When Simon Becher takes to the pitch against St. Louis City on Saturday, it will feel a little familiar. The forward played 90 minutes and provided an assist in the MLS Next Pro game against St. Louis last year for the Vancouver Whitecaps 2, but his ties to Vancouver run even deeper.
Becher has only started three of nine games, but has scored four goals for the Canadian side. And while he may seem like an emerging force to the average viewer, City Park locals may recognize him as St. Louis University’s most outstanding male athlete in 2022.
In the Midwest, the Bechers are a standout in football. His parents played college players at the Missouri Institute of Technology, and his uncle Bill Becher retired from indoor football with St. Louis Ambush and head coach of the Penn FC/Harrisburg City Islanders of the United Soccer League. served for 13 years. . Like Simon’s grandfather, Bill was inducted into the St. Louis Football Hall of Fame. His extended family left the Kansas-Missouri area at an early age, but football traditions continued through generations.
“Having someone who’s played a little bit as a pro puts the idea in my mind that it’s possible to be a pro,” Becher said. “That was something I wanted to at least try to do.”
Born in Topeka, Kansas, and raised in Connecticut, Betcher was easily drawn to college basketball and the NFL, but his family’s obsession with soccer meant there was only one sport in his household.
“Luckily I have a younger brother and we got along really well. We had two little nets in the basement and played with a little ball,” Betcher said. “We went out in the front yard and made Little League with all our favorite players. They were especially into football, sometimes going to New England Revolution and playing ballboy for my uncle’s USL team.”
The 24-year-old cites Ruud van Nistelrooy as one of his biggest inspirations in developing a forward with a natural goal-scoring instinct.
“(Van Nistelrooy) was really good near the goal,” said Becher. “I know a good portion of his goals were scored within the 18 yards[yard box]. He was a striker who always found the right area.”
At Oakwood Academy in Connecticut, Boettcher played frequently against the New York Red Bulls, New England Revolution and CF Montreal academy. One of the few non-MLS academies in the league, he and his teammates had a shoulder injury to prove they were worthy of attention. During this time, he met Justin Lennix and Tyler Adams, who signed with Revolution as homegrown players after dropping out early in college. However, USMNT and Leeds United midfielders often played beyond their age group.
“From that point on, I started taking this a little bit more seriously. I think getting into academy football at the U-14 level was a bigger leap and it took me a year to adapt,” Becher said. Told. “I didn’t play much. I think it was a year that clicked for me.”
Becher always had a goal-scoring instinct, but as an academy player he mostly played as a false nine or a creative midfielder. It wasn’t until he first joined the U-20 U.S. Men’s National Team in 2019 that coaches realized his potential as an absolute number nine.
“The university also said they saw me playing the No. 9 role because of my decision-making ability,” Becher added. “Going to that camp was exposure to a new level of play. I played with Chris Richards, Richie Ledesma, Sebastian Soto, Josh Sargent, Jesús Ferreira. They are now national and international. I was one of two players who didn’t play professionally.”
Without MLS club ties and a professional contract, Betcher could have set aside his football aspirations and prioritized an Ivy League education with academic offers from Hubbard, Yale and Brown. It should be. Instead, he promised to play for the Billikens on a scholarship to St. Louis University, which won the NCAA men’s soccer championship a record 10 times. St. Louis haven’t reached the finals since 1974, but have worked under coach Kevin Kalish, who has led pro players to victories including Brian McBride and current United States international Tim Ream, and trained Josh Sargent as a young player. The old St. Louis tradition sold. A student-athlete project to a bettor. Despite missing his first season with a broken leg during pre-season and having his second season suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Boettcher scored 15 goals and provided 10 assists in his fourth season. bottom.
“It’s a double-edged sword. , 18-year-olds, 19-year-olds who are ready to step into a first-team environment,” Becher said. “But even then, many young kids sign their first contracts and struggle because the step is so big.
