Jones Takes Shots at Revs’ Digs
- Updated: March 9, 2016
Jermaine Jones was back in front of a microphone on Wednesday for his introductory press conference with the Colorado Rapids. And in news that should shock no one, the star midfield took a few jabs at his former place of employment.
At the start of Wednesday’s presser, Jones told the media that the reason why he agreed to be traded to Colorado was “the whole package,” which included playing at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park.
“You have a real soccer stadium,” Jones said. “The main focus here is on soccer – it’s not like what you have in Boston.”
As a member of the Revolution from 2014-2015, Jones played his home games at Gillette Stadium, where the club shared the 68,000-seat venue with the NFL’s New England Patriots. The Revolution are one of two MLS sides – including the Seattle Sounders – that share its home park with an NFL team.
But Jones didn’t stop there. When asked specifically about the prospect of playing at the Rapids’ soccer-specific stadium, Jones didn’t mince words.
“You know that’s your own stadium, and every week, it’s home, so you go there to prepare for the games,” Jones said. “In Boston, it’s completely different. (There) you have a turf field that’s tough to play on, but then, you also have to share the whole stadium with the Patriots, and so you don’t really feel at home, and that’s what I wanted to change, and that’s what I’m looking forward to here in Colorado.”
Jones, who’s suspended for the first six games of the season, detailed that he’ll remain with the club for the duration of the week before flying back to Los Angeles, where he’ll attend to getting his family prepared for the move to Colorado.
Once the move is complete, Jones expects to start training with the Rapids on a regular basis in the week leading up to their Apr. 2 match vs. Toronto.
Barring any setbacks, the 34-year-old midfielder will make his Rapids debut on Apr. 16 at Red Bull Arena against the New York Red Bulls.
What role Jones will fill once he returns to MLS action was another topic that was raised on Wednesday.
While Jones has seen time at center back at the club and international levels over the past year, he says he’s open to whatever Rapids coach Pablo Mastroeni has in mind. Coincidentally, Mastroeni is a former teammate of Jones’ last MLS coach, Jay Heaps.
“Everybody knows that I like to play more in the midfield,” Jones said. “But at the end of the day, I’ve (played center back) a few times before with the National Team and in New England, too. But the key is to come back, and see how everything works out, and then sit down with the coaches.”
Before Wednesday’s presser was complete, Jones also channeled some of the verbiage from his formal introduction in Foxborough less than two years ago.
“(We) have a young team where there’s, I think, 16 new players,” Jones said. “I think that’s a key point too: I’m the player with a lot of experience, and I’ll try to get that into the team, and make stuff happen so the club gets back to (being) a playoff team.”
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