Galaxy Will Play It Fast and Luis
The wait is finally over.
Several months after rumors surfaced that he might be coming to Los Angeles, Luis Hernandez made it official Tuesday by leaving Tigres of the Mexican first division and joining Major League Soccer.
He is the third prominent Mexican player, after Jorge Campos and Carlos Hermosillo, to seek new challenges with the Galaxy. They won’t be long in coming.
The Galaxy will play the Earthquakes in San Jose tonight, but Hernandez will not be available for the game. He will arrive in Los Angeles Friday and most likely will make his debut against Washington D.C. United at the Rose Bowl on Saturday evening.
“Obviously, we’ve got to see what condition he’s in,” Galaxy Coach Sigi Schmid said. “He’s just come off a season, so he’s fit, but we’ve got to make sure he doesn’t have an injury or anything like that.”
A little time is needed, in other words.
“At least [enough to] get him to learn some of the [other players’] names and for me to work on my Spanish,” Schmid said with a laugh.
The announcement that Mexico’s most prolific goal scorer would be leaving Tigres for MLS was made in Monterrey on Tuesday, MLS having agreed that his former team could break the news.
Hernandez, 31, has spent all but one season of his 11-year career in Mexico, where he has played professionally for Cruz Azul, Santos Laguna, Monterrey, Necaxa and Tigres. In 1997, he was briefly with Boca Juniors in Argentina. He won a CONCACAF Champions Cup title with Monterrey in 1993 and national championships with Necaxa in 1995 and 1996.
In 1997 and 1998, he was named Mexico’s player of the year.
Born Dec. 22, 1968, in Poza Rica, Veracruz, Luis Arturo Hernandez Carreon comes from a soccer family. His father and two of his uncles played in the Mexican first division in the 1960s and ‘70s.
The 5-foot-7, 160-pound striker with a mane of tawny hair is known as “El Matador” by fans because of his ability to finish off opponents with one deadly strike.
He made his debut for Mexico’s national team in a 1-0 victory over Uruguay at the Los Angeles Coliseum in 1995. In 73 games for the national team, he has scored a Mexican-record 35 goals.
He has scored 38 goals in 64 games for Tigres over the last four seasons.
That goal-every-other-game ability is precisely why the Galaxy wanted him, and why Phil Anschutz was willing to pay the several million dollars to acquire Hernandez. MLS did not reveal the terms of the contract or the purchase price.
The Galaxy acquired Hermosillo in 1998 to do exactly what Hernandez is expected to do now--score goals. Hermosillo managed to net 19 in 43 regular-season and playoff games, but his arrival initially unsettled a Galaxy forward line that had been operating smoothly.
Could the same thing occur with Hernandez?
“I hope not,” midfielder Danny Pena said. “Who knows? You’ve got to hope that we’ve learned from the last situation. Hermosillo obviously struggled when he first came in and didn’t get his first goal until, I think, his ninth game with us.
“But Hernandez is a very well-known player, a very popular player. I think he’s going to be popular here in L.A. Hopefully, he produces right away. I think that would definitely help our team and help ease the pain of losing the four guys that we’re going to lose.”
Defender Paul Caligiuri believes the Galaxy should be looking ahead, not back to the loss of Steve Jolley, Joe Franchino, Roy Myers and Clint Mathis.
“The main thing is, forget about what it might take away from the Galaxy, look at what we’re getting,” Caligiuri said. “And not just the Galaxy, look at the league. I don’t think there’s a bigger-name player than this guy that’s ever played in this league.
“[The MetroStars’] Lothar Matthaeus is at the tail end of his career, but Hernandez comes in when he’s still sharp, he’s still scoring goals and he’s exciting. People around the world know him. I think we should really focus on what we’re getting. He’s a great acquisition.”
Team captain Robin Fraser agreed.
“I think as far as players who are out there who could fit into the way we play, he’s such a hard-working player that I think he’ll be a good fit,” Fraser said.
“By the same token, I don’t want to make it sound like I’m glad to see any of my teammates go, because I think those guys have been part of why we’ve done so well this year.”
Schmid expects Hernandez to fit smoothly into the starting lineup.
“I don’t think we’re going to miss a beat with Luis,” he said.
