Carlos Fierro appears to know the way to San Jose and he will make his home there now after joining the MLS Earthquakes.
Major League Soccer is becoming an option for Mexican players, whether they are veterans looking to extend their careers or youngsters simply trying to jump-start them. The level of competition is growing in MLS and – as far the those players in the latter category – younger players can find playing time a bit more easily than in Liga MX.
And now 24-year-old Carlos Fierro will be among those trying to revive their careers in MLS. The Los Mochis, Sinaloa, native has joined the San Jose Earthquakes, his fifth team since debuting for Guadalajara in 2011 at the age of 17.
A month before his debut with the Chivas, Fierro helped lead El Tri to the Under-17 World Cup title, Mexico’s second championship in that category. Fierro played in all seven games and scored four goals for Mexico, including the game-winner against France in the quarterfinals.
Fierro has played for five Liga MX franchises, beginning with the Chivas (2011-2015), then spent 2016 with Queretaro, returned to Guadalajara for two seasons in 2017, played the Clausura 2018 with Cruz Azul, before spending the past two seasons with Morelia.
Although Fierro has yet to fulfill the promise he displayed in the U-17 World Cup, he will be returning to a familiar system under San Jose coach Matias Almeyda, who was his coach at Guadalajara on two separate occasions. Almeyda and Fierro won the Copa MX together in December 2015, but the young striker was traded to Queretaro a month later.
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Fierro returned to the Chivas for the Clausura 2017 season and Almeyda guided Guadalajara to the Liga MX title, but the forward could not win a starting spot up front and he was sent to Cruz Azul after the Apertura 2017. Through a total of three seasons under the direction of Almeyda, Fierro supplied 3 goals and 7 assists in 43 league matches, while adding 3 goals in 11 Copa MX matches.
In the first season in MLS as Earthquakes coach, Almeyda is slowly building San Jose into a contender in the Western Conference and he is surely hoping that Fierro’s familiarity with his system will speed his transition.
Fierro certainly has talent, but he has not been able to settle into a system that fits his talents. Let’s hope that under Almeyda’s direction, the young winger can develop into the star that we all saw back in 2011 at the U-17 World Cup.