Oakland Roots defender Memo Diaz is returning home this weekend. Not permanently, of course, but his club is paying a visit to his former club, El Paso Locomotive. The match is an important one for both teams, as they desperately need wins. The season hasn’t started well for either club, with Roots only winning their first match and Locomotive still looking for its first win. Desperation is beginning to set in for both teams as they watch their names tumble down the league table.

Homecoming

For Memo, returning to the Sun City brings him back to where it all started: his family. “It’s always the same thing, looking forward to playing in front of family and friends. I obviously had the opportunity to play my first two years professionally here. Coming back, I know who is coming to see me play. It’s a great feeling.” When he arrives in the city, those family members shape his travel days. “On [other] away trips, we’re trying to find a good place to eat and then just go back to the hotel. But here, I can’t. I want to see my mom, my brothers. Game day doesn’t change much. But the night before here is pretty different.”

The borderland was an crucial part of his development as a pro player. And he points out that it’s just getting better. “I grew up in Anthony, then played in Las Cruces, NM, then went to Albuquerque. You could see the talent then. But now we’re seeing more players in college, and more players at the pro level. I grew up with those same kids. There’s good talent here. If you surround yourself with good players you’re going to be better. I feel like it had a huge part. When we used to have scrimmages with El Paso teams and the level was way different.”

After playing with several amateur clubs in west Texas (Midland, Laredo), Diaz signed with Locomotive and began his professional career. He was part of the inaugural team that kicked off in 2019. And while some players might feel the need to get revenge or prove their former club made a mistake letting them leave, Memo is nothing but thankful. “A lot players when they play against their ex-teams, they feel like they have to prove themselves. I feel like I gave it my all when I was here. I grew as a player and as a person and I’m thankful for the club giving me a chance to become pro. So I feel like that, being thankful in the back of my head for them starting my career, it’s not like I have to prove myself. I did what I could when I was here. So it’s more enjoying it in front of my family and friends.”

A New Home

His move to Oakland in 2021 was a chance to continuing his growth as a pro and Memo credits his new home with exposing him to players with different skill sets. “Coming from here [El Paso], you see a lot of players that are your type, but in the Bay area there’s so much diversity. Outside the field, you learn so many new things, and it’s the same on the field. You’re able to play with kids from the area and it’s a different mentality and the way they play the game. I’m still learning. It’s been great playing with Oakland.”

But after several successful years with Roots, the team’s play is dipping. Two years of playoff appearances are in the past and last season the team finished outside of the postseason. This season began well, with two early results, but since that hot start, the team has been on a three-match losing streak. The drive to correct things is on Diaz’s mind as he readies for this match against Locomotive. “We have to go back to those first years and find what works. It has to change quick. Yes, it’s early in the season, but if we don’t identify what’s going on, we’ll take another step back.” But his optimism immediately kicks in after that bit of darkness. “I feel like this hard patch is going to help us in the league, to bring us together in the locker room. It’s going to get us all on the same page.”

His club’s opponent tonight is winless and desperate to change their own fate. Locomotive has lost match after match this season on the slimmest of margins. They’ve been consistently close, but haven’t gotten the win. Diaz sees it as a battle of who will strike first. “We know they are going to come out with everything, because they want the result. We need to throw that first punch. Either they score, get on top, and get into a good sequence or it’s us. It’s them or us, so we have to throw the first punch. The season can change in just this game.”

Coming home is always interesting. Playing against the team that made you a professional can be a challenge. But in the end, it’s another game on the schedule and the league table in the priority and Memo Diaz is ready to shine bright in his return to the Sun City.

- Dan Vaughn