New York City FC: Is Heber underrated?
Heber again reiterated his claim to be one of the top strikers in Major League Soccer. But is the New York City FC centre-forward underrated?
When thinking about the best players in Major League Soccer, the usual names often pop up. Josef Martinez, Carlos Vela, Nicolas Lodeiro, Alejandro Pozuelo. But while these are all superb footballers in their own right, there is one that is often left out of the discussion who should be included.
Heber is an elite goalscorer. The New York City FC centre-forward only arrived in MLS early last season, but he immediately settled into life as the spearhead of Dome Torrent’s team, revolutionising their goal threat and all-around attacking play.
But the Brazilian is often neglected when it comes to listing the best players in MLS. In fact, most would name his teammate, Maxi Moralez, as the premier performer for New York City FC — it is not without good reason as Moralez led MLS last year in assists with 20.
Heber, though, scored 15 goals last year. Only four players — Vela, Zlatan, Martinez and Diego Rossi — scored more. That is impressive in and of itself. But while they all played north of 2500 minutes, Heber only played 1575 minutes. He averaged a goal every 105 minutes. Only Vela, Martinez and Zlatan bettered that figure.
And last week, Heber provided yet another outstanding showing. He scored a hat-trick as New York City FC eased past San Carlos in a 5-3 victory. It was a phenomenal goalscoring display from a true goalscoring number nine.
But none of the goals looked especially spectacular. In fact, they were routinely average. Two were close-range tap-ins from crosses and his third was a penalty. It does not sound especially fantastical, and it perhaps provides a glimpse into why Heber is not rated at the same level as his peers.
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Heber is an out-and-out goalscorer. He is a poacher, finisher. He plays on the shoulder of the defence, he does not look to get heavily involved in build-up play, and he is almost solely focused on scoring goals. For instance, while Vela recorded 15 assists and Zlatan seven assists, Heber only had four, the same number as Martinez.
His movements also mean that many of his goals look simple. His skill is his mind. He anticipates chances brilliantly. He works finds space in crowded penalty areas with subtle body movements and deft feints. He is quick in his movement, but he has already gained half a yard in his head.
But this is all rather gritty detail. It is not fancy, it is not clipped onto social media, it does not get people standing in awe in the stadium. It is scoring goals in the simplest manner.
Next. New York City FC Vs San Carlos: 3 things we learned. dark
Nevertheless, New York City FC know how brilliant he is. He is their star goalscorer, and he might just fire them to MLS success.