in Europe or other top leagues.
Erik Norman
Berkeley, Calif.
You were an “undiscovered” talent at one point and became your team’s leading scoring threat when you got your chance. What can other MLS coaches do to uncover the hidden talents on their teams?
GS: I think they’ve just got to give the opportunity to players that they see have some talent. I don’t think that the coaches should just close their mind to the players they’ve already seen that haven’t done well. I also think they should give opportunities to young players, to give them a chance and see how they do. I think that a lot of surprises will happen that way.
G. Vecsey
New York
What languages are spoken on the field during a game by your team? Do you speak Italian to Caricola and Spanish to Rodriguez? Or does everybody speak English? How much English does your new coach speak? Is it confusing?
GS: I don’t get confused, I’m already used to it, it’s just that sometimes, when I see one of them, it just comes up through my mind to say something in the language that we speak. So, if I see Nicola, sometimes I might say something to him in Italian, or if I see Edmundo or Ruben, I will say something in Spanish. But we mostly talk in English, because that’s what most of the players that we have speak. It just depends on the way things come up in my mind. And, there hasn’t been any trouble understanding Coach Queiroz.
(Note: In addition to his native Portuguese, Queiroz also speaks English, Spanish, and French.)
Joe Corona
Harriman, N.Y.
As a season ticket holder for the MetroStars, I’ve been able to see and appreciate your fine play. What changes should we, as fans, expect to see from the team? Is there a significant difference in the focus or style of play under coach Queiroz?
GS: No, I don’t think so. I think that now, we already have the style that we play, so it is difficult to change it. I think that tactically, it’s a bit different, but it’s really almost the same. We are just looking to find a group where everybody understands what they have to do, and just goes out, plays together, and does it on the field.
PB: Has the team responded well to the coaching change?
GS: Yes, very well. Everybody has. I think that he’s a great coach —
he’s very, very knowledgeable about soccer, and I think that our team is looking good right now, even though we have been losing games. The players are really learning a lot from him.
PB: We received several questions from fans in the supporters’ club, who wanted to know what you thought of their presence and about the fan atmosphere in general.
GS: I think that they’ve been great. The fan support is definitely the best thing that we have right now. The fans have been quality fans, and I don’t think that the fans are any better around the world than they are right here. They have been really supportive of the MetroStars, despite our lack of success. They’ve been with us, and I hope they will keep supporting us, because if they stick with us now, when we start winning they are going to feel very happy.
PB: What was it like when you played against the Galaxy before all those fans a couple of weeks ago?
GS: It was great! There was a lot of people (53,000), and it was beautiful to have all those people cheering for us, and even people cheering for the Galaxy — I know there were a lot of Salvadorans and Ecuadorans. The whole environment was much like a World Cup game, and for us players, it felt very good. It was unlucky that the game didn’t go our way, but definitely those are the kind of games that you feel happy that the people are coming out that much.
PB: It was unfortunate that you guys didn’t get that penalty kick awarded in the second half.
GS: Yeah, I think that would have changed a lot of things, because it would have been 2-1. Everybody in the stands saw that it should have been a penalty kick, and they got angry because it was so clear.
PB: Were you at all worried when they started throwing the Coke bottles?
GS: No, I wasn’t worried, because that’s something that sometimes happens in soccer, and I think that, although it wasn’t a very good thing to do, it wasn’t as bad as it could have been.
PB: It certainly wasn’t as bad as it can be at Yankee Stadium, with people throwing batteries and the like.
GS: But it’s something that they shouldn’t do. They should think about it and not throw those things from the stands. I think that if they get angry with a referee or with a call, they should never throw bottles on the field. Maybe they should get loud and try give incentive to the team, but they should never throw things on the field. Their image is going to look bad — maybe people will say that New York is a problem place — and it shouldn’t be that way because the fans have been great.
Jesper
Vestal, N.Y.
I went to the game at Giants Stadium on May 4 against Tampa Bay. How did it feel to bicycle-kick that goal?
GS: It was a great feeling, because it was the goal that tied the game against the first-place team in our conference, and it was in the best way it could be done — in a bicycle kick. I just felt so happy that we tied that game. When I scored, I started running, and I could’ve run the whole day, I was that happy. That was great because it was our first win too — it was a beautiful night.
