Soccer365 writer Andrea Canales checks in on the Cuban trio who defected to the U.S. during the recent Olympic qualifying tournament and are currently on trial with the L.A. Galaxy. Yordany Alvarez, Yenier Bermudez and Jose Miranda say they do not regret the tough decision they made, nor do they regret making the four-day journey by bus from Miami for a speculative tryout. The players, who earned about eight dollars per month playing with the Cuban national team, said they came to the U.S. seeking a better life, and plan to help their families by sending home money they earn from abroad.
"The ones who criticize me -- as captain of the team -- they're not Cuban, because really, Cubans are the ones know that this was the best thing for us to do, because of what's going on in Cuba," explained Bermudez. "People don't know the situation there, what's going on in Cuba right now, what it's really like. They don't know the reality." The former Cuba U-23 captain added that the decision couldn't wait, because, at 22, "we won't ever get better opportunities than we will now. They don't look at your potential when you're 27."
The players have been on trial with the Galaxy for the past few weeks, but Coach Ruud Gullit said he would give them another week to decide on their futures. "If the Galaxy doesn't take us, it doesn't matter," said Bermudez. "We'll try elsewhere. We'd love to play next to (David) Beckham and [Landon] Donovan, but if not, we'll be alright, because we're free to try again someplace else."
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