As a former center back for the United States national team, coach Gregg Berhalter asks a lot from those who play his former position for the Crew. As he rattled off a list of criteria he uses to judge his center backs, Berhalter began with leadership.

As a former center back for the United States national team, coach Gregg Berhalter asks a lot from those who play his former position for the Crew. As he rattled off a list of criteria he uses to judge his center backs, Berhalter began with leadership.

Despite joining the Crew more than midway through the preseason, Giancarlo Gonzalez already has checked that box despite primarily speaking Spanish.

�For a guy who doesn�t speak perfect English, he�s not afraid to step up and say things in front of the group and really assert himself,� Berhalter said. �That�s great to see.�

Gonzalez�s ability to do so has not been lost on his teammates. Goalkeeper Steve Clark, who spent the past four seasons playing in Norway, was particularly impressed.

�You can take an appreciation for that when you play in a country where you don�t speak the language,� he said. �Speaking a second language is difficult. Speaking in front of a team in a second language is (harder). That just shows you what he�s got inside of him.�

A native of Costa Rica, Gonzalez signed with Valerenga in Norway�s first division for the 2012 season. For the first six months, Gonzalez said through an interpreter, no one on the team spoke Spanish � and he spoke no English or Norwegian.

Since signing with the Crew on Feb. 21 and joining it during the Disney Pro Soccer Classic, having Spanish-speaking teammates such as Jairo Arrieta and Bernardo Anor has helped Gonzalez have a relatively seamless transition to Major League Soccer and the team. He has played every minute this season.

�I love it here,� Gonzalez said after yesterday�s session at the Crew�s facility in Obetz. �I�m very lucky and I believe I made the right decision in coming here, not only on the soccer side of it. I�m talking about Michael Parkhurst, about the Spanish-speaking players, Jairo, Waylon (Francis), we can build that camaraderie.�

Said Clark, �I just think he�s a humble guy. He�s not trying to big-time anybody. He comes in as a new signing, keeps his head down and works hard. It�s easy to fit in when you do that. He doesn�t have any bad blood in him.�

Gonzalez has shown a propensity for making sure tackles in otherwise challenging situations as the last line of defense. Although Berhalter said Gonzalez�s performance Saturday in the first half of a 2-0 loss to Toronto left a little to be desired, the defender was hardly alone in that category.

His overall performance has shown why Gonzalez, 26, has made 31 appearances for his national team in less than four years.

�The main objective for me coming here was to play,� he said. �I wanted to establish that from the get-go, and that starts with training hard, being consistent, building a rhythm. I also have a lot of other objectives and personal goals such as playing for my national team, playing in the World Cup and being able to perform.�

And if he continues to take care of the first set of those goals, Gonzalez figures to be in Brazil this summer with Costa Rica.

�He has been solid,� Berhalter said. �He has put together some really strong performances. You can see why he�s an international, why he has played so many games in a short period of time for Costa Rica, because he�s a big part of their team and a big part of our team as well.�

ajardy@dispatch.com

@AdamJardy