By IVES GALARCEP
Amid the myriad of injuries and plethora of new faces deputized by head coach Oscar Pareja during a month of April that saw the Colorado Rapids overachieve, there has been one surprising constant in the starting lineup.
Rookie Dillon Powers was there for every minute, and didn’t just play every one of them, he managed to excel in his midfield role despite it being just his second month as a pro.
Powers steadily improving and impressive work in central midfield is a key reason the Rapids were able to overcome so many injuries on their way to a 2-1-1 record in April, and it is why he is SBI’s MLS Rookie of the Month.
Powers beat out a field of rookie candidates that included San Jose’s Adam Jahn, New England’s Andrew Farrell and Los Angeles Galaxy defender Greg Cochrane.
What did you think of Powers’ performances in April? What rookie impressed you the most last month?
Share your thoughts below.
Congrats to Powers from this CO Rapids fan. So, what do you all think about Yedlin? He is a solid performer IMO, but it’s difficult for my small soccer brain to compare his defensive performance to a box to box midfielder like Powers.
Nice! It was interesting at the draft how far he fell after being talked about as a pro prospect for 3 or 4 years. Guess GM’s over-thought him.
Of course, you are kidding or just plain silly. His youth , College & USMNT careers were studded with awards but they did not project him to the top of the 2013 draft. At the 2013 combine he was solid, not flashy. He was never in the conversation at the top of the 2013 draft. He seemed to fit between 8-12 and was taken at #11 by the Rapids much to my delight..
3 Midfielders were selected ahead of Powers. Alvarez because of his Mexican heritage. Bekkker who had an outstanding Combine & aslo because he is Canadian. One by guess & by gosh, Blake Smith at # 8, who should not have been selected earlier than Powers. But #8 vs #11 is not very different.
I think EC is refering to the projection in 2012 draft (if he had left school) where he was considered a top 5 pick & GA target…to the 2013 draft where he fell to a mid first round pick at # 11.
Yeah, Baby!