Small In Stature, Maxi Moralez Has a Knack For Scoring Big Goals

Maxi Moralez is only 22-years-old and stands just over 5’3”. Despite his youth and small stature, the Velez Sarsfield playmaker has become one of the best and most clutch players in the Argentina Primera this season.

His habit of scoring goals at big occasions began while playing for the Argentina National Team at the 2007 Under 20 World Cup in Canada.

Argentina ’s team included many players who have since become stars in Europe such as Sergio Aguero , Angel Di Maria, Sergio Romero, and Mauro Zarate . But Moralez was still one of the most impressive players of the tournament.

In the quarterfinals, Maxi scored the only goal against Mexico with a brilliant shot from just insi de the box. He scored again against Chile in the semifinals to help Argentina book a place against the Czech Republic in the final, a game they won 2-1.

In addition to picking up a winner’s medal, Moralez won the Silver Ball as the tournament’s second best player (behind Aguero ) and the Bronze Shoe as the tournament’s third top scorer with four goals.

Following his victorious exploits in Canada, Moralez ma de the jump to Europe for FC Moscow. Maxi was unable to adapt to Russia on and off the field, and after making only six appearances in half a season, the Moscow outfit loaned him back to his home team, Racing Club de Avellaneda .

His move to Russia was an example of a player moving to Europe too early. Some people may think that a player isn't good enough if he doesn't adapt to Europe right away, but there are many factors that could cause a player to fail.

For Moralez , the change in lifestyle and long distance from home played just as much of a factor as the difference in playing style, although both issues led to his return to Argentina.

During his second stint at Racing, Moralez showed a spark that ma de him one of the most exciting players in Argentina, but Racing struggled. Despite being one of the “ Buenos Aires Big 5 Clubs”, "La Academia" fought relegation and ended up in a playoff against Belgrano de Cordoba to stay in the top flight.

After the teams played out a 1-1 draw in Cordoba, the return leg in Avellaneda would be the decisive encounter. It was Moralez who grabbed the only goal after just 10 minutes, and Racing held on to the slim lead to remain in the first division.

For the 2009 Clausura Tournament, Velez Sarsfield purchased Maxi, and he found himself at the complete opposite of the spectrum: In the 2008 Clausura , Moralez scored a goal that helped his team avoid the ultimate despair, relegation. In the 2009 Clausura , Moralez scored the goal in the last game of the season against Hurucan that clinched the Championship for Velez. What a difference a year makes!

During this season’s Aperatura , Maxi has been in impeccable form once again, and not surprisingly he has been scoring important goals at crucial moments.

On the third match day, Moralez scored a wonder goal from over 25 yards in stoppage time to give Velez a 1-0 win against Gimnasia in La Plata . Two weeks later, Moralez pounced on the rebound after Jonathan Cristaldo had the bar, and fired into the roof of the net to give Velez a narrow 1-0 win over Argentinos Juniors.

Maxi was at it again Tuesday against Atletico Tucuman in the north of Argentina as Velez pulled out a tough 2-1 win to remain two points adrift of the leaders. In stoppage time, Roly Zarate was pulled down in the area, and Moralez took the responsibility for his team and sent goalkeeper Lucas Ischuk the wrong way from the resulting penalty, claiming all three points.

If Velez wins its second consecutive title, Moralez will be the man to thank, having already scored four goals, and serving as the catalyst to almost every attacking move. His versatility has ma de him irreplaceable for Velez coach Ricardo Gareca .

He has the ability to play as a forward, out wi de , or in his favored position right behind the two strikers as the classic Argentina enganche .

At the moment, Moralez is clearly won of the top five players in Argentina, but he must still remain patient in terms of the national team.

With a wealth of smaller strikers at his disposal including Aguero and Lionel Messi , Diego Maradona has overlooked Moralez from his squads for the World Cup Qualifiers. He was also left out of an entirely home based squad that beat Ghana, as all players involved in the Copa Sudamericans with their clubs were omitted.

In addition to facing plenty of competition for the national team, Moralez must also combat his own personal limitations: his slight frame.

Although many small players have succeeded in Europe, Moralez will be better suited waiting before he tries to jump ship again. His dribbling skills and quickness have more than ma de up for being small, but Maxi probably needs time to grow as a person and player.

With things going so well at Velez, and a shot at the Copa Libertadores to come with the New Year, Maxi will have many opportunities to prove himself to European coaches and Maradona .

For now, he looks quite happy where he is, and that is a good thing not only for Moralez , but for Argentine Football. It is great to see a young, exciting player in Argentina and achieving great things, especially in a time when so many of our young players are in Europe.