Martin Jacobson doesn’t like to compare his Martin Luther King Jr. boys’ soccer teams from one year to the next. He prefers to judge them based on accomplishments, namely city championship crowns.
So when he puts the current crop of Knights favorably up against some of his elite clubs — at this point in the preseason, at least — that’s saying something.
“This could be one of my better teams,” said the 63-year-old coach, who has won 11 city crowns and taken MLK to the past 13 finals. “Their quickness and their ability to pass quickly and move off the ball, their incredible tactical ability, are phenomenal for a high school team.”
High praise, indeed.
The Knights, ranked 16th in a national preseason poll, were considered an underdog entering the city playoffs after finishing second to Beacon (the top seed in the postseason) in Manhattan A. It was the first time MLK had failed to win its division in 15 years. Yet the Manhattan power still was the last team standing, knocking off Beacon, their fierce rival, in penalty kicks, 2-1.
Of that group, eight starters (seven of them seniors) return: center midfielder Sebastian Ramirez, sweeper Alex Zorrilla, stopper Serigne Dioum, midfielders David Diosa and Mama Amar, strikers Souleymane Kone and Moriken Sangary, and fullback Chris Peralta.
Ramirez will team with newcomer Diego Montaleza, an Ecuadorian import whose uncle is an MLK alum. Ramirez praised Montaleza’s smarts, his willingness to make the simple pass instead of dribbling past defenders or squeezing the ball through. Jacobson raved about Montaleza’s powerful right-footed shot.
“He practically took the hands off our goalies,” Jacobson said. “It’s only been a week of practice, but he’s working great with Sebastian. I do see those two being key.”
There are questions, namely of the Knights’ dearth of depth and their keeper, senior Jean Carlo Perez, who replaces Malick Faye, the 6-foot-3 dynamo who is now at SUNY Institute of Technology.
Jacobson is confident his first team is superior to just about anyone in the city, but unlike last year, when he could go 15 deep, fatigue could set in at some point. Then there is Perez, a four-year player who has done little but fetch Gatorade and root on his teammates in three previous seasons.
During the offseason, Perez would talk to Jacobson every day about a series of matters, from soccer to school. At the end of every conversation, Jacobson asked Perez if he was ready to take over.
“I’ve been waiting for this for three years,” he would tell Jacobson. “Of course I’m ready.”
Perez, who has grown 6 inches, from 5-foot-5 to 5-foot-11 in the last year, picked up plenty of helpful hints from Faye. He learned when to come out of net, how to read opposing shooters, but most of all, to remain composed.
“I know what to do when it comes to a serious situation,” he said.
As do his teammates. The core from last year’s run to the school’s 11th crown is back and just as hungry, Ramirez, the talented center midfielder, said. That group used the doubters as motivation. Now, a year later, they are considered favorites. Ramirez didn’t view that club as a typical MLK team.
This edition, he said, has that special quality, because of its skill and deft touches, the talent and experience from one end of the field to the other. So when Jacobson tells the Knights this could be his best team yet, there are merely smiles.
“It might give us a little bit of pressure, but it makes you want to make him proud, make him happy and win the championship,” Ramirez said. “We’re connected this year. We’re like a family.”