Jason Hsu may not score many goals or grab many headlines — excluding this one — but his impact on the pitch for the Terra Linda High boys soccer team this season has been undeniable.
“The word would be vital,” TL coach Mike Crivello said of his holding midfielder. “He just does a little bit of everything for us. The No. 6 position has become so important, especially as the game has evolved, where not only do you have to be a great distributor of the ball but you also have to probably be one of the best defenders on the pitch as well.”
Hsu — along with top scorer Ruthwick Challagonda — has been key to a season which saw the Trojans (11-2-3, 11-2-3 MCAL) sit atop the table for most of the season.
TL finished tied for first with Tam, which made a late-season push to catch the Trojans on 36 points. Both teams were helped immensely by fielding player-of-the-year candidates at the No. 6 position — Hsu for TL and Samy Wahab for Tam.
The Trojans took the head-to-head tiebreaker and the top seed in the MCAL playoffs, which begin on Wednesday afternoon. TL hosts cross-town rival San Rafael in one semifinal while Tam hosts Redwood in the other.
Hsu began his high-school career with the Trojans playing right back as a freshman. Hsu plays center back for Marin FC but pushed to move into the midfield for TL so he could wield more influence over the games.
“It’s not the most glamorous position,” Hsu said. “I don’t always get to score the goals but for me its connecting all parts of our team like switching the ball together and at the same time defending and sometimes getting a chance to attack.”
Crivello accommodated the request and moved Hsu a bit higher up the pitch.
“Everything starts with that,” Crivello said. “(Hsu) gives the rest of the players on the pitch, outside of maybe the center backs, freedom. The way we like to play, we like to get our outside backs involved in the game. We love to have our No. 10 (attacking midfielder) make runs, not just having to sit and play in the middle.
“(Hsu) just gives everyone on the pitch freedom and without a six that can do that consistently, you have to play a lot more conservatively and we’re the opposite (of that). I’m huge on getting numbers forward and trying to create two-on-ones around the pitch. The only reason we can do that is we have a six like Jason. He just allows us to play the way that we play and have a really effective style that suits our skill set and the quality of players that we have.”
The holding midfield role doesn’t really have a direct parallel in any other sport. A box-to-box No. 6 sits in front of the two center backs and not only helps his team win the ball but can play the key pass to begin the attack — somewhat akin to the unique role Draymond Green carved out for himself on the Golden State Warriors’ title teams.
The holding midfielder has risen to prominence in the world game in recent years. Teams have changed the way they build up the attack, putting more responsibility on the No. 6.
Leicester City famously won the Premier League in 2015-16 with its holding midfielder, N’Golo Kante, emerging as arguably its most important player. Kante switched to Chelsea the following season and helped the Blues claim the title that year.
This season, Liverpool is dominating the Premier League in part because Fabinho has emerged as one of the world’s best holding midfielders.
“The game has changed,” Crivello said. “Thirty years ago, everything was a lot more direct so you bypassed the midfield a lot. Now it’s almost everyone playing out of the back and trying to link up the back line to the front line. You have to have the (No. 6) now. It’s just a style change where a lot is played on the ground out of the back. If you’re doing that, you have to have that six. You need that link in the midfield with the ball on the ground.”
Teams in the MCAL have paid attention to the global game and followed suit. More MCAL teams involve the goalie in possession and are building out of the back — with the goalie playing a shorter pass to a defender to start the attack rather than just punting a 50/50 ball into the midfield.
“It’s pretty important to have a strong midfield,” Hsu said. “I think that all the teams — Redwood, Tam, San Rafael — all the good teams have really strong midfields so that’s definitely key to everyone’s success.”
Both Hsu and Tam’s Wahab are firmly in the player-of-the-year conversation, typically dominated by high-scoring dynamos like Challagonda.
“It comes back to impacting the game on both ends of the field,” Tam coach Dustin Nygaard said. “You’re looking for someone to win the ball and jumpstart the offense. If you have someone who can do both, you’re really looking at the engine of your team.”
Much like Hsu, Wahab has been instrumental to his team’s success as Tam roared back into the playoffs this season.
“The beautiful thing about Samy is he’s played as a No. 10 the majority of his career but he knows the best thing for our team is him playing the No. 6,” Nygaard said. “Defense is going to be key to our success. He’s kind of selflessly volunteered his service.
“That position and the center back position have changed a lot, too. You’re not just looking at some big guys who are good at heading the ball. You’re asking these guys to start your offense, too.”
2020-02-10 01:41:47Z
https://www.marinij.com/2020/02/09/boys-soccer-hsu-the-engine-for-high-powered-terra-linda/
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