Birmingham’s Chandler Hoffman wasn’t going to get a lot of minutes with the Los Angeles Galaxy’s first team, so a chance to play full time with the club’s USL PRO team has been a real career boost.
“For me, it’s been a dream situation this year,” Hoffman said in a USL article after playing for the LA Galaxy II. “My first two years in the league, I’m on the cusp of trying to break into a first-team squad.
“In the reserve league you have 10 games over a calendar year, which isn’t enough to improve. Especially when you’re young you need games and you need important games that matter, so for this year it was huge.
“I get 17 regular-season games, and that way when I’m stepping into the first team I have confidence, I feel fit, I feel sharp, and that’s something I couldn’t necessarily say the last two seasons.”
Hoffman had 13 goals during the USL PRO during the league’s regular season. He had a goal and an assist in the team’s 2-1 postseason win over the Rochester Rhinos.
He turned professional after leaving UCLA a year early on a Generation adidas contract in 2013.
Getting to play regularly, has given Chandler a chance to prove his worth to Los Angeles boss Bruce Arena, and it has also been a boost to his confidence and sharpness. The Galaxy is the first MLS club to form its own USL PRO team as a reserve team alternative.
“As hard as you train in practice and as much extra work that you do, there’s no replacement for meaningful games and getting yourself in positions that can only happen in matches when the pressure’s on,” Hoffman said.
“I think as a forward you want to score goals, and you want to prove that you can do it at every level, so for me the hardest part has been getting an opportunity, getting a chance.
“It’s one thing to get eight minutes or five minutes at the end of the game, and it’s another to get meaningful matches where you’re playing the full 90 minutes.”