RENTON — It wasn’t so long ago that Cristian Roldan was perpetually considered one of the most overlooked or under-appreciated players in MLS. That seems to be changing rather quickly.
Now in his 10th professional season, he’s gaining more national and international recognition. Just in the last month, the 30-year-old has been feted in The Athletic, earned prominent mentions from United States men’s national team coach Mauricio Pochettino, and most recently was named a MLS Best XI midfielder.
At long last, it would seem as though Roldan is finally getting his deserved flowers.
“Yeah, it might get to my head,” Roldan joked, following Wednesday’s training session. “In all seriousness, though, I like the idea of being underrated. It speaks volumes to all the people that are saying that, GMs or players or whatnot.
“Obviously, it’s nice to hear, but I’m always going to defer on the individual stuff. I want to win. That’s always the reason why I played the game.”
Of course, that’s also part of why Roldan is getting these accolades.
Roldan hasn’t necessarily put up eye-popping numbers — he has just one goal and two primary assists in MLS play this season — but has gained a reputation for being someone who’s willing to do the dirty work that allows the players around him to thrive. That’s no small accomplishment for a player who had never played as a No. 6 with any regularity until moving there last year.
“I thought this year we evolved as a team,” Roldan said. “Some of that was definitely me evolving as a player, but I think collectively this is a recognition of our team rather than just one player.”
One element Roldan felt he needed to add to his game this year was a bit more willingness to be an enforcer. At times last year, head coach Brian Schmetzer said the Sounders needed to be a little less nice. Roldan felt like it was at least partly his responsibility to make sure that happened.
“I had discussed that we needed to foul a little more, being savvier with the way we play because teams will do that to us,” Roldan said. “Taking some of the best players out of the game in a smart way is always important. That was definitely part of my goal this year, understanding the I’m going to have more of a defensive role and how I can still impact the team off the ball.”
That Roldan has made this transition so quickly and seamlessly has been almost taken for granted. While he had previously played in a double-pivot at various times in his career, he had always been paired with a more defensive-minded partner like Osvaldo Alonso, Gustav Svensson or João Paulo. More recently, he had played as an attacker, primarily on the right side, while filling in at just about every other position.
“He’s really taken that role as a learning tool to get better, even at his age,” Schmetzer said. “Cristian’s put in the work and we’re seeing the fruits of his labor.
“He’s just a smart soccer player. He’s not selfish. He understands what the team needs. He knows he can do the best job to help the group win doing these certain things.”
Sounders confident
The Sounders may be going on the road and facing a team who has shut them out twice this year, but that hasn’t left them feeling any less positive about their chances to win a decisive Game 3 against Minnesota United.
“They have an identity, they have a way to play, they’ve had a great season,” Schmetzer said. “But I think our team matches up good with them. I think we just need to make plays. The team that’s going win is the team that’s going to find that one moment where one of their guys makes a play, or one of our guys is going to score first, and then we control tempo. It’s going to be a good series, but I’m confident in my group.”
Alex Roldan should be available
One lingering issue from Monday’s win over Minnesota United was Alex Roldan coming out at halftime with “groin tightness.” With starters mostly doing regenerative work on Wednesday, Roldan was given the day off. But Schmetzer said Roldan will be back in training on Thursday and should be available for Game 3 on Saturday.
