Los Angeles FC's Carlos Vela has four tips for staying on the ball

Los Angeles FC's Carlos Vela has four tips for staying on the ball

Mexican professional soccer star Carlos Vela plays and captains Los Angeles FC, where he has won the Supporters' Shield and the MLS Golden Boot. As he and his MLS team prepare for the upcoming League Cup, Vela sat down with himM&Fto discuss what makes a dangerous player and what he has learned in his career so far.

Carlos Vela began his football career in Mexico, where he became the top goalscorer at the 2005 FIFA U-17 World Cup, and soon moved to the Premier League by signing for Arsenal. He later played for La Real for six years, where he scored 73 goals in 250 games. On his return to Arsenal, Vela scored a hat-trick in the League Cup win over Sheffield United, with the second goal being voted one of Arsenal's 50 best goals. At 34 years old, Vela is still a dangerous offense, but what has he learned from his thousands of hours on the pitch? As team captain, Vela leads by example and defies pressure from the younger players who are desperate to surround him. But with Los Angeles FC currently at the top of the Western Conference, these younger players shouldn't underestimate his abilities and could do far worse than follow his sage advice:

Listen and learn to improve your game

“Sometimes our youth leads us to focus on our mistakes and the needs of our teammates,” explains the football legend. “When you’re young, you make more mistakes,” he says. "You don't listen much, but over the years you start to understand that the most important thing is to learn from others and do the right things. When you do that, success comes. When you start doing your own thing, you're selfish and just want to score goals and think 'I don't care about the rest' and you're going to have trouble... When different people all say the same (constructive) things (about...). The way you play) then something isn’t going well, so you have to listen.”

Stay calm and focus on the size of the football

If you learn to block out noises and distractions that throw you off track, you will achieve great results. “When you're young, sometimes you start to have a lot of things on your mind, and sometimes they're not good,” Vela says. "So as you start to become more experienced and more calm about what's best for you and your team, you start to make better decisions. I think everyone experiences that, but it's real. If you were to compare my brain to my body from 20 years ago, I'm sure I would have flown with all the experiences I have now, but that's part of the process."

Older players can use age as an advantage

While more mature players like Vela may be overtaken by some players half his age, this goalscorer understands that with age comes more wisdom. “Today, (mature players) might lose speed, maybe strength, but mentally you gain,” he explains. "Mentally you're a little bit ahead of the young guys, so you can work with that. You have to think about where you need to go before the other guys run away and you have to know what the game needs from you and be in better positions because if you just rely on speed you're going to lose most of the time. So you have to be smarter about that. Before you get the ball you have to think about, 'What's next?' and be prepared before the others to achieve a good result.”

Goals in the gym become match points for Carlos Vela

Although it's difficult to achieve the cardio intensity that comes with a 90-minute soccer game, fortunately Vela has stayed fit through many games this season. Still, Vela uses the gym to work on other aspects of his game. “It’s so important, and you realize that as you get older,” says the attacker.

"You have to keep a good routine because your body isn't the same, so you have to prepare for the youngest guy going to the gym (also)." Vela tells M&F that he works on his flexibility with resistance bands and has a particular interest in building his explosive power to stay ahead. Vela uses plyometric training; He contracts and stretches his muscles through sprints and other activities like box jumps to stay one step ahead of the competition. Vela says that the work in the gym surrounding his football training is just as important as learning the football technique itself. The captain also believes that the level of play will continue to improve as younger players switch to training in the gym earlier in their careers.

Of course, the level of play will be put to the test at the Leagues Cup 2023 when it all kicks off from July 21st to August 19th. This is a World Cup-style tournament in which all MLS and LIGA MX clubs take part. And throughout the summer, Coors Light (the official beer of the League Cup) is reinforcing its commitment to soccer fans by partnering with Vela and developing themed packaging, on-site activations and athlete partnerships to enjoy at every single game. A sought-after piece of merchandise will be a branded scarf with pockets for Coors cans. “I am very pleased to be part of this partnership,” says Vela. "Because we know how crazy and passionate football fans are. And in this league, people are definitely going to be very excited."

Coors Light's commitment to the new and exciting league demonstrates the growing interest in U.S. Soccer. “This is my sixth year here,” says Vela. "And every year is an improvement and when you see that, you feel good to be part of something that is getting better and better. I want to help this league grow and go in the right direction and I think that this year, with Messi coming, a lot of good players are looking at this league."

In fact, seven-time Ballon d'OR winner Lionel Messi is now part of the MLS following his move to Inter Miami CF, but Vela has no intention of being distracted by the excitement surrounding his arrival. “Of course you can always do a little better, but I think we're doing really well because we've played a lot of games and the squad is a very tight group,” said the Los Angeles FC team captain. “So in the end I think we prepared really well.”