Art by Futbol Artist Network | Illus: John Lee | Twitter: @johnleedraws
For Oscar Pareja, the message is simple: The more you put in, the more you get out.
That mantra applies to life, relationships and especially to soccer, where Pareja has built a reputation over more than two decades as a reliable teammate, a club ambassador and now as a player’s coach who’s found success in the city he loves.
The latest episode of the Emmy-nominated series MLS Insider looks at the man they call “El Profe” in Dallas, and how he’s connected with his players to lead something of a soccer revival in one of MLS’ original markets. Pareja led Dallas back to the MLS Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2011 this season and his hands-on style of coaching has resonated with the team’s younger players, especially promising forward Fabian Castillo, a fellow Colombian who has adopted Pareja’s family as his own.
Find out more about the MLS Cup Playoffs, presented by AT&T, and don’t miss the rest of the MLS Insider series. Past episodes include a behind-the-scenes look at the recent Dallas-Seattle playoff series, as well the life and legacy of Luca DeLaGarza and the meteoric rise of Chivas USA striker Erick “Cubo” Torres in Los Angeles.
