My Best Ten and Me: With Steven Ramirez, SoCal and Grassroots Soccer Writer

My team is filled with some of my favorite players from over the last decade. I wanted to build a squad that could defend aggressively and attack with more creative freedom.

Steven Ramirez, our man in Cali, has given us some insight into how he sees soccer and where he would slot into his 4-4-2. While he’s written numerous pieces about other clubs, we rarely take the time to ask him where his favorite players have come from and what makes him tick - Steven’s followed the follow rules to tell us just that…

1. You are the Player/Manager and you have to plug yourself in.

2. Any player selected must have been active in your lifetime.

(GK) Brent Reis
(Temecula FC/ SD 1904 FC) Respect to my rival. I’ve watched Reis deny my Coras on several occasions, during key portions of the season. In 2018 he made three saves in stoppage time, denying my Coras an away victory.

*(RB) Steven Ramirez
I played as a goalkeeper growing up, but fell in love with the fullback position as I got older. My main priority is defense, but I can whip in a good cross when needed to.

(RCB) Walker Zimmerman
(Nashville SC/ USMNT) An under-rated passer and an aerial master. I love a good set piece and when Zimmerman is in the box, there’s always a chance for a goal. Need a goal late in the game, throw him up top as a striker and he’ll get his head on something.

(LCB) Ezequiel Garay
(Valencia CF) 2011-2014 Benfica was must watch T.V. for me and Garay was a staple in those backlines. He can pass with both feet and can physically beat just about any player. He is also no stranger to scoring big goals against big competition.

(LWB) Crystal Dunn
(North Carolina Courage/ USWNT) I admire Dunn's attitude towards playing out of position. Every player says that they would do that in order to help their team, but she does it and becomes the best LB in the world.

(CDM) Hugo Gutierrez & (CDM) Eric Gonzalez
(Riverside Coras FC)
Dubbed “G-Unit”, Gutierrez and Gonzalez were the midfield duo for '17-18' Coras. Both players played in the #8, box-to-box role. Gutierrez was the engine that drove the play, while Gonzalez was the architect that controlled it.

(RM) Fabian Johnson
(Borussia Mönchengladbach/ USMNT) He has played every wide position and been successful. Johnson is my favorite NT player and so I want him to play right above me.

(LM) Michel Bastos
(Retired/ Olympique Lyon) Everyone probably remembers Bastos for what could be the worst free-kick ever, but Bastos was a brilliant technical attacker. He could dribble, pass and despite that clip, he could lay in a free kick.

(CAM) Pablo Aimar
(Retired/ SL Benfica) Aimar is the reason I began to watch soccer as an adult. I watched him carve up defenders in champions league, and I was hooked. The bad ass hair and the skill to match. He can do whatever he wants with the ball.

(ST) Cesar Mexia
(FC Arizona) My favorite striker in the NPSL. He plays every minute and always grabs a goal when his team needs it. Mexia has been a top scorer in the NPSL Southwest since his first season. If he can get the ball close to goal, chances are he will score.  

My Best Ten and Me: Featuring Perry Hammond, GM of Lane United

General Manager of Lane United FC, from Eugene/Springfield Oregon, has had the good fortune of actually living in Spain and experiencing some of these amazing players himself, but he still had to stick to the rules…

1. You are the Player/Manager and you have to plug yourself in.

2. Any player selected must have been active in your lifetime.
   

Having grown up playing soccer in the US in the 80s & 90s when soccer was simply not on TV, I didn’t closely follow the sport professionally until I moved to Madrid, Spain, in 2004 (and where I stayed until 2011). I quickly fell in love with a mediocre Atlético de Madrid squad led by a mullet-sporting, 19-year-old Fernando Torres, and was fortunate enough to end up working for the club for five years as a translator. I decided to make my team from players I was able to see live during those 7 years, so of course it features a handful of my favorite Atleti players. I went with a 3-4-3 to accommodate all the attacking players I couldn’t bring myself to omit, so some guys are a little out of position.

