Sports stats



MLS Inter Miami CF

Versatile Veteran DeLaGarza: "If I'm Called Upon, I'll be Ready"

October 6, 2020 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Inter Miami CF News Release


Versatile veteran A.J. DeLaGarza made his Inter Miami debut in the team's last match, playing his first match in over a year in the process. The three-time MLS Cup champion and two-time Supporters' Shield winner had a solid performance at right back, playing 67 minutes, winning possession for the team five times, registering two tackles and one interception and completing 90% of his passes.

"I think that he fulfilled his responsibilities after a long period without playing, because he was coming from a lengthy injury absence before joining us," said manager Diego Alonso. "I think he did well and showed his capability and experience as a player."

DeLaGarza, who has over 260 MLS appearances under his belt and can also play as a centerback and midfielder, seized the opportunity to step into the XI for the first time, capitalizing on a mindset that has prepared him for the moment.

"If I'm called upon, I'll be ready. That's been my motto this whole year, to always be prepared because you never know what can happen in this league," said DeLaGarza. "Now you see we have a couple guys out and we've had a couple suspensions, so guys are going to have to step up and guys are going to be needed. Now is the time for me to show what I'm capable of, how I'm capable of playing and try to lead this team on the defensive side of the ball."

DeLaGarza expressed a desire to right the ship and change the team's fortunes following a difficult run of form.

"It's up to us to get ourselves out of it. It's as simple as that. I think that you can look at tactics, you can look at 2020 in general. At the end of the day I still think it's on us as players to make the plays. For myself, I'm a defender so getting clean sheets. We definitely have not done enough of that this year. I think that's where we need to start: being a collective group defensively and really buckling down and trying to help our keeper.

"For myself and the backline it's going to be on us, and the whole team really, to defend all 11 as a group. If we can get zeroes in games, or even one sometimes, we have the players that are capable of scoring goals for us on the other end. You see that in Lewis Morgan, we have [Gonzalo] Higuaín now, Brek [Shea] has been stepping up, and guys are scoring goals. It's just what happens after those goals and we have to be better as a group."

Lastly, DeLaGarza looked ahead to the team's upcoming matchup with the New York Red Bulls, expressing confidence that the team could find success if it follows its gameplan.

"We know what the Red Bulls are about. They've been the same team, playing style wise, for quite a while now. We have [Luis] Robles who knows them well and knows their tendencies... If we can play around it then there's going to be open spaces. I don't think anybody in the league wants to be in an open space with Lewis Morgan or [Gonzalo] Higuaín. So, we're going to need to be confident on the ball and try to play through them."

Check out the Inter Miami CF Statistics



Major League Soccer Stories from October 6, 2020


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central