PB: And that was a great comeback, too. You guys were down 3-0 and you scored three goals in five minutes to tie it up.
GS: Yeah, because after 70 minutes we were 3-0 down, and the fans were already kind of disappointed. But then the goals started coming, and I think that by the end of the game, everyone was standing.
David Lobberecht
Peoria, Ill.
Is there any concern that many of these European and South American players will lose interest in MLS because they don’t receive the same kind of star status as they might at home?
GS: That’s a part of soccer — a player leaves his country where he’s famous, and comes here, and maybe things don’t go his way. That’s the way soccer is sometimes. I think those are the chances that you take. Also, when a player leaves his country, he knows that he is taking a chance with a new league, but he tries to bring his talent and knowledge of soccer with him. Here there are a lot of fans now that know a lot about soccer, and if you do well, they recognize you. I think that’s great. I also think that in terms of the league, they treat players very well here. There’s a very good sense of the word professionalism — this is a great place to be.
PB: Since you’ve been playing so well, have you received any offers from clubs in other leagues?
GS: Right now, I just want to focus on MLS. I really want things to start going better for our team, so I’m concentrating a hundred percent on the MetroStars. I’m not thinking about anything else. Maybe later I’ll think about other things, but right now my mind is in this league and trying to do well and help the MetroStars.
Archie Leach
Los Angeles
What are the major differences between MLS and the USISL?
GS: I think that there are many differences. The USISL is a very good level, but here in MLS, players are dedicated a hundred percent. You have players in the USISL that have to go to work, and some teams don’t practice every day of the week. Also, in MLS, we have quality players from overseas that have stepped the level of play up, and the crowds, the stadiums, the fields, the publicity — all those things make MLS different, even though I think the USISL is a very good league.
PB: Did you enjoy your experience in the USISL last year — winning the title with Long Island and being named league MVP?
GS: We had a very nice group, a very good team. It wasn’t easy for us to win the championship; we had to play difficult games, because we played against some very good teams. It was a good competition, and a good level to play at at that time. I think there are still many good players in the USISL, and a lot of good players from there are doing really well in MLS right now.
Peter Burgis
New York.
Giovanni, you’ve shown MetroStars fans that you can score a number different ways so far this season. In which type of situation do you feel most confident in attacking the goal — on the ground on a through pass or in the air on a cross?
GS: For me, the balls that I like the most are the ones that come in on a cross. I like anything that is inside the box that I can just get my feet or my head on, and I love crosses. I love it when they put the ball right in the middle for me to get there and just attack the ball and score.
DJ Nguyen
San Jose, Calif.
What goes through your mind as you prepare to take a shot on goal? I’ve seen a lot of good players not being able to finish off on a goal, myself included.
GS: Yeah. When you’re a center forward, you’ve just gotta be open-minded; you gotta know what you’re doing, and you need to have the smell of the goal. Your experience will tell you what to do in just a fraction of a second. You have to think one thing and follow your thought — that way, you won’t make mistakes. If you start thinking about two or three different options, then you don’t get one. If you’re playing center forward and you’re inside the box, seconds are very important. You have to make a very quick decision.
Gary Maher
Westfield, N.J.
Have soccer fans in your home country been able to follow your outstanding success here in America? Are any of the matches televised there?
GS: My goals have been followed by Venezuela — and the proof is that they called me up for the national team for the game against Chile. We get ESPN in Venezuela; we get ABC, so many people can see the things that are going on in MLS, and the people that score the goals. Also, in the newspaper, every day after a game they give the standings, so people follow MLS very much.
Eduardo Pezo
Arlington, Va.
What is Venezuela doing to improve its soccer so fast? I mean Venezuela was always the “easy team” for any South American country. I saw the game against Chile, and I was amazed by Venezuela’s soccer.
GS: The thing is, we’ve had good players, but soccer not only has to do with good players, it also has to do with experience you gain from playing in other, better leagues. Right now we have players who are playing in Argentina, Colombia, Mexico, Japan, me in MLS. And when they come back to Venezuela, they bring what they’ve learned from playing in better leagues. Also, the national team is playing more friendlies and more international games, which gives the team more credibility, and more confidence that we can go play Chile or any other South American team and beat them.
PB: It seems that soccer has always played second fiddle to baseball in Venezuela, is that still the case?
