While the 13-day layoff for FC Dallas has allowed the club to return to regular training and work out the kinks following a pair of consecutive losses, it has also been beneficial in that Argentinean midfielder Pablo Ricchetti finally had his visa approved and will officially be added to the Hoops roster later this week.
Ricchetti and FCD agreed in principle to a contract on April 5, just two days before the start of the regular season, but it took nearly a month to get his visa approved. The 30-year-old veteran midfielder traveled back to Argentina last week to complete the process and has returned with his family and they are now getting settled.
"It's good to have him," said FCD head coach Steve Morrow. "I've known all along what he was going to bring in terms of his composure on the ball and technical ability. I think it's going to be a big help for us in the middle of the field.
"I don't want to heap too much pressure on him early on because he's not 100 percent fit yet and we need to try and get him to that level as quickly as we can. He seems to be over his injury, which is positive as well. It's just a matter of working his fitness, getting his touch and speed of play going."
The FCD boss said that Ricchetti will be available for this weekend's match against the Kansas City Wizards but as of right now, he is unsure about whether or not he will start.
"For me, it's a good game because it's my first game here. I came here one month ago, have trained with this team for two months and want to play. It's an important and a very big game for me," Ricchetti said. "My family is here now and I'm happy that they're happy. For me, it's necessary to have them here and have them happy. Now I can only think about the game."
Making Morrow's decision a bit easier about whether or not he elects to put Ricchetti in the starting 11 for his FCD debut is the fact that he has trained with the squad for much of the last two months.
"That helps," Morrow said. "It's not like we have brought a new guy in and this is his first week of training. The guy is known very well and feels comfortable about everything. The thing that helps as well is that he knows what we're trying to do with our system of play and he should slide right in without too much trouble."
The more that Morrow sees Ricchetti, the more he recalls exactly what he and the rest of the FCD coaching staff saw in him and how well he should fit in with his new system.
"He's someone that can give us great composure on the ball and he moves it well," Morrow said. "He makes early, quick passes, which I like. That is something I look for and that I think fits well in this league. The pace of the game slows down and it helps if you have someone in there who can see passes quickly.
"Being able to move the ball quickly increases the speed of the game and the rhythm that we want to play in. He's very good technically as well. He's comfortable in tight positions and is able to get himself out of situations. I think he's going to be a good fit."
After training on Tuesday, Ricchetti admitted that he isn't quite fully fit, but still expects to be at top form by this weekend.
"I feel like I need a little more physical work because I haven't played in the first six games," he said. "I miss the competition but want to play. Playing well is important. If I feel like I can't do that, then I won't play."
Steve Hunt is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
