Center Line Soccer

Brian McBride, then Fulham captain, celebrates a goal against Everton in 2008. Photo: Javier Garcia, isiphotos.com; photo illustration by Jay Hipps, centerlinesoccer.com

As Brian McBride steps off the playing field and into retirement, many images come to mind. There’s his diving header and goal celebration against Portugal in the 2002 World Cup, or the acrobatic side-volley that earned MLS Goal of the Year honors in 1998, when he played for Columbus. It’s also impossible to forget his battle scars, like the golf-ball sized bruise over his eye that forced him out of a 2001 World Cup qualifier against Mexico or the vicious elbow to the head that bloodied McBride and earned Daniele De Rossi a red card when the U.S. tied Italy in the 2006 World Cup finals.

All of those scenes are a tribute to McBride’s ample skill and unwavering determination. Now that he’s done with his playing career, his next endeavor will be to pass along some of what he’s learned over his 17 years as a professional to the coming generations of American players.

“I have an idea for attacking soccer camps that would be very hands on, that incorporate all aspects of attacking soccer, not just the technical side,” he says. “(We’ve) got a lot of talent in soccer; you’re seeing better athletes stay involved because there is a future for them. But (the challenge) is providing those technically gifted kids not only that technical side to help them progress, but the tactical side. Thought processes are a big thing when you’re a soccer player.”

In essence, McBride is saying that athleticism will only get you so far. Speed is a great weapon, for example, but if you don’t know where or when to move, it doesn’t matter how fast you are.

“I’m trying to talk about making the right runs on and off the ball, your thought process, each individual ball and where it needs to be,” he says. “You get into a position, and this is the ball you should be playing, this is the run your teammates should be making. That sort of stuff (is important), because it’s an area where that could get better.”

Much of McBride’s knowledge of the finer points of attacking soccer was obtained late in his career, during his four-and-a-half seasons at English side Fulham. While he had already made his reputation in American soccer — his eight years with Columbus were enough to see him named to the MLS All-Time Best XI in 2005 — his 2004 transfer to the Cottagers came at the price of $1.5 million, a remarkable bargain considering the role he would grow to play at the club. He scored 40 goals in his 153 appearances, earning the right to wear the captain’s armband in the 2007-08 season and twice winning the club’s “Player of the Year” award. Fulham even cemented McBride’s spot in club lore in the summer of 2009, after his return to MLS, by renaming the stadium club after him.

“Being a part of that organization had a deeper meaning than I thought it ever would,” he says. “It was special to me; it was not only enjoyable but I was able to really start understanding a lot of aspects of the game that I thought I had a good grasp of, but you just see it faster, and in a light that I wouldn’t have seen.”

As a striker, McBride was always quick to thank a teammate for a pass or cross that set up a goal, so it may not be surprising that he credits someone else for his success in England. But the first person he names is not a teammate or even a coach — it’s his wife, Dina.

“(Moving to London) definitely brought my wife and I closer,” he says. “We were as close as we thought we could be, but we had to rely on each other for everything, and just that aspect of depending on each other made us so close and enabled me to really focus on what I needed to do on the field.”

If you’re looking for an image to define McBride’s career as a player, then, you can forget about the highlight-reel goals and focus on something that always came just afterward, as part of his celebration: the move of his left hand to his face so he could plant a kiss on his wedding ring. If there’s one thing McBride has shown, it’s that athleticism isn’t enough, and neither is tactical knowledge. To reach your peak of success, your heart has to be in the right place, too.