TUCSON, Ariz. – The LA Galaxy’s newly minted No. 2 overall pick Tomas Hilliard-Arce couldn’t stop smiling as he went through his first week of preseason training with the club. But behind that smile lay a deep desire to prove himself ready to contribute to his new organization.
Hilliard-Arce was selected by the Galaxy earlier this month in the 2018 MLS SuperDraft, after helping lead Stanford University to three consecutive College Cup titles during his four years in Palo Alto. The 22-year-old central defender joins a defense that has undergone a significant offseason overhaul with the additions of center back Jorgen Skjelvik as well as outside backs Rolf Feltscher and Emrah Klimenta.
His first days in the professional game have been an adjustment, but the defender remains confident that he can prove to head coach Sigi Schmid that he belongs.
“It’s exciting the speed of play is super high. There are a lot of great players on this team. I’m just trying to show that I belong, make my mark and prove that I’m a hard worker,” Hilliard-Arce said. “I think there’s a lot of guys that want to have success this year and I think having a similar mindset will help me. There’s a lot of older guys to learn from so I think that I can fit right back in.”
As poised as the rookie is, even he admits to experiencing some jitters playing alongside the likes of Ashley Cole, but he is quick to state that all the worry fades away once the ball starts rolling.
“It’s scary at first, but then you realize that you have the same goal as him," the defender says. "Whether it’s Ashley Cole, Giovani dos Santos, Jonathan dos Santos, they’re all great players. You want to learn from them, and you want to play at a high level so they can respect you as well.
