New FC Dallas head coach Nico Estevez is molding his squad in preseason camp, preparing to merge American experience with Iberian roots.
The 41-year-old former US men's national team assistant joined Extratime co-hosts Andrew Wiebe and David Gass this week for a lengthy interview where he explained his path to FC Dallas, why he was drawn to the opportunity and his expectations for several of the club's highly-touted young players.
Estevez hails from Spain, where he spent years with Valencia CF, primarily working with their youth sides and reserve teams. His passion for youth development made for a logical fit with FC Dallas, and was what originally led him to the United States in the first place, starting with a stint on Gregg Berhalter's Columbus Crew staff before following Berhalter to the USMNT.
"When I came in 2014, the progression has been incredible as you can see," Estevez said before FCD's 2022 campaign begins. "It's real how the teams have built these fantastic academies, how they develop young players and how a lot of players are going to Europe. And also, the players that stay here, how they can get the positions with the national team and get call-ups and play this international soccer. When I came, that's what stood out to me. It's not a problem of quality. There's a ton of quality in the country, there is a lot of talent."
Estevez already has connections with multiple players on FC Dallas' roster through his USMNT experience, including homegrown forward Jesus Ferreira. The 21-year-old was recently rewarded with a Young Designated Player contract after an eight-goal, nine-assist season in 2021, and Estevez thinks Ferreira has the potential to establish himself as a true focal point of the club's attack in 2022.
"With the national team we've been using [Ferreira] as a No. 9, in the last game, the friendly in December, he played a little more as a winger coming inside," Estevez said. "Jesus has this ability that he’s so intelligent, so smart, he understands the space really well that any position up top he can play well. But what we’re looking for also, with not having [Ricardo] Pepi, is also use his strength as a 9 that can stretch a little bit the field and then come in the moment that surprises the opponent … and also float a little bit in that position against center backs so they won’t be marking man-to-man the striker."
Another young player Estevez hopes will play a prominent role is homegrown midfielder Paxton Pomykal, who has long been considered among the brightest up-and-coming talents in MLS, but hasn't stayed on the field consistently due to injuries. Estevez said if FCD keep Pomykal healthy, he can make good on his lofty potential.
"He needs patience because he’s coming from injuries," Estevez said. "He needs to feel well, he needs to feel fit. He needs to feel healthy to be confident in himself because he has the soccer, he has the skills, he has the technique, the intelligence. And you can see in this first week of training how good he is, how good he understands, how quickly he learns. Now it’s about keeping him fit, keeping him healthy and he will be able to bring us a lot of quality in the midfield."
For the full interview with Estevez, check out Extratime's deep dive here.
