For a year and a half since the Seattle Sounders signed Pedro de la Vega as a Designated Player from Lanús in Argentina, they had seen flashes of brilliance of the type of quality they know he possessed. They had been waiting on him to put it all together in a gamebreaking way, to show the rest of MLS the type of match-winning player they know him to be.
In Saturday’s 3-2 win over the San Jose Earthquakes, de la Vega earned a start on the left side in Head Coach Brian Schmetzer’s 4-2-3-1 formation and put in the type of cathartic, breakthrough performance with a goal and an assist that everyone had been expecting.
“I can adapt to the needs of the team and the circumstances of each match,” said de la Vega postmatch through a translator. “[On Saturday], I played on the left. I felt good, I was happy and I’m always ready to execute what the coach asks and what will be best for the team.”
de la Vega was a menace on the left flank all evening en route to an MLS Team of the Matchday appearance. He set up Danny Musovski’s second goal of the match with a beautiful run and clipped ball to the back post. He then scored the match-winner in highlight-reel fashion, receiving the ball on a counterattack, cutting inside and releasing a curling effort from 20 yards out that found the far corner.
“He got a chance to play on the left and he performed really well,” said Schmetzer. “Pedro was obviously very good…That was the player that we thought we had.”
Internal team competition breeds success, and the Sounders are not short on attacking options on the wing. Paul Rothrock and Jesús Ferreira had been getting the lion’s share of starts on the left and right, side, respectively, with de la Vega, Ryan Kent and Georgi Minoungou all vying for minutes. de la Vega has appeared in 20 matches so far this season, splitting his appearances evenly as a starter and as a substitute.
“It’s not easy to be on the bench,” said de la Vega. “One needs to keep working day-to-day waiting for when the opportunity and the moment arrive. I continue to do that. It’s a strong team with teammates that play at a high level. Paul has been having great matches. Jesús is also playing well from the right. So, it’s not easy when the entire team is playing at this level.”
For de la Vega and his teammates, they see the kind of work that he puts into training every week, so Saturday’s outburst was not something new to them. They were glad it finally came to fruition in a meaningful moment that will hopefully beget even more production.
“When a guy’s training well, you want to see the good results of that come out on the field,” said Musovski of de la Vega. “He’s always been a good player, and to get the reward and get a goal, it’s really good for him and the team.”
de la Vega echoed Musovski’s sentiments, saying, “One feels happy when after training well and feeling good at practice, it can translate into a match. Maybe in matches it was not coming through, but today with the plays like the goal and the assist, it makes me happy. First for helping the team, but also at the personal level rewarding myself.”
Saturday’s performance gives Schmetzer and his staff some good problems to have as the Sounders head into the final third of the MLS season. Schmetzer mentioned that de la Vega has played his way into a conversation for more regular starts on the left side of the field.
Seattle will need their young Argentine playmaker to continue to find good form as the club heads East this coming Saturday for a clash with Atlanta United (4:30 p.m. PT; Watch on MLS Season Pass on Apple TV) before entering into the 2025 edition of the Leagues Cup on July 31.
“I can adapt, I can find these opportunities,” said de la Vega. “Confidence is something that you have to build and create yourself, not just because of the results but because of the work. I’ll keep working.”
