Fenelus Aims to Sharpen Game
- Updated: February 1, 2015
Photo credit: Cal State Fullerton Athletics
Soccer is often called a game of mistakes. The team that makes the fewest typically prevails. The same could also be said about aspiring prospects, at least according to Revolution draft pick Marc Fenelus.
After joining the club’s preseason camp 10 days ago, the 2015 third-round pick (47th overall) has quickly learned what it’ll take for a trialist like himself to make the cut.
“You have to play with a faster pace,” Fenelus told nesoccertoday.com via phone on Saturday. “You have to get used to the system, and make each play. You cannot make a lot of mistakes; you have to make (fewer) mistakes.”
Cutting down on the missteps is, perhaps, the biggest difference between the college game and top-flight football. The stakes are simply too high – especially for those trying to earn a pro contract – to be sloppy. And MLS coaches aren’t known for their patience.
But don’t be fooled. The 22-year-old midfielder/forward isn’t approaching camp everyday with caution or concern. By no means. The way the Cal State Fullerton prospect sees it, he couldn’t have come to a better situation.
“I really like the (Revolution’s system) because this is how I love to play; get possession and pass the ball,” Fenelus said. “So I’ve trying to get really close to the guys to know the way that they play, and just keep doing what I’ve already been doing.”
You’d be hard-pressed to fault him from sticking to what he knows. At Fullerton, he scored a team-high seven goals and added two assists last season. The Titan senior was subsequently invited to the 2015 MLS Caribbean Combine, where he caught the eye of the Revolution technical staff.
“I actually had an interview with them, and they really seemed to like me,” Fenelus said. “So I was excited when they drafted me.”
Excited once the news sank in, that is. Initially, the sole member of the 2015 Revolution draft class was in shock when he got the call from coach Jay Heaps advising of his selection.
“He told me, ‘Hey Marc, we just drafted you,’” Fenelus said, “and I mean I was like, ‘Really?’, and they said, ‘Yeah, and we want you to come to camp as soon as possible.’ It was really an exciting moment for me, and I just couldn’t wait to be there.”
Once he arrived, Fenelus told the coaching staff he was willing to play anywhere they needed him. Given his speed and dribbling abilities, he’s trained and played as a central attacking midfielder, as well as out on the wing.
“I’m pretty comfortable out anywhere,” Fenelus said. “I’ve played in a lot of different formations before, so it doesn’t really matter to me, whether it’s as an attacking mid, as an eight, or anywhere else.”
In Saturday’s first preseason scrimmage, Fenelus came on at the half, and went 45 minutes in the central midfield. He may not have scribbled his name on the scoresheet or unleashed a killer assist, but Fenelus was pleased with what he was able to accomplish nonetheless.
“It was really great,” Fenelus said. “I just kept passing the ball, and got a lot of touches on the ball, and made some plays.”
While Fenelus is hoping that mistakes won’t plague him during the preseason, he’s focused on another important objective that’s just as crucial to making the final cut.
“It’s about how you want to fit in the system,” Fenelus said. “You want to work hard, and you want to learn from the guys who’ve been there before. That’s what I’m trying to do: learn from the guys, and just learn from their experience, and just make sure I’m on the right page with them.”
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