Japhet Sery Larsen got an assist from Mikael Uhre as he decided to join the Union
Uhre gave the Union a strong endorsement, which is notable considering how the team and fans treated him at times in his last two years here. Larsen took that to heart.
There have been enough Danish players in MLS recently that when the Union reached out to Japhet Sery Larsen, he didn’t have to look far for advice.
“I have a good friend who plays in San Diego, [Anders] Dreyer, who has spoken really warmly about the league,” Larsen said in a news conference this week from the Union’s preseason camp in Marbella, Spain. “I have a former teammate as well in Cincinnati, Evander, who really enjoys his time here.”
Those are very good connections to have. Dreyer was the league’s Newcomer of the Year last year, delivering 23 goals and 18 assists in 41 games; Evander is a two-time All-Star and Best XI honoree.
But Larsen had an even better expert to call, too.
“I talked to Mikael Uhre a bit because he knows the Union very well, which was really helpful for me,” he said.
If Larsen saw all the little boxes with the journalists’ heads on Zoom, he’d have watched a mass springing to attention.
It wasn’t surprising that Larsen and Uhre know each other, because players cross paths in all kinds of ways in soccer. But it would sure be something to learn Uhre’s opinion of a club that didn’t always treat him well in his last two years in Chester.
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“He was really happy about his time here,” Larsen said. “He had some great moments here, I think.”
Yes, he did, and he was barely given a chance to say goodbye — or to receive thanks from the portion of fans who liked him. That makes it even nicer of Uhre to say good things about the Union and living in Philadelphia.
“I had some good talks with the sporting directors and the coaches about what it’s like being in the club, but the hard part is finding out what life is around the training ground and stuff like that,” Larsen said. “So Mikael was really helpful there. Obviously, we talked about [life] in the club as well, but he had only good things to good things to say about the club — he really enjoyed the playing style and the philosophy of the Union.”
It will be up to other players, especially Ezekiel Alladoh, to replace Uhre’s goals and defense-stretching runs. Larsen’s job is to replace another Union stalwart, Jakob Glesnes.
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On paper, he has the resumé. Larsen spent the last three years at Norwegian club Brann, won a Norwegian Cup, and played in Champions League qualifiers and the Europa League.
Before that, he spent a year at Bodø/Glimt, a team with a big reputation as a continental Cinderella.
His age matters, too. The Union like to sign younger players whom they can develop and sell later. Larsen is 25, heading toward a player’s peak age period. And the club’s scouts noticed that he wore the captain’s armband at times for Brann, a sign of good intangibles.
“It had a big impact on my decision before joining here,” Larsen said. “I know some more experienced players have left the club now during this winter, so there’s an open spot for taking responsibility and leadership. And I think we have that within the group, but obviously I want to contribute to that as well and help as better as best as possible.”
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He arrived in Chester well-briefed on the Union’s high-speed playing style and was excited to play in it.
“I think the coaching staff have a really clear idea of how they want to do things, which I believe suits me quite well,” he said. “[That] had a big impact for me in my decision, which made it easier, but they really talked about their way of thinking in football and their principles.”
Larsen got his first run in a game on Tuesday, and played the first half of the Union’s 1-1 tie with Czech club Sigma Olomouc. Paired with Olwethu Makhanya on the back line — to form what is expected to be this year’s starting centerback duo — he seemed to fit in well enough.
“I thought it was quite obvious the way the coaches want us to play,” Larsen said. “I think we could see the principles coming to life in the game. A lot of the guys are thinking forward the whole time, trying to really express ourselves.”
On Friday, he played the first period of a 2-1 loss to Danish club Nordsjælland that had three 45-minute frames, this time next to young prospect Finn Sundstrom.
Larsen hadn’t been with the Union for long before heading to Spain, and he spent part of the opening week in Chester working off to the side. So he had to jump quickly into the deep end, “a new way of speaking football” as he put it.
“It has been fun and challenging at the same time,” he said. “I’m learning new things every day, but I’m trying to embrace it all, and the coaching staff and the teammates are really helpful in that process.”
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