July 20, 2009

EA trots out the stars for Playing with the Pros event
By Michael Lafferty

MLS star Sacha Kljestan talks to GameZone about playing in the real world and playing FIFA

Electronic Arts sure knows how to promote a lineup of fall sports titles. That much was evidenced by the lineup of stars on hand in the Vancouver area (Burnaby, actually), Canada, for the summer 'Playing with the Pros' event to showcase EA Sports hockey, soccer, tennis and basketball titles.

On hand for the event, from the world of sports, was Milan Lucic of the Boston Bruins (NHL), Sacha Kljestan of the Major League Soccer club Chivas as well as the US Men’s World Cup national team, Dwight Howard of the NBA’s Orlando Magic and tennis superstar Venus Williams.

The incomparable Venus Williams demonstrated her serve,
played a few other games and was receptive to media inquiries (Photos by Michael Lafferty)

The media on hand for the event were first divided into four rotating groups and taken out to the fields within the EA complex where a makeshift tennis court was set up on half of the soccer field (which is turf), while the outdoor basketball court doubled for the NBA session with Howard, as well as the NHL session with Lucic. The groups were rotated in approximately 15 minute intervals and were allowed, if they so choose, to take part in working with the pros on various elements of the game. For example, Williams conducted an abbreviated course in serving, while Howard gave the basics of playing the low post. Of course, not every journalist on hand measured up to Howard’s 6-11 broad-shouldered frame (Ok, no one did), and mismatches were the order of the day, but Howard’s barrage of jokes kept everything very loose and helped maintain the atmosphere of fun. Kljestan ran a few volunteers through the paces of set pieces in soccer (including crosses into the box off free kicks, movement off free kicks just outside the 18 with a wall in place and penalty kicks), while Lucic demonstrated board work and simulated fights with willing volunteers (which were not surprisingly hard to come by).

Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic (top left), Sacha Kljestan of the MLS Chivas team
as well as the US men's national soccer team (top right), and Milan Lucic of the NHL Boston Bruins
were all on hand for the Playing with the Pros event held by EA. (Photos by Michael Lafferty)

After the media participation portion, the four athletes engaged in a series of events for the ‘King of the Court’ competition – won by Howard, but barely. The athletes kept it light and jokes were flying constantly. Williams apologized for her unorthodox set shot on the basketball court, simply because her leg work was similar to the way she serves a tennis ball, with her right foot kicking back.

All in all, it was a great photo opportunity as well as a chance to rub elbows with the pros and get some face time. Afterwards, inside the EA complex, the opportunity arose to sit down and chat with the athletes.

Kljestan, after his gaming adventures against a FIFA 10 producer, and before he hurried for the airport to get back on a plane and head back to training, GameZone had the opportunity to chat with him.

Having played internationally and professionally, as well as having a sparkling college career at Seton Hall, you have key first-hand knowledge of the importance of set pieces in the game of soccer. How important was it for EA to incorporate that into the next edition of the FIFA franchise?

Kljestan: I think it was important because before FIFA didn’t really have customized set pieces, and obviously set pieces are a huge part of soccer that you work on every day in practice and it’s always a goal-scoring opportunity when you have a set piece. To add your own set pieces is like your own ID for the game and you can set it up the way that you want to, so I think it’s pretty cool and a little bit more interactive for the fans.

During your play session, you mentioned that you hadn’t touched the FIFA game in a while. How often do you get the opportunity to play video-games, and when you do, what do you play?

Kljestan: When I do play, I’m either playing FIFA or Tiger Woods. I like Tiger Woods a lot, it’s pretty fun and I’m a big golfer off the field. But FIFA … since ’94 my brother (Gordon) and I have been having these huge battles with each other – through college and everything we were playing and we used to keep track of the score through the entire school year. It was 110-108 at the end of the year; it was crazy. Nowadays, I don’t have a lot of time to play, but mostly when my brother is home or I have my little cousins visiting or something, we will always play FIFA.

You split time between the MLS and the national team, finding time for anything has to be pretty rough …

Kljestan: It’s pretty nice, though; I can’t ever complain about what I do for a living. I get to play in my hometown where I grew up (Sacha grew up in Huntington Beach, and Chivas is based in the area), I get to play for the national team as well. It has always been a big dream of mine playing in the Olympics, playing in a World Cup qualifier, so can’t complain – life’s easy.

It took me a lot of hard days, a lot of long days of working hard, but I knew it would all pay off in the end, as long as I kept trying and it came draft day (for the MLS) 2006 and I got picked by Chivas and it was like a dream come true. And then playing my first professional game, and then playing my first game with the national team – it’s been a long road but I’m only just starting as well.

What do you think are the most important qualities for a kid to succeed at the next level, whatever that may be considering the age of the player, of the game?

Kljestan: I think hard work; I think a lot of guys have talent when they are younger, but they don’t want to put in the effort. And I think if you are going to make it, you have to train on your own. You’ve got to practice every day and you’ve got to keep wanting to get better. The best players in the world – Kaka (Brazilian soccer superstar who not only represent his home country in world competition, but is the highest-paid player in the world and is currently playing for Real Madrid) and Ronaldo and Messi, and these guys didn’t stop training as soon as they got good – they keep training harder than everybody else. So I think working hard is a big asset.

While you have certainly established yourself and have a name recognized internationally in soccer circles, when you step on the field against players like Kaka is there a little bit of awe or do you take the mentality of ‘bring it, I want to see your game?’

Kljestan: My friends have asked me that, too – what’s it like playing against Kaka. Obviously I know who he is and I still watch him and I still admire the way he plays, but when you are standing next to him, it’s kind of like ‘all right, it’s either him or me right now and I don’t want to get punked.’ I still try to work hard and I still try to play as though I was playing against a normal dude. Obviously he is very talented and you have to be on your toes a little bit more but I think it is the same playing against anybody – you can’t be in awe when you are playing against guys like that.

When you are playing FIFA and you are playing as Chivas, do you find that you try to feed your in-game self the ball a little more than you should?

Kljestan: I was just playing against this dude over here (indicated the EA FIFA producer) and I found myself passing it to Sacha Kljestan every time, trying to score and I think I got a little caught in trying to dribble too much. But whenever I’m playing at home I always use Chivas, and when I’m playing against my brother or someone, I want Sacha Kljestan to score. It’s fun. I was really excited when I turned pro and I got the game when it first came out and I saw how I was ranked and what I looked like and what I played like.

Do you get a vicarious thrill out of seeing yourself score a goal in a video game and (in the dumb question of the day) how does it rank when compared to scoring a goal in the real world?

Kljestan: I think scoring a goal is like the best feeling – when you shoot it and as soon as you shoot it and the goalie can’t even get to it, it’s like the best feeling … it’s like a feeling of relief, you know? Playing the video-game is fun just to watch how they make you celebrate. After I score a goal (in the video-game) I do a little dance and it’s pretty funny.

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