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Maybe the brightest spot on the pitch for Las Vegas Lights FC in the first leg of Soccer Spring Training last Saturday night was the back line, which helped hold the visiting Montreal Impact – a Major League Soccer foe – scoreless for two-thirds of the match.
In that stretch, it was goalkeeper Ricardo Ferriño who drew the crowd’s attention with his flair for the dramatic, but defenders such as Joel Huiqui, captain Marcelo Alatorre, Miguel Angel Garduño and Juan Herrera-Perla were integral in limiting Montreal’s attack.
Huiqui and Alatorre brought a wealth of top-level LigaMX experience to that mix, while the aggressive Herrera-Perla was on the other end of the spectrum, making his professional debut at Cashman Field.
Herrera-Perla was born in El Salvador, but moved to Dallas, Texas, at a young age and was raised in the Lonestar State. His soccer story includes several years spent with the youth academy of his hometown MLS club – FC Dallas. During his collegiate career, Herrera-Perla would return home to train with the club’s first team.
Now making his own professional mark, Herrera-Perla discussed his first taste of live pro soccer, and his experience so far in Las Vegas.
Q: Not only did you make your professional debut Saturday night, but you did it in front of a sell-out crowd in the first match in Lights FC club history. How special was that?
A: “I remember walking out of that tunnel, lining up next to Montreal and thinking ‘Wow, it’s an MLS team.’ But that didn’t matter too much, because I know we’re a competitive team. And when I saw all of those fans out there, I got goosebumps, thinking that all 10,000 of those people were there supporting me. It felt great.”
Q: Did you expect to see 10,000 people at Cashman Field when you came out of that tunnel?
A: “We’ve trained at Cashman Field before, and it didn’t look that big when empty. It didn’t look like it could hold 10,000 people. They told us before the game it was going to be sold out, and it got out all over the news that day. But actually seeing those people and hearing all of those people, it felt like it was more than 10,000. I’ve seen stadiums with more than 10,000 seats, and it just felt like there were about 25,000 people there.”
Q: What was the best part of that atmosphere – the part that will stick with you the longest?
A: What really stood out to me was behind the goal we were shooting at in the first half, the fans back there (in the Supporters Section). They came up with these chants, they booed the other team, it was something I didn’t expect, since they never had a soccer team here. So they got the hang of it really quick in the first game.”
Q: You had extensive experience and years in the FC Dallas youth academy. How well do you think that helped prepare you for what you faced Saturday?
A: “I was there my freshman year of high school through my senior year of high school. In college, I went back and trained with the first team in the summers. Training here with Chelís and all of the guys who have played professionally before, that experience has helped me physically keep up with the game. In Dallas, I matured when I was there. Quickly. In the academy, they considered us pros, and we trained with the first team. That helped me adjust here quickly.”
Q: After your first professional match, on a scale of 1-10, what type of grade would you give your individual performance?
A: “I think it was a tale of two halves, for sure. My first half was a bit better, but I still could have improved on a lot. My second half was a bit lower. I was getting tired, my legs weren’t giving me what they should have. I’d give myself a 5 out of 10. I wouldn’t grade myself any higher right now, especially not in the preseason, and not after our first game. I want to put myself at a 5 – or 5.5 – and just go up from there.”
Q: Things don’t get much easier this month, as you guys face two more MLS clubs, starting Saturday night with Vancouver Whitecaps FC coming to town. What’s the biggest focus this week on improving from one match to the next?
A: “Completing our passes in the final third. We did well defensively, we held our front, then once the ball got in the final third, we couldn’t complete the last pass to help us get the ball in the goal. Our main focus is getting the ball into the box once we’re in the final third. The goals will come from there.”
Q: Fans of the club are still familiarizing themselves with you. Give them a description of your particular style of play.
A: “My style of play is to definitely be aggressive. When a player gets the ball, I want to be right on his butt right away, force him to turn back or force a turnover. I’m left-footed, so I like to switch the ball all the way from the left side to the right to find our wing players. I tried it a couple of times Saturday. I completed one, didn’t complete the other. I like to go straight-forward and help our attack.”
Q: So far, what’s been the best part of your soccer experience here in Las Vegas?
A: “I’ve been going around town, and drivers always ask me if I’m visiting. I tell them I play for Las Vegas Lights FC and ask if they’ve heard of us. If they haven’t, I like getting to tell them who Lights FC is. Helping the team both on and off the field is a great experience, and I enjoy introducing new fans to professional soccer.”
Q: What about this team in particular? What’s been the best part so far with the guys?
A: “The best thing about this group is that, even though a lot of us are Hispanic, the few guys who are not, they jump in with everything, they want to learn Spanish just like a lot of the Hispanic guys want to learn English. We all are united and together right now. There are no cliques or groups within the team. We work together on the field, and we all have that mindset of working together off the field, too.”
