During the short and generally chaotic offseason, the Houston Dynamo looked around the world in hopes of adding talent at the forward position.
After winning back-to-back championships in their first two seasons in south Texas, the Dynamo turned to Argentina, where the team found 21-year-old forward Franco Caraccio.
The talented Argentinean, who joins a growing list of players from that country to sign with MLS teams, began his career in his teens with Arsenal de Sarandí of Argentina's Primera Division.
The best time of his life? He'll tell you it was the time he spent with Argentina's under-20 national team. He got a chance to play with the best players from his beloved homeland. That is very hard to top at his age.
Now he has to fight the Houston traffic if he wants to get anywhere in his "new" city. In the team's press guide, he lists the daily gridlock of the Bayou City as his least favorite thing about his new surroundings.
Things are still new, but Caraccio is getting used to life in the United States. "I am slowly adapting, little by little, with every game that goes by. I am still getting to know everyone on my team and on all the other teams as well," he said.
Part of the adaptation process is also the adjustment to Major League Soccer. Slowly but surely, that too is coming along for Caraccio.
"It is obviously a different game here because we run more," Caraccio said. "It's more dynamic, but soccer is soccer and little by little I am getting more rhythm.
"Every day I think I get a little bit better. Obviously yes, it was difficult for me at the beginning because we play differently in Argentina. It's not so physical and there it is not as big of a running game."
Caraccio is getting better and he is gaining the respect of his teammates. He scored his first MLS goal in the team's home opener against FC Dallas on April 6.
That goal gave Houston a 1-0 lead in a match that ended in a 3-3 draw. Corey Ashe made a nice, athletic play to float the ball into the box where Caraccio headed it in.
"I was very happy at that moment," Caraccio said. "It was a nice way to get the goal and it was a goal that eventually helped us get a much-needed tie after we went ahead and then lost the lead.
"It was a good goal at the time, but that is what I was brought here to do. I am here to score goals and win games. It hasn't happened yet, but we are working toward that."
Caraccio has had a good start, made a few mistakes at times, but he is well on his way to become a fixture in orange.
No one knows if his No. 10 will one day be worn by every die-hard Dynamo fan in the stadium. For now, his MLS career is just three matches old. He is still learning. He is still getting better.
"I have a job to do," Caraccio said. "I know I have to go in (the box) and make things happen. I need to go in there, create some chances and try to score some goals."
Andrew J. Ferraro is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