News | Simon Becher is one of 15 semi-finalists. @Hermann Trophy. # Be bold #be blue 🔵
📎 https://t.co/JQPqlmgVbT pic.twitter.com/2hFtPfyg3O
— SLU Men’s Soccer (@SLUMensSoccer) December 7, 2021
He earned his degree while preparing for his career as a professional soccer player. He attended college in St. Louis, which allowed him to play for the Ocean City Noreasters in the USL League Two during the summer break between his junior and senior years, scoring 11 goals in 12 appearances. bottom. He understands that this path isn’t for everyone, but his college career has allowed him to grow without the rigors and pressures of his professional contract.
“I needed extra time to grow, but by the time I came to Vancouver, I was more ready,” he said. “It wasn’t a sink-or-swim environment.”
Becher was the 16th overall pick in the 2022 MLS SuperDraft by the Vancouver Whitecaps. The SuperDraft has never held the prestige of the NBA or his NFL draft, but it was once a pillar event in US football, and franchises are looking to future generations by drafting potential international players. was able to rebuild. Now, however, young players are entering the league early as homegrown players, or choosing to give up MLS entirely and go straight to Europe. Drafts are a less popular way to get into leagues than they once were, although there are opportunities to unearth overlooked talent in their teens, like Daryl Dyke and Tajon Buchanan.
As is often the case with draft picks, Betcher was sent to play in the MLS Next Pro in the opening season after being judged by head coach Vanni Sartini not to be first-team ready. To no one’s dismay, Boettcher saw this as an opportunity to re-expose himself to the professional environment. This time, they will face players with first-team experience.
“Sometimes I was with the top teams in the same building, observing their habits and training methods when training was over, and sometimes training together when I mixed up the groups. I think it was really big for me to be able to spend time there,” Becher said. “And when the opportunity came, it made me feel less nervous about being in a foreign environment and ready to take it.”
And taking the opportunity, he did. Becher, making his MLS debut on loan from the Whitecaps 2, came on as a substitute in the 82nd minute. Whitecaps lose 1-0 to Houston Dynamo in August 2022. In his first kick in the major leagues, Becher took advantage of a loose ball in the box to score his debut goal and score the equalizing goal. Lucas Cavallini scored the winning goal four minutes later in stoppage time to make his dream debut for Boetcher. Due to a loan deal, Becher made just two appearances for the Whitecaps before making a permanent move to MLS.
After hours on the training grounds working on hold-ups, one-touch plays, movement in the box and finishing (something he planned to improve with Sartini), Becher was called up to the first team. He will be on the roster in November 2022 for the upcoming 2023 season.
Despite playing mostly off the bench, Becher became the fastest player in MLS history to score his first four goals, playing 87 minutes in three games. He achieved the feat in his first MLS start, adding two goals and one assist as Vancouver’s best result of the season came in a 5-0 home victory over Canadian rivals CF Montreal. His most recent league goal was the game-winning goal in Vancouver’s 3-2 win over Minnesota United, 2.10 more than expected goals and taking his tally to five. While trying not to get too far ahead of him, he’s enjoying the role of supersub in his first full season as an MLS player.
“I can’t say I like it, but it’s definitely a little easier off the bench. We have more work to do in terms of getting through the tough times,” he said. “Coming off the bench, it’s a little bit more open. Sometimes there’s a little more space. If we don’t, it can be difficult.”
Becoming a regular starter is one goal on a long list of goals that include senior appearances at the USMNT, which Betcher sets and recalibrates throughout the season. He knows he is at the starting point of his professional journey. But his current form hints at his future. Like his idol Van Nistelrooy, he’s a live poacher in the six-yard box. As staff look to Europe and South America, Boettcher highlights game-changing qualities at the collegiate level for players selected from drafts, a waning recruiting art form for MLS clubs. bottom.
“The key is to stay growth-oriented,” Becher said. “I keep a positive attitude so that when the opportunity comes, I will seize it.
(Photo: Christopher Morris – Corbis/Getty Images)
