Midfielder Juan Guerra Was First Building Block In Rowdies' Offseason Rebuild

By Matthew Levine

In the offseason, the Tampa Bay Rowdies went through an extensive rebuild. The club hired a new coach, shuffled the front office staff, renovated Al Lang Stadium, and ultimately retooled the playing squad to compete in the 2015 North American Soccer League Season (NASL).

Any such rebuild begins with the foundation, as coach Thomas Rongen and President and General Manager Farruk Quraishi started with the most logical of places – the spine of the team.

The first building block was central midfielder Juan Guerra, who feels “privileged” and “honored” to call the Rowdies his new club. The 28-year-old spent last season at Deportivo Lara and has spent the majority of his professional career plying his trade in Venezuela.

“When I met them in Venezuela we spoke for awhile. They spoke very well about Tampa Bay, what the Rowdies were, what they want to bring to the league this year, and making a different statement in the North American Soccer League. I want to be a part of that,” Guerra told NASL.com.

“Anytime there is a new movement and people doing the right things, you have to feel happy to be a part of that movement. That’s exactly how I feel to be here.”

The movement that Guerra references adds up to the club’s whole-hearted efforts to link the Rowdies’ past tradition with the current club and adding more stars to their logo, indicating NASL titles.

He is looking to do his part as the fulcrum of the side, either by breaking up attacks, creating them, or organizing the team throughout the 90 minutes.

“I will run for all my teammates. I will try to hold the ball in the middle and make fast transitions when we go from defending to offense,” he said about what he’ll bring to Tampa Bay. “When we’re attacking, I’ll keep the team together, so when the other team gets the ball, we don’t get caught off guard.”

A chance to play with the Rowdies also signals a chance for Guerra to play in Florida once more. He featured for Florida International University and also played youth club soccer for West Kendall Optimist and Weston.

“I’m very happy to be back in Florida to represent the state once again and as a professional, it’s a blessing,” he said.

However, Guerra won’t be too far away from his Venezuelan roots. He was joined in Tampa Bay this offseason by Robert Hernández.

While the Rowdies had an interest in the 21-year-old, Guerra certainly helped with him making the jump to play in the United States.

“He’s a very nice kid. He’s a great player. I spoke to him before coming here and told him about all of the opportunities this team is going to give him for the future and all the ways he could help us if he came. I’m glad he made the decision to join us,” Guerra said.

Their relationship has come through playing against each other in the Venezuelan first division and as countrymen when the Venezuelan National Team would call joint camps for the senior and youth sides.

“I played against him like three times. When I was with the senior national team, he was with the Under-20s. Sometimes the coaching staff would have the camps together, so I knew him from then,” Guerra noted.

Guerra has made four appearances for his national side, two of which came during FIFA 2014 World Cup Qualifiers.

“It was amazing. It was the best games and years of my life. Those years the country was having a lot of problems, as they are now, and every time the national team played it would bring joy,” he said.

“We tied Colombia in Colombia, we beat Argentina at home, tied Uruguay in Uruguay. There was a point in qualifying that we were second.”

It’s an opportunity he would certainly like to have in the future. He knows any future call-ups also hinges on how well the Rowdies as a team can perform on the pitch.

“Every player wants to represent their country. It’s the biggest responsibility and the biggest honor a player could have. In order for me to do that, I know I have to perform here. We have to do important things – win games, win a championship, we have the U.S. Open Cup, which is a big tournament as well,” he said.

After an offseason spent rebuilding with one goal in mind, the Rowdies will now look to put the finishing touches with a trophy in 2015.