Alfredo Morales says he is relishing every second of his return to action in the 2023 season.
The midfielder was named in New York City’s starting XI for the first time since August, in last weekend’s trip to Houston Dynamo, following a challenging period with injury.
Having now hit the long-awaited milestone in his comeback, the 32-year-old says he is ready to push on, eager to play a key role in City’s search for more silverware this season.
“My motivation is enormous,” he said. “I’m just so excited to be back on the pitch, to feel good and to play.
“Houston was my first start since the end of August last year – seven months. With the off-season, it was a long time, but I felt very good physically.
“It’s just about getting minutes. I need my rhythm back, I need my timing in certain situations, especially against the ball. I need repetitions with the ball – we have those repetitions in practice, but minutes in the game have so much more value.
“I’m just trying to get back to 100%. I think I’m on track. I’m not worried, I feel great, and we will see what the future brings.
“My motivation is like always. I’m always very positive, and very motivated, but obviously I want to be in the future as much as possible. I want to be part of this team off the pitch as well, and I want to be successful with the guys.
“This is what I try to achieve, and this is what I work for every single day.”
City have bolstered midfield options in recent weeks with the arrivals of James Sands and Richy Ledezma.
Morales has been impressed by the new recruits, adding he is excited to work alongside the pair, who he believes have the quality to aid the Club’s trophy hopes.
“I think it was very important,” he stated. “It just makes us better as a team, and individually for everybody as a player.
“It’s good. We’re very happy to have James back with us, we have Richy coming from Europe…
“I’m just looking forward to training with them – to get together on the pitch, and be successful.”
The City Boys are back on the road this weekend, traveling to New England Revolution, who sit top of the Eastern Conference with four wins from five.
Morales and co. have sights set on a return to winning ways, after last weekend’s defeat in Houston, and the midfielder asserts that once the Boys in Blue find their groove, they will be difficult to stop.
“We have a very technical team, we have a very good team, especially in tight spaces, especially upfront,” he continued.
“When I look at Gabby [Pereira], Talles [Magno], Santi [Rodríguez], Matí [Pellegrini], we have Richy now… They are all players who can find solutions in one-v-ones in tight spaces, one-v-two, they can find a solution, and get out of it.
“It’s all about focus, concentration... and training is the main part of our work. We have to make sure we’re consistent, and focused, and concentrated in training because if we’re not, we’re not in the game. This is the main focus: practicing those things, always keep doing the same repetitions, getting in those touches, those turns and passes…
“We want to be a top team, we want to win every game in this league. We all know it’s very difficult to be successful on the road. We’re still early in the season, there’s still a lot of things we have to do better, and we want to improve, but we’re going in the right direction.
“The next chance is on Saturday in New England. We’re going there to prepare the best we can to perform at our best, and obviously we want to bring the three points back home.
“We just have to respect our gameplan, prepare as well as possible, execute the gameplan… and if we do this, there are not a lot of teams in this league that can prevent us from winning, or from getting points.
“Our main focus should be on us: our performance, our togetherness on the pitch, our structure defensively, and also with the ball. It’s very important.
“If we bring all of this stuff to the table on Saturday, I’m pretty sure there are not a lot of teams who can beat us if we are on our A-game.
“I know all of us can do it – we can play the way we want to play – but it’s all about showing it on Saturday on game day.”
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