At only 19 years of age, this is already FC Dallas defender Blake Wagner's third season in MLS. But the Florida native looks to make the leap from promising youngster to full-time starter for the Hoops in 2008 season. When FCD takes the field for MLS First Kick on March 30 against Chivas USA, it could very well be Wagner starting at left back.
Wagner made his MLS debut last September, starting on the left flank Sept. 30, 2007 against reigning league champion Houston. And after the match, FCD head coach Steve Morrow was pleased with his first professional start.
Unfortunately for Wagner, he had been playing with a sports hernia for some time and might have started for the rest of the season if it wasn't for that ailment. But in December, he traveled to Germany for surgery and is now fully healed.
"The surgery went well," Wagner said. "Ever since then, everything has felt good and I'm ready to go for the season. The offseason is always good but every time you come back to preseason, everyone is anxious to play. Getting to play with these guys is great, so I'm excited to get back."
This time a year ago, Wagner found himself behind both Chris Gbandi and David Wagenfuhr on the club's depth chart. But things have changed a bit. Gbandi was on trial with a club in Norway earlier in the month and FCD is close to agreeing to transfer terms, leaving Wagenfuhr and Wagner.
"It (the starting spot) is definitely up for grabs," Wagner said. "Wags is a good player and a good competitor. I think it will be up in the air. We'll see what happens but I feel good and hopefully, this is a big year for me."
In his first two seasons with the Hoops, Wagner absorbed all he could from Gbandi, the first overall pick in the 2001 SuperDraft and FCD's 2006 defender of the year.
"Chris is a great player and I've learned a lot from him," Wagner said. "He's just been a great guy to look up to since he plays the same position as me and has been in the league for a while."
Last month, FCD added ex-Club America and Mexican national team defender Duilio Davino to their roster in a move designed to bolster their backline after losing 2007 defender of the year Clarence Goodson to San Jose in the expansion draft last November.
And Wagner is clearly looking forward to learning from, and playing alongside the former Aguilas captain, as FCD began preparations for the 2008 season on Monday at Pizza Hut Park.
"He (Davino) has got a lot of experience, a lot of international experience," he said. "He's a guy that I will definitely look to as a role model. Hopefully, he shows me a lot of things because he's such a great player."
Wagner is proud of how he performed in his league debut against Dynamo just a few months ago but admits that he isn't dwelling on his past performances, he is instead more focused on his present and future with the Hoops.
"That game was a while ago, so I don't really think about it any more," Wagner said. "I just focus on the next day and right now, that's all I'm thinking about. I just want to work on staying mentally in the game 100 percent of the time."
Originally a second-round pick in 2006, Wagner has learned much since his rookie season in MLS but admits that his preparation for each season has always remained fairly simple. "No, my preparation during preseason hasn't really changed," he said. "I keep myself fit and go into preseason with the same mentality every year, of fighting for a starting spot."
Steve Hunt is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
