Ollie Duxbury, a Liga MX specialist for the Futbolgrad Network described Efraín Juárez as "a solid enough right back, quite versatile, can play centre, left-back, right; and centre mid." Duxbury added that "he was let go by Monterrey as they have better options. I feel he is an upgrade on what Vancouver" has, though he was quick to point out that he saw that upgrade only in the back four, not midfield.
That may owe to the fact that Juárez has spent the better part of the last decade as a fullback. But the player, and Whitecaps manager Carl Robisnon, are touting him as a box-to-box midfielder.
Efraín Juárez celebrating against Tigres
"He pretty flexible," Robinson said. "He likes to get around the pitch and get on the ball. He's got a great pedigree and he's a leader. Character-wise, he's as good as you're going to find. He's very professional in everything he does."
At 29 years old, Juárez feels he has at least the two years that the 'Caps have given him, "I have feet. I can run all day, all night. For me, being box-to-box will be so nice, or wherever the manager need. I'm really excited and happy to be here; to put all my experience at the service of the team."
The opportunity to play further up the pitch is "one of the things I came here [for]," Juárez confirmed. "That's one of the positions that I enjoy really. I used to play right back, but in a lot of games too I played midfield."
Eight years ago "I went to Celtic as a midfielder. I played in the World Cup in South Africa in 2010 in midfield. It's not a position that I don't know. I really know. At the end, it's football. The ball is round; whether here, Mexico, or China." After so long playing elsewhere, it's good to know that he has a long memory.
"Everyone is talking about what is so, so great with MLS," Juárez cheerfully added. "It's growing a lot. The league, there's nothing I can say; it's really what you can see. I came here to try and put all my effort and try and do important things with this club."