SAN JOSE, Calif. -- After sliding into the World Cup break with two losses and a tie in the space of eight days, the San Jose Earthquakes are looking for a fresh start.
So itās fitting, perhaps, that the Quakes just added midfielder Sam Cronināa man in need of exactly the same thing.
Cronin, the 23-year-old No. 2 overall selection in the 2009 MLS SuperDraft, was officially shipped from Toronto FC to San Jose on Monday for an undisclosed amount of allocation money.
āHeās a young American player thatās made a national team camp,ā Quakes head coach Frank Yallop said. āI think this is a good pickup for us, for the future as well as now.ā
Cronin started 26 out of 30 matches for the Reds as a rookie under coaches John Carver and Chris Cummins, but with new boss Preki at the helm this season, he sat out more games (five) than he started (four).
āIt was just a different set of eyes,ā Cronin said. āEvery coach sees something different. Last season, I was in the coachās favor, and this season it didnāt seem like I was..
āThatās OK. Not everybody likes you.ā
San Jose loved the idea of adding midfield help, and with veteran Andre Luiz still in injury limbo due to a damaged left knee, Cronin is expected to be pressed immediately into service as an attacking center midfielder.
Thatās a change from Toronto, where Cronin generally played on the wings, and harkens back to his days at Wake Forest, where he was a two-time All-American.
āIt gives us a guy that plays in the middle of the field,ā Yallop said. āHeās a guy thatās done well in the league, but not yet played in his natural position.ā
Thereās one other thing that will bring Cronin back to his college days: The trade means heāll have to get back into the mode of doing homework, at least for a while.
āI need to watch some film on these guys and get familiar with how these guys play,ā Cronin said. āBut Iām confident in my abilities [in terms of] helping the team in the midfield and improving the team.ā
Geoff Lepper covers the Earthquakes for MLSsoccer.com. He can be reached at sanjosequakes@gmail.com. On Twitter: @sjquakes.
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