Lewis ready to roll after Gold Cup run
When COMMERCE the Rapids play at Portland Saturday, they will regain one massive differencemaker. Winger Jonathan Lewis returns to Colorado following a stint with the U.S. men’s national team during the Gold Cup.
The speedster added a new dynamic to the Rapids attack after being acquired in early May from New York City FC, with Colorado scoring seven goals over his first four appearances.
“It was good for what I want to do,” Lewis said of the experience. “Obviously I want to be on the national team for the 2022 World Cup, so it was a good experience being around top players like Christian Pulisic and Weston McKennie. Right now that’s the top of the tree for talent for soccer in America. But also being around experienced players like Jozy Altidore, for me, it’s taking that and moving on.”
Lewis started one game for the national team, which lost to Mexico in the championship game Sunday. Mostly the 22-year-old spent the past month training with them.
“It was good, it was my first national team start. I didn’t perform my best but it’s an honor and I just have to build on my performances,” Lewis said. “The guys at the highest level always are adjusting on the fly from national to club teams. I have to be able to do that.”
Lewis has scored twice in three starts with the Rapids. His return couldn’t come at a better time considering the club will most likely be without both Kellyn Acosta (serving a red card suspension) and the injured Jack Price.
“I saw the minutes he played,” interim head coach and former USMNT player Conor Casey said. “I was in contact with him throughout and he brings back a lot of positivity to the group. You always get a renewed sense of confidence from the national team and you can share that confidence with the group.”
The Rapids nearly went unbeaten without Lewis, but still struggled to generate an attack. Colorado has not scored an open play goal in a couple of weeks, with the team’s recent success coming mostly off corner kicks.
Lewis said he even used the opportunity with the national team as a recruiter working to get guys back to Colorado. With a bunch of money opening up this offseason, the Rapids front office was happy to have somebody pitching the Rapids to other stars.
“We have quality players and we’re building something here,” Lewis said. “I came across some players that asked about MLS clubs and if there was interest I thought they could help, but we’re focused on making the playoffs now.”
At the very least Lewis’ experience with USMNT has given his teammates more direction. Midfielder Cole Bassett has a clearer picture of how he can jump from the U.S. U18 club to the senior team, and it involves being more like McKennie.
“I talked to him about it,” Bassett said. “It’s a lot faster than it looks and I’ve asked about McKennie and the role he plays and how I can follow that. I want to be more box-to-box like McKennie.”