His club isn't so thrilled: https://www.tubantia.nl/heracles/me...-in-de-ploeg~a1c05015/?referrer=https://t.co/ "He will not return until the Friday before the away game against Go Ahead Eagles," said the Heracles trainer. "It means he can't participate, to avoid injuries. But of course it's nice for Luca and also a compliment that he has been called up”, says Wormuth.
It seemed likely to me all along that the club was subtly suggesting his starting role couldn't be guaranteed if he missed preseason, and that was a factor in why he made the decision he did about the Gold Cup. The tone here would support that, in a reading the tea leaves kind of way. People liked to tell me at the time that if he wasn't good enough to walk into Heracles' starting lineup even without a preseason, he wasn't good enough for USMNT anyway. Doesn't work that way, though. The club pays your salary. Some managers are vindictive. And a lot of guys who went to the GC did end up missing time afterwards for various health-related reasons. Plus his bet paid off; he skipped GC and got called up anyway.
Similar to the situation for Yanks in Germany in the “old days.” Play for the US = get benched for your club
If he's an important enough player for Heracles, it won't matter what his club wants. That's what he's got to show. Seems he's done a pretty good job so far, so shove it. And keep it up, Luca!
Biennial tournaments, like the Gold Cup, don't mean much in the footballing world and the Nation's League or whatever it's called don't mean anything, unless you're talking about caps for the Big Boys like Brazil or Argentina. WC and European Championship qualifiers are another story. The clubs know how much those tournaments mean to the players and how much a good performance there can firm up a player's transfer fee, so they're far less likely to be awkward about callups
Starts: 𝗗𝗘 𝗟𝗜𝗡𝗘-𝗨𝗣 ⚫️⚪️#herwil pic.twitter.com/7uU1SAckTw— Heracles Almelo (@HeraclesAlmelo) October 2, 2021
Won't be starting this weekend: "Luca de la Torre was on the road with the US during the int'l break. Wormuth: 'He arrived in Amsterdam at 5 this morning. We don't know yet if he will take a place on the bench. He will not play from the start.'" https://t.co/9PnTpB8XZ1— Daniel (@DanielSmith1022) October 15, 2021
Not in today's squad: 𝗢𝗽𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 ⚫️⚪️Orestis Kiomourtzoglou vervangt de afwezige Luca de la Torre.Ismail Azzaoui (niet fit) en Adrian Szöke (ziek) ontbreken ook in de wedstrijdselectie.#gaeher pic.twitter.com/H0cRmBK9i5— Heracles Almelo (@HeraclesAlmelo) October 16, 2021
If you want an explanation why the Dutch stadiums are sold out, you should watch this match. Heracles was trailing behind Go Ahead Eagles 3-2, when madness struck Go Ahead Eagles with two men sent off, so a battle ensued for the equalizer but in the end 9 men GAE scored a 4th goal. This was an epic game and it's a shame LdlT missed it, because this kind of matches stick in your memory as a player forever.
Starts: ⚫️⚪️ 𝗫𝗜Met Navajo Bakboord & @delatorreluca.#pecher pic.twitter.com/CI9xOmuapW— Heracles Almelo (@HeraclesAlmelo) October 23, 2021
This dribble, drive, and pass sequence from Luca de la Torre is so, so good. I’m legitimately shook. https://t.co/KgBQ1hBDqk— Joseph Lowery (@joeclowery) October 26, 2021
Starts: ⚫️⚪️ 𝗢𝗽𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴#aswher pic.twitter.com/dGzgWvNjBt— Heracles Almelo (@HeraclesAlmelo) October 26, 2021
tho... (ignore if already discussed) athleticism - ok. cm athleticism requirements are so much higher these days. are there as many medium athletes making it these days in the middle of the pitch? they'd have to be no just good, but supreme passers.
Ha, I was about to mention this minute to watch to see an excellent action plus showing vision by Luca.
Superb pass. I had to watch twice to see where the run came from that he picked out, because I didn't see it the first time at all. Really fantastic vision there.
He's going to face Alvarez, the Mexican who is bossing in the midfield in both The Eredivisie and the CL. This is going to be a test as hard as it can get. Alvarez defensive qualities provide a solid first barrier in front of the Ajax defense and he's one of the main reasons for the low against goals Ajax had to digest. It's a match all the scouts of the top clubs in Europe are watching.
This is his shop window. He's become a mainstay of Heracles' midfield, but it' time to step up a level or two. A good performance here will prove that he's ready to do that.