GS: There are some areas in Venezuela where soccer is more popular, but in the city, Caracas, where most of the money is, baseball is definitely the first sport. I think that is because of the organization of the baseball league — it’s much more organized than the soccer league. That makes people go more to the baseball games than to the soccer games. The people do follow soccer, though; every time the national team plays, or there’s an important game, everyone looks at it or goes to the stadium — they pack the stadium. It’s just that the professional soccer league isn’t doing very well with the people.
PB: There’s much less money going into soccer than there is into baseball?
GS: Exactly.
PB: It looked like you had a full house for the World Cup Qualifier against Chile though.
GS: Yes, and if we had a bigger stadium, we would have sold it out, too. Every time the national team plays, people follow it because they believe that something good can happen, but they don’t feel that way about the pro league because it’s so disorganized.
PB: It must have been a real thrill when you came on in the second half of that game.
GS: It was a great feeling, because I was fighting for my country and playing against a very good team like Chile. That’s the level of competition that you always would like to play at — qualifying for the World Cup. Any player would like that. The crowd was great, and they really believed that we could do it. That’s something that’s changing right now in Venezuela. Before, people thought the national team would always lose 4-0 or 5-0. Now, the Venezuelan people know that our national team can beat any team we play against.
Andres Reyes
Merida, Venezuela
After seeing the South American teams in World Cup qualifying, how do you see the Venezuelan team in comparison to the other countries?
GS: He’s from Venezuela? Oh, that’s great! Well, there’s still a lack of experience in the national team, although it has gotten much better. For example, against Chile we probably could have controlled the game better than 1-0 (before Chile’s injury-time equalizer), and we maybe should have been more calm. That will come little by little as the team plays more games, and we’ll get better.
However, we have that credibility now, and anyone who steps on the field for Venezuela believes that they are on the same level as any other player. Every time before a game, we really believe that we can beat whoever we’re playing, even a country as strong as Argentina. We’re looking forward to the rest of the qualifying matches.
Hector Castro
Jersey City, N.J.
What is your opinion on the controversy of playing World Cup qualifiers in La Paz? Next month you may be facing the Bolivian in that thin air. What are your feelings as to the decision by FIFA, and their remedy to the problem?
GS: It’s certainly a factor that helps the Bolivian national team, because it’s difficult to go play in a city that’s so high. I don’t know if they should close the city for qualifying just because it’s that high, though.
I’m not going to be called up for that game — I’m going to stay with the MetroStars — so I haven’t talked to the coach about it, and I’m not sure what they will do. I think they are planning to fly to Bolivia the day of the game, because you feel the altitude less that way than if you’ve stayed there for a few days.
Aaron Pitchkolan
Aurora, Colo.
Giovanni, I am a aspiring youth star hoping to one day play in MLS and would like you to give me some pointers or drills to do in my backyard? I would also like to know what you did with the ball when you were growing up?
GS: That’s great that you’re thinking that way, because this league is supposed to be something that young players can look to as a future goal. One thing to do is to try to play a lot with the ball. Take the ball and go close to a wall and practice your right and your left that way. Practice your shooting, try to improve your weak areas, and especially work on anything that has to do with the ball and the control of the ball.
PB:What kinds of stuff did you do while you were growing up?
GS: I did a lot of shooting, with both feet, because when you’re young is when you’ll have a good chance to develop your other foot. So if you’re a righty, work on your left foot. Also, I did a lot of juggling — I used to juggle all the time, even when I was in my house. Every time I had the ball with me I was practicing. By myself in my house, anywhere.
PB: How old were you when you began playing?
GS: When I was six years old, back home in Venezuela. I grew up in Caracas — in the city. I was part of a league. We had a club with interleague play, and then the better club players would also play in elite games, so I played games Saturdays and Sundays on a regular basis. From the time I was six until I grew up.
We’d like to thank everyone who sent questions for Giovanni. We received a ton of great questions, so if yours didn’t make it, try again with our next star, Cobi Jones. The U.S. national team midfielder and Los Angeles Galaxy star just finished playing in the U.S. Cup. Send Cobi a question by clicking on the Ask a Star icon in the INTERACTIVE section of SA Online. Please post your questions by July 1 — we’ll post Cobi’s answers later that week.