CARSON, Calif. – Gyasi Zardes didn't make the US national team's January camp roster as reward.
He suffered through a disappointing and woefully frustrating 2017 campaign that was waylaid by injuries – his own and his LA Galaxy teammates’ – and struggles to locate his best form.
That didn't bother interim US coach Dave Sarachan. He knows the versatile 26-year-old attacker well from his days as the Galaxy's associate head coach and believes he has much more to give to the national team, starting now.
“He did have a tough year with injuries. But he's still a player that I believe can play at this level,” Sarachan said when camp began last week at StubHub Center. “Yes, confidence is always a big thing, but [the invitation] wasn't a handout. I believe he belongs in this group.”
Zardes, one of the veterans in a camp filled with youngsters, is thankful for the opportunity and is hoping to parlay it into something big when the Major League Soccer campaign kicks off in March. He's healthy and fit after a busy offseason, and ready to put last year behind him.
“I sustained two devastating injuries last year, and I had to grow from that,” he told MLSsoccer.com following Monday morning's training session. “The biggest thing is finding form and finding rhythm. You have to be consistent, and you have to be good, so I think that's the biggest thing when you come back [from injury]. You have your good days, you have your bad days, but it's all about consistency.”
Zardes, who had missed the end of the 2016 season with a fractured foot, suffered a knee injury during last year's January camp that required surgery and forced him to miss the first month of MLS play, and he never found his best footing the rest of the way.
It didn't help that LA used makeshift lineups much of the season, thanks to an injury crisis and substandard depth, and he split time up front and on the wing before Sigi Schmid slotted him in at right back, the most problematic position for the Galaxy last year, for three September games. A groin injury Sept. 30 ended his season and kept him out of the national team's pivotal World Cup qualifiers in October.
Zardes plans to do far more this season, hopefully for the Galaxy. There was talk at season's end that LA was shopping him around the league, but he's still with LA and expects to join preparations after the Jan. 28 friendly with Bosnia and Herzegovina (7:30 pm ET | FS1, UniMás).
“Depending on what position I play, I really want to make a powerful impact,” said Zardes, who scored 16 goals as a forward in 2014 and six each of the next two years while playing primarily on the flank. “I'm always going to give it my all, and my primary goal is to stay healthy and build each and every single day.
“You take it day by day, and if you're building and growing, you have to get better as a player.”
Zardes is the most-capped player on this US roster, with 37 international appearances, and Sarachan has been happy with what he's seen so far.
“I know Gyasi, and I have a pretty good understanding of how he ticks, and I think he's really shown well,” Sarachan said. “Last January camp, he showed well, he just suffered an injury, and that was his issue throughout the year. Never got into good form, which also leads to a lack of confidence.
“Every athlete responds differently, and Gyasi's a guy that, when he's feeling good and he comes in and has confidence because of it, his quality improves. I thought he'd be a little rustier than he's shown. So far, so good.”
Sarachan sees him as a winger – Zardes says left wing is his best position – but where he'll play for the Galaxy isn't certain.
“Every coach has a different view of where a player's value is,” Sarachan said. “I'm looking to play Gyasi in the wide position. I think there's debate on, shouldn't he still be a forward? Can he be a right back? And time will tell, but for my purposes with this group, we're going to look at him as a wide player.
“I think he's improved in that position and at least has a lot of experience now playing there, so he understands that role a lot better.”
