Things moved quickly for Julian Gressel and his family. After expressing a desire to move closer to the East Coast, Gressel and his family have quickly found a new home in Central Ohio after the Columbus Crew traded for the Vancouver Whitecaps wing back.
Gressel, 26, arrived in Columbus last week. He took in the 2-1 Leagues Cup win against St. Louis City and has already been training with the team. He will wear the No. 7 jersey.
“Julian is going to be a good player to help the team be better, and to add competition because I believe the competition is really important to raise the level of each player,” said head coach Wilfried Nancy last week. “Everybody knows Julian and what he’s able to do, that’s why we needed a player like him with a lot of experience.”
Prior to joining the Whitecaps, Gressel spent time with Atlanta United, who drafted him in the first round in 2017, and D.C. United. Despite initially enjoying his time in Vancouver, Gressel and his family wanted to be closer to home. His wife is from Massachusetts and he is originally from Germany before attending Providence College in Rhode Island.
While Columbus isn’t on the East Coast, it’s close enough to be able to get home quicker than the Pacific Northwest. With his contract coming to an end after this season, Gressel spoke with the Whitecaps about a possible trade.
“You don’t make these decisions in a vacuum right? You have to look at the soccer part. I have a family now, we just had a baby four weeks ago and that is now my second daughter,” Gressel said of his coming to the Black & Gold at the Crew’s meet the team event on Friday. “When we initially got there (Vancouver), we were very, very excited about it too. We’re open-minded about the city, really eager to get to the club and get to know the club. And if I were to make a decision in a vacuum, it was probably sign the extension in Vancouver.”
However, there was more to consider than just his career and staying with the Whitecaps wasn’t something that Gressel and his family saw as an option for their future
“We didn’t think that it was something great for us long term, as a family, and I think that played a part in the decision,” he explained. “That’s why I knew that my contract was running out.”
Gressel also said that Vancouver kept communication lines open and talked about a trade in the current transfer window, so both parties could maximize returns, and plan for the future. He expressed gratitude to the Whitecaps for how the club handled the situation.
It also provided another opportunity.
While the Crew will be Gressel’s fourth team in seven MLS seasons, his moving is not because of performance issues. Gressel, who has appeared 202 times in MLS play, started at wing back for both Atlanta and D.C. and was a key piece at multiple positions for Vancouver.
He brings that experience to a Crew team that began the season rather young.
Gressel quickly made the trip to Columbus and joined the Black & Gold. Nancy confirmed last week that Gressel will be available for the Crew’s Leagues Cup match against Club America on Monday night.
Having already played at Lower.com Field multiple times. Gressel knows what the stadium is like. But he will soon experience with the Nordecke and other supporters behind him in his new home.
“I’m real excited for Monday,” said Gressel. “It’s going to be a sellout, and it’s going to be an exciting atmosphere. There is a big buzz about this team, and I’m excited to experience it as a home-field player. I’ve had the pleasure of playing here already with an away team, but it’ll be different on Monday.”
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