Fatai Alashe is a worker. You can hear it in his voice. You see it on the field.
Not surprisingly, it didn’t take long for the rookie midfielder to get some work in a Quakes game. The former Michigan State star played the final 10 minutes of the season-opening 1-0 loss at FC Dallas.
It was 600 seconds he won’t soon forget.
Now he’s ready for more work.
“I just wanted to work as hard as I could and get that experience in,” said Alashe, the No. 4 overall pick in the MLS SuperDraft. “It was definitely a good experience. It was unfortunate how we lost, but it was still a lot of fun. It was nice to be out there with the rest of the guys battling.”
Alashe, who is 6-foot-0 and 170 pounds, had 14 goals and 15 assists in 85 career appearances in college. He led the Spartans to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament as a senior, earning second-team All-American honors.
Consider his playing time in Dallas an early endorsement from the coaching staff. They put him in with the game in the balance, tied 0-0.
“That’s pretty important to me as well,” Alashe said. “It shows that they have a little bit of trust in me that I can go get it done out there. I think they trust my ability, and they’re confident in me being able to play. I take that as a positive thing.”
Alashe, who has been getting helpful tips from his veteran teammates, said it’s always good to get that “little taste" of action, and then you want more.
As for the head-spinning factor of playing in sometimes hostile MLS venues, Alashe seems more energized than overwhelmed.
“It’s good that there’s a crowd. It kind of pumps me up a little bit, gets me a little more excited for the game,” he said. “You concentrate on what you’re there to do: You’re there to win the game. You focus on that. Obviously, when you walk out for the first time, it’s pretty cool. It’s pretty hectic, but you get that out of the way in warm-ups.”
