Guillermo Barros Schelotto teaches Crew how to win

Boca Juniors legend Guillermo Barros Schelotto has had an immediate impact on the Columbus Crew since arriving in April. Greg Bartram/MLS/WireImage.com

RELATED • SICA: Q&A with Guillermo Barros Schelotto

Reprinted from SI Latino

"Thanks Guille For Coming Over To Play Here -- Silvia and Claudio From New York."

The makeshift banner in Spanish caught the attention of Guillermo Barros Schelotto on May 12, the day of his debut at Crew Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.

Guille -- the winningest player in the history of Argentine powerhouse Boca Juniors, with 15 championship titles -- was still getting acquainted with the U.S. map, but he realized right away that the couple had made a long trip to watch him begin the last stage of his career.

"I saw them afterwards and they told me they were Boca fans who had come to Columbus to see the game," said the Crew right winger. "I stayed behind signing autographs and there were also people from Tennessee, Michigan, Chicago."

It's not surprising that his fellow immigrant countrymen would embark on a pilgrimage to Crew Stadium. Guille, 34, was the most beloved player of Argentina's most popular team over the last decade, when he had a knack for finding the Xeneizes target man, Martín Palermo, in the opponents' box and for having his best games against archrivals River Plate. But the last three coaches had benched him in favor of the younger and speedier Rodrigo Palacio.

"I didn't want to leave Boca," he said, "but it was an uncomfortable situation for everybody. Boca tied River [on April 15] and fans went home mad because I only played three minutes. I wanted to leave on good terms instead of having to quarrel with a coach."

Guille had to find a new home and several factors weighed in favor of MLS, among them his twin brother Gustavo's positive experience playing with the Puerto Rico Islanders of the United Soccer Leagues.

"Money wasn't the main thing for me -- it was being able to play, learning a new language, coming over to a safe and orderly country," said Guille, who plans to play at least two more seasons before joining the coaching ranks.

On the field, however, the decision meant leaving the best club in the Americas, which was on its way to winning the 2007 Copa Libertadores, to come to a team that finished last in the MLS Eastern Conference standings in three of the past four seasons.

The Crew may have the country's first soccer-specific stadium, but that investment didn't carry over to the product on the field until this season, when Columbus pulled off the unlikely signing and head coach Sigi Schmid got his man.

"What he brings is his ability to assess the moment," Schmid said. "When you have a player who has experience and quality, they have the instinct to say, this is a critical moment, now I need to make the right play. Sometimes young players think all moments in the game are the same. But some are more important than others -- that's when you make the difference. Guillermo has that understanding."

What Guille does not yet fully understand in Columbus is the language, which can be a hindrance for a player who was legendary in Argentina for arguing with opponents and referees -- and even teammates -- during games.

"The first days were hard, but I learned words they use here like time, turn and again," said Guille, who's taking English lessons and meanwhile gets by on the interpretive skills of his Venezuelan teammate, Alejandro Moreno.

Guille's winning mentality, though, seems to be carrying over to the rest of the Crew, who were five points out of first place in the East by the end of Week 17. Guille -- who scored four goals and had seven assists (second-best in MLS) in his first 13 matches -- was named July Player of the Month after recording three goals and an assist in four games.

Maybe coach Schmid is right when he explains how he communicates with the crafty Argentine veteran: Soccer is a universal language.

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