(GK) Iker Casillas
Despite playing for our bitter rivals and denying Torres and Atleti countless times, “San Iker” was, at his peak, the best goalkeeper I’ve ever seen with my own eyes. As my time in Spain grew on, I came to consider it my adoptive country, and was able to see Casillas help them win two European Cups and a World Cup.

*(LB) Perry HammondThat’s me. Despite only playing for 3-4 months per year due to other athletic pursuits and hobbies, I was able to parlay some decent natural speed and understanding of the game into a good high school career and a non-descript collegiate career at a DIII school. While I was always a left winger in a 4-4-2, I’ve placed myself here to allow for more exciting talent in the midfield.

(CB) Diego Godin
The most underrated CB of the last 15 years, Godín would’ve been considered a superstar had he played for a bigger club. The Uruguayan played nine years for Atleti, leading one of the stingiest defenses in La Liga year-after-year and winning eight trophies with the club, including a league title in 2013-14 which he clinched by scoring the equalizer against Barcelona on the final matchday to earn the necessary draw.

(RB) Luis Amaranto Perea
While more effective as a CB, I’ll put the Colombian here to get him in the team, as he was one of my favorite players. Undoubtedly the fastest player I’ve ever seen, Atlético almost never conceded breakaways while he was on the pitch as he could chase down any attacker who got in behind. Perea is the foreigner with most appearances for Atleti and helped us win our first trophies since I’d become a fan in 2010.

(LM) Andrés Iniesta
I simply loved watching Iniesta play. Taking the ball away from the soft-spoken, versatile midfielder seemed an impossible task. He appeared to have the ball tied to his boots by a string as he maneuvered out of tight spaces using his famous Croqueta, acceleration, and brilliant vision. I’ve got him on the left as he could play all over the midfield and is more likely to help me out in defense than the next player…

(CM) RonaldinhoFor the first few years I lived in Spain, FC Barcelona matches were must watch because Ronaldinho would do 2-3 things every time out that left your jaw on the floor. The joy with which he played was contagious, and I believe he could’ve gone down as the greatest player in history had his off-field life not been so detrimental to his on-pitch performance. While he usually played in a more advanced role on the left, I’ve forced him in here to get him a spot.

(CM) Xavi AlonsoAs much as it pains me to add another Real Madrid player, I first became enamored of the Basque midfielder during his time at Liverpool, where he helped the Reds win the Champions League and an FA Cup. His ability to control the pace of the game from a deep-lying position in midfield and spray pinpoint 40-meter passes all over the field was a beautiful thing to watch.

(RM) Joaquín
Despite being my age, the speedy winger had already established himself as a rising star in La Liga when I arrived in 2004 and, amazingly enough, continues to play an important role for Betis at age 38. He’s made left backs look silly for years and has a hilarious personality to match, always cracking jokes during interviews or playing pranks on unsuspecting teammates.

(ST) Lionel Messi
Not sure much needs to be said here. In my opinion, he’s the greatest player of this generation and possibly of all-time. A team player and a pure joy to watch (except for when he’s slicing through your team’s defense), his La Liga scoring and assist records will likely never be broken.

(ST) Diego Forlán
The Uruguayan could score from all over the pitch with both feet. He’d already won the Pichichi with Villarreal before joining Atlético and did so again for us in 2008-2009 with 32 goals in 33 games, helping us qualify for Champions League for the first time in 12 years. In 2010, he scored both goals in Atleti’s Europa League final win, our first title in 14 years, forever earning a place in the hearts of our supporters.

(ST) Fernando Torres
‘El Niño’, the embodiment of what it means to be a rojiblanco. This baby-faced assassin had the pace and musculature of a thoroughbred and suffered through Atleti’s toughest years, reached his apex while combining with Stephen Gerrard for loads of brilliant goals at Liverpool, and returned in time to finally lift a trophy with Atletico. And, of course, he scored some pretty famous goals for Spain as they won two European Cups and a World Cup.