FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Saër Sène decided to move to MLS precisely to avoid the situation he faced on Friday morning.
The recently arrived New England forward watched the proceedings from the sidelines as he waited to complete his medical later in the day. After spending the past few years in Bayern Munich's reserve side, Sène said he wants to stop watching his teammates and start making his own mark on the game.
“It's a great opportunity,” Sène told MLSsoccer.com in French as translated by Revolution assistant coach Remi Roy. “I've been in Europe all of my life and I went to Germany when I was really young. I was at Bayern and it was a big club. I wasn't getting as much playing time as I wanted because there were a lot of good players in front of me. Coming over here, I hope I'll be given more opportunities to play in the first team.”
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Sène's desire to obtain regular match practice prompted him to link up with the Revs on trial last month in Arizona. The positive experience persuaded the 25-year-old French striker to join on a permanent deal earlier this week.
“It was important for me to come over,” Sène said. “I came [to America] one time with Bayern for preseason, but I wanted to see the atmosphere, the group and the style of play. Once I came, I really enjoyed the guys and how things were done here.”
Revolution coach Jay Heaps said he wants to give his new striker a chance to see how that brief spell will translate to this extended partnership before the squad departs for Tucson, Ariz., on Monday afternoon.
“He's just finishing up with his physical and we'll see him out here Monday,” Heaps said. “It's nice to have him out here. He's really excited. I spoke to him before training today and he's really happy to be here.”
Sène's happiness stems from finally receiving a chance to influence matches. As the speedy striker prepares to make his MLS bow sooner rather than later, he said he hopes the collective success of his team will allow him to make an instant impact in front of goal.
“I want, first of all, to help the team win more games,” Sène said. “I read that the last two seasons haven't been as good and I want to help the team do better and score goals. If the team does well, then the goals will come.”
