VANCOUVER, B.C. – Nobody doubts Vancouver Whitecaps' midfielder Pedro Morales ability. His debut season was proof of that.
It’s just that when you make that kind of splash, the bar is immediately raised higher. Factor in a Designated Player contract, and critical eyes are all the more analytical and demanding.
Morales led the Whitecaps stat charts with 10 goals and 12 assists last season. He made the team tick, and if the Chilean playmaker was on his game, more often than not the 'Caps were on fire. If not, odds were the team struggled.
The good news for Vancouver in 2015 is that they seem to have shaken off that particular shackle, which is just as well because Morales is yet to find his top form this year.
"I think it's more difficult for me this year," Morales admitted to MLSSoccer.com. "There's more pressure. The players know me and my form, my play. In games, I'm trying to work on different movements and to be more intelligent on the field.
"I know this year is difficult but I have good teammates and a good coach. I know I have the pressure on me, but it's no problem. I feel good and I'll just go out every game and enjoy playing here."
The Morales of last year has been there in glimpses, as have some of his sublime passes, but with only one assist, two shots on goal and a couple of misses that linger in the memory banks in Vancouver's first three matches, questions have been asked about what's up with the 'Caps captain.
The criticism may be a little unfair this early in the season, and Whitecaps coach Carl Robinson described it last week as "a little bit harsh." There will be some concern about Morales' missed chances, but Robinson was keen to point out that he's been asking his captain to play something of a different role so far this year.
"We've focused on trying to get Pedro a little higher up the field and give him a license to roam a little bit," Robinson told reporters. "If you give me Pedro to have two chances like that every away game, I’ll take it without a doubt because I know that he’ll put them away. I’m more impressed with him in what I asked him to do tactically.
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"We’re all trying to find our form at the moment, everyone, including Pedro, and once we hit our rhythm after a few games, which will probably be 8-10 games, then we’ll see how we’re taking shape."
One thing that Robinson has challenged Morales to do this season is to score more goals, and both parties feel it's just a matter of time before the midfielder gets off and running again.
The lack of goals isn't weighing too heavily on the Chilean right now, but he knows that there would be no better time to get rid of that particular monkey than in Saturday's Cascadia derby against Portland (8 pm ET; TSN1 in Canada, MLS LIVE in the US).
"It's always pressure," Morales told us. "When you get a goal, you feel more confidence in your play. I'm working every day for that moment. It'll maybe be Saturday, maybe next week, but it's more important for me that the team win."
