A New World

PHARR — Rio Grande Valley Bravos FC has high expectations for Jesus Mireles' career. They expect him eventually to be one of their best players, and eventually go on to more prestigious and lucrative leagues.

Eventually, though, is the key word.

"Jesus, to be honest with you, he was the one who suffered a lot," Bravos FC coach Ismael "Moreira" Braga said. "It was the first professional games he had to play and there was a lot of weight behind him on his back.

"We don't expect a lot from him, we're not putting pressure on him."

Just 17 years old and coming off a run through the 4A high school state tournament, Mireles started both of Bravos FC's first two games. Originally, Bravos FC didn't plan on starting Mireles right away but was forced to when three players' contracts weren't approved by the PDL until too late for them to play.

In those two games, a draw at West Texas United and a loss to El Paso, he didn't score in either and saw firsthand how much different professional soccer is than high school. No longer is Mireles the undisputed best player on the field, and it might be some time before he is once again.

"My plan was to let Jesus go little by little. Go over there and enjoy 15 minutes in front of the crowd, play good and everybody's going to like him and see he's a good player," Moreira said. "But when you throw him to the lions and go play the whole 90 minutes it's different. It was tough on him."

Moreira said Mireles is facing a "big time" adjustment in his leap from Hidalgo to the PDL. It showed last weekend, not that Moreira is going to hold that against his young player.

"What happened with Jesus is he had to change the whole thing," Moreira said. "This is not like playing (high school). It's a different ballgame. It's pro, the people know him. They are coming in and they are going to hurt you. A lot of things are going to happen and he has to adjust."

Actually, maybe the biggest change Mireles has to make is mental. When he was at Hidalgo, there were certain things on the field he wasn't responsible for. As long as he scored and took up two or sometimes three defenders, he was contributing enough.

Now with Bravos FC, Mireles has to contribute in other ways he wasn't expected to earlier this spring at Hidalgo. For example, if Mireles were to lose the ball with Hidalgo, he wouldn't need to come back and try to regain it. Now, that's something he's expected to do.

There is also the style of officiating, which is a lot more sensitive in high school and allows more physical play. Now with RGV, Mireles can't expect to draw a whistle whenever he falls.

Fully getting used to his new surroundings might take Mireles a little bit of time, and both he and Moreira understand that.

"I think it was a real different game, a different style of soccer," Mireles said. "The first game I was kind of lost the first couple of minutes. I think, it's not that I was afraid, but that it was a different level. I got nervous, and I started from there."

Moreira won't be rushing him, either.

"Nobody asked him to perform as a superstar," Moreira said. "I just want him to go in as a kid who has the opportunity to play at 17 years old and have a good time. I'm not putting pressure on him. I say ‘take your time. You have your whole career in front of you.'"