Andres Romero is courteous and polite during interviews. It clearly isn’t his favorite part of the job, but he’ll do them.
But a twinkle will appear in his eye if he gets to talk about one topic of choice: his 21-month-old twin boys.
“They’ve grown so much,” Romero told MLSsoccer.com on Thursday. “They eat a lot. They crush everything in their path. They’re the most beautiful thing in the world.”
And they’re part of the reason why Montreal Impact fans can watch Romero. He seeked better opportunities for his children. MLS turned out to be a fine opportunity future for him, too.
Romero’s stock has risen every year since he first came to Montreal, in 2013, for the first of two season-long loans from Brazilian club Tombense. He introduced himself to MLS fans with some class outings early in the season. His second-ever touch in MLS was an assist to Felipe in Portland on March 9.
His wife Maria, meanwhile, stayed in their home country of Argentina. She was pregnant with the twins. The distance started to weigh on Romero. His performances worsened in the second half of season, as did his temper – Romero ended his season by kicking Kofi Sarkodie in Houston, leaving Impact fans unmoved when his loan expired.
But Romero never lost the support of the front office and came back in February 2014, along with Maria and the boys. Eight months later, Romero had laid into none of his opponents and been named the Impact MVP for the season with six goals and three assists in 29 games. Montreal signed him to a permanent deal in early 2015.
“[2013] was a difficult year,” Romero said. “Not only was my family in Argentina, but I’d arrived in a new country, where they speak another language. I had to adapt to completely new circumstances. Then, when the family got to Montreal last year, it was already easier. I understood the language better. I could simply focus on my work, on my football. And on a personal level, it’s going very well.”
Through eight MLS appearances this season, Romero has scored three goals and provided an assist. He also scored twice in the CONCACAF Champions League knockout round – including the decisive away goal at Alajuelense in the semifinals. It’s going well, indeed, and it could get even better this Saturday, as Montreal have a chance to win a second straight away game when they play against New York City FC at Yankee Stadium.
This feels somewhat like a breakthrough year for Romero, but strangely, his early-season form isn’t much different from 2014. Exactly one year ago, Romero had just scored his fourth goal of the season. The difference now is that Montreal are winning. You’re always getting a wider share of the spotlight in these conditions.
“When the team goes well, all players benefit,” Romero said. “It’s my case as well. Hopefully, it’ll keep going like this. I think we have a very good team, and we can put together some more great games, still.”
The Argentine attacking duo of Romero and Ignacio Piatti are no strangers to that. Whenever one of them has contributed to an MLS goal this season, Montreal have not lost. In all competitions, Piatti has assisted three of Romero’s strikes, while Romero has returned the favor once.
“It’s been going really well with him,” Piatti told reporters on Thursday. “He puts on some very good performances for the Impact, for all of us. We’re on the right path.”
Given their origins, Romero and Piatti have gotten along well from the get-go. It didn’t take long after Piatti joined Montreal, last summer, before they started carpooling to training.
That is reflected on the field, where it sometimes looks as if they are looking for each other. But it’s far from being the case, according to Romero.
“We’re not trying to do that,” Romero said. “It comes naturally because we get along well. A nice chemistry came together. I hope it’ll carry on throughout the year. We know each other’s movements. Nacho is a great player. Playing with him is easy.”
Performance attracts interest, and not just from fans or the media. 30-year-old Piatti, for one, has received offers from Mexico and Malaysia, but he insists that he is happy in Montreal. Romero, still only 25, could also become a transfer target in the future.
The world of soccer is full of surprises. Romero knows it. But he, too, is happy where he is.
“This is home,” Romero said. “If I was asked, today, to sign a contract for five, six years with Montreal, I’d sign it, no questions asked.”
But home only feels truly comfortable if you get away from it from time to time. The Romeros return to Argentina in the winter months – to avoid the Montreal cold. But they do look forward to their flight back here. This is, after all, where the twins have spent most of their young lives.
“They don’t really like snow for now. But they’ll get used to it.”
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