Kiki Struna has anchored the Houston Dynamo backline in his first year in Major League Soccer.

Kiki Struna has anchored the Houston Dynamo backline in his first year in Major League Soccer. (Courtesy of Houston Dynamo/Wilf Thorne)

HOUSTON – Confident. Tactical. Technical. That’s how Aljaž ‘Kiki’ Struna’s Houston Dynamo teammates and coach describe the 6’2 defender. And he’s shown all three on the pitch in his first year with the Orange.

The 28-year-old centerback signed on a full transfer from Italian club Palermo before the start of the 2019 Major League Soccer season and has helped anchor the Dynamo’s backline.

Struna, who hails from Piran, Slovenia, joined the Dynamo having played over 200 professional matches in Italy’s Seria A and Seria B — with loan stints at clubs Varese and Carpi — and has a couple of UEFA Champions League matches under his belt. He’s also played for his country a handful of times.

That experience has paid off as he’s adjusted to MLS play. Head coach Wilmer Cabrera said that Struna has added quality to the team’s centerback position.

Has Struna lived up to the expectation’s the club envisioned when it signed the defender?

“Yes, definitely. Of course, it’s a tough league. It’s a very physical league. He needs to adapt to different things. Houston during the summer, it’s not easy for him,” Cabrera said.

“He’s a European, a Slovenian, and he’s used to playing in cold weather. But, everything so far has been more positives, and just little details but that’s part of adaptation. But, it’s been very good.”

Kiki the tactician and adjusting to MLS

For Struna, soccer is in his blood. His older brother, Andraž Struna, is also a player, and previously had a stint with New York City FC along with stops in the Scottish Premiership and a number of caps for Slovenia.

It was actually the older Struna who gave Aljaž, his nickname: Kiki.

“When we were young, and when I was born, he [Andraž] was like one year and something. And he couldn’t say Aljaž because it’s hard to pronounce,” the younger Struna told The Bayoucitian.

“And we had this candy called Kiki, and he said Kiki and from there he was always saying to me Kiki! Kiki! Then my mom started calling me Kiki. So now I’m Kiki.”

And while Struna is still in the midst of his first season, the Slovenian says he can see a difference in MLS compared to leagues in Europe. The primary thing, he said, is that in MLS the game is less about tactics and it’s a more open game.

“I was used to a lot of tactics work. And, as I said before, it’s less about tactics,” Struna said on how he’s had to adjust to playing in MLS. “This is new for me, but it’s ok.”

Maynor Figueroa, who is often paired with Struna in the Dynamo’s backline, called Kiki an interesting player who is full of confidence with the ball. And a player that is always pushing hard in training and games.

That confidence with the ball comes from the technique that Struna has. It’s something that caught Cabrera’s eye when he and Dynamo general manager Matt Jordan scouted him in Palermo.

“We knew that he has a good technique,” Cabrera said. “And he played well, but he’s exceeding that first impression of watching him here [training] and during the games especially, with a lot of pressure, his movement, his passing, his touches. It’s above average.”

Adam Lundkvist, who rooms with Struna on road trips, said Struna’s tactical skills make him the best one he’s ever played with. Even going as far as calling Struna a future coach.

Basketball and tattoos

While Struna is a highly technical and tactical player, it’s surprising to learn that he doesn’t think about soccer all the time. In fact, Kiki admitted to The Bayoucitian that he loves the NBA more than soccer.

Struna fell in love with basketball when he was about six years old. Aside from playing soccer as a kid, he played basketball and credits watching Michael Jordan in the 90s for his love of hoops.

And his love for the NBA was cemented when he made the move from Slovenia to Italy when he joined Palermo.

“When I went to Italy, soccer was in my head [all the time] and I said, ‘I will not watch soccer anymore.’ And I was watching just NBA. Not Euroleague, just NBA,” Struna said. “And I had NBA League Pass and I was watching the games at 3 or 4 a.m. so, yeah it was a bit challenging to wake up at 8 a.m.”

As luck would have it, Kiki has someone to talk about all things basketball with.

“We talk a lot of basketball, just to take your mind off soccer, just to think of something else. We are both two big basketball fans for sure,” Lundkvist said. “He taught me a bit. And I taught him a bit, and I definitely schooled him on NBA2K. That’s for sure.”

Staying up late to watch NBA games wasn’t the only thing Struna did while in Italy. When Kiki made the move to Palermo, then in Serie A, he was a fresh-faced 21-year-old. It was the first time the Slovenian had moved away from his hometown of Piran.

The move proved to awaken a deep love for his hometown city he never knew. That love resulted in a tattoo that fills more than half the skin on his back.

“I was in Palermo when I did this tattoo. I love my city. I love the city where I grew up. And, I didn’t know that I loved the city so much before I went from Slovenia when I was 21 to Italy,” Struna said. “So, yeah I missed the city and I said that I must put it on my back so I have my city always with me.”

Struna’s back tattoo — which took over 40 hours spread across six sessions — is one of approximately 50 that the defender has and adds that without a doubt it’s his favorite.

In his first MLS season, the Slovenian defender has played in 19 of the Dynamo’s 22 MLS games, and with 12 remaining, his tactical mind, technique on the ball, and confidence will go a long way towards helping the Dynamo make a return at the MLS playoffs.