Judson: ‘The Machine’ doing the dirty work for San Jose
When you think of the most heralded players on a soccer field, you usually think of the goal-scoring forward, the pacey winger, the towering center back, or even the agile goalkeeper. But the one position almost always underappreciated in the sport is the role of a defensive midfielder.
Judson, ‘the machine’ or ‘a maquina’ in his native Portuguese, is the team’s unquestioned heart and soul in the middle of the pitch. Unfortunately, his positional contributions are generally overlooked by fans and pundits, and the fact that he is the only player on the team’s roster not fluent in English or Spanish means he has less media opportunities.