GUADALAJARA, Mexico — As perfect debuts come, it doesn't come much better than steering a direct free kick into corner of the goal to grab your new team the equalizer.
That's what American striker Herculez Gomez did in Santos Laguna's preseason friendly against Dorados de Sinaloa on Tuesday, just 13 minutes after coming off the bench at halftime.
Gomez went close to stealing the game for Santos on two other occasions.
The forward told the press after the game that he has been welcomed positively by the other players at his new club and added that he was happy to get minutes under his belt, especially as he comes into the season after two months without competitive action, compared to the two-week break the rest of his teammates had after competing in the Apertura 2011 final against Tigres UANL.
The 29-year-old will be hoping for an official debut on Saturday when Santos kick off their Clausura 2012 campaign against José Francisco Torres' Pachuca.
Tom Marshall covers Americans playing in Latin America. He can be reached via tom.marshall.mex@gmail.com.
