Now, three of the players involved in the move are far from their former island home trying to create a future for themselves in a new country as trialists with the Los Angeles Galaxy.

Jose Manuel Miranda, the tall goalkeeper, winced a little as he recalled the despair that pushed him to make a difficult choice. “Everything else is just taking on something new,” Miranda pointed out. “The decision was the hardest part.”

Lest anyone think that the decision to abandon the Cuban squad and their hopes to qualify for the Olympics was an impulsive one reached in the heat of the moment, due to lax vigilance from their team officers, or a whim based on the convenient fact that the team’s matches took place in Florida, midfielder/forward Yordany Alvarez offered a brief and terse counter. “We made the choice [to defect] back in Cuba,” Alvarez insisted.

The players indicated that the location of their team’s games and the security involved made little difference. The hard part wasn’t eluding the measures in place to stop them – it was the painful realization months ago that a move to freedom would cut them off from loved ones back home, for perhaps many years. 

With a few weeks’ time to look back on the effects of that move, the three say they have no regrets, despite intense longing for some of the things they left behind.

“We don’t have any doubt that we made the right decision,” said Yenier Bermudez, who was the captain of Cuba’s Olympic team. “We feel good about it.”

Yet the inevitable homesickness was also tinged with the sad recognition that they might never be able to return to the island nation.

“We miss almost everything about Cuba,” said Bermudez.

“The food, the atmosphere, but most of all, our families and friends,” chimed in Miranda as Alvarez nodded in agreement.

Since they were only making about eight dollars a month as playing soccer in Cuba, however, it was the dream of being able to help their families that spurred them on.

“They’re depending on us and we’re sacrificing in the hope of a better future for all of us,” said Miranda. “It wasn’t a decision that we made after just one game. It hurt us to leave the team. We wanted to go to the Olympics, but this was too important.”

Conditions in Cuba, the three agreed, have deteriorated along with the worldwide downturn in the economy. That probably correlated directly with how many Cubans were moved to action at this tournament. One or two defectors is typical, such as when Maykel Galindo left Cuba’s senior national team during the 2005 Gold Cup. This year was different, though, as the numbers involved were far larger. After the first group of five left the Olympic team this year, two other players and a coach also defected.

Though he had heard that some people criticized his choice as unsporting, Bermudez was incredulous that anyone would question the decision he and some of his fellow players made.

“The ones who criticize me - as captain of the team – they’re not Cuban, because really, Cubans are the ones know that this was the best thing for us to do, because of what’s going on in Cuba,” explained Bermudez.  “People don’t know the situation there, what’s going on in Cuba right now, what it’s really like. They don’t know the reality.”

In the United States, though, other realities faced the players. In the aftermath of accusations of that they’d abandoned their teammates and the Olympic ideals, a trial offer from a local USL team, Miami FC, was quickly withdrawn for political reasons. Yet with Major League Soccer the ultimate dream for all of them, the trio was excited when representatives told them that the Galaxy was interested.

There was just one small problem. As refugees, they had none of the identification papers necessary these days to fly across the land of the free. Undaunted, they decided to take a bus. The over 2,300 mile one way trip from Florida to California is roughly equal to a journey around the entire coastline of Cuba.

“We came from Miami on the bus and the trip took four days,” said Bermudez. “We left on Friday and got here on Monday.”

The sacrifice was small compared to what they’d already endured. All three players were excited to prove their worth.

“We are here now to play soccer,” said Miranda. “This is where we wanted to be, with a great team. All that’s left is for us do our part. They’ve given us the opportunity to demonstrate what we can do.”

Ruud Gullit, the Galaxy coach, was impressed that the players were willing to go through so much for a mere trial. He extended their time with the team to be able to clearly assess their skill.

“The Cubans have had a very long journey from Miami on bus,” said the Dutch coach. “I have to give them another week, to adapt them a little bit to being here, and then make a decision about them.”

Gullit, who has a history of speaking up for minority players and their rights throughout his playing and coaching career, gave little thought to any political pressure to refuse the Cubans an opportunity with the LA club.

“No,” said Gullit. “They’re here because they want to stay in the United Status.  They made themselves available, and why not give them a chance?   We want to give them a good trial to give them a good judgment, especially after the trip they had.”

That trial is nearing an end now, and even if it ends in a bus trip back to Miami, the three Cubans agreed the blow wouldn’t be a crushing one.

“If the Galaxy doesn’t take us, it doesn’t matter,” said Bermudez. “We’ll try elsewhere.  We’d love to play next to (David) Beckham and (Landon) Donovan, but if not, we’ll be alright, because we’re free to try again someplace else.”

In practice, the three did not look out of place running drills and playing in short scrimmages with the rest of the Galaxy players.

“My impression of the team is very good,” Alvarez observed. “It has always been my dream to play in MLS.”

Miranda may have the best chance of catching on with an MLS team, as it was his impressive performance in goal which was largely responsible for the draw result versus the U.S. in the Olympic qualifying game before he left the Cuban team. He looked at his time with the Galaxy as an opportunity to learn about the league.

“It’s been great,” Miranda said. “It would be better if we all got to stay, but if the coach doesn’t want us, it’s still been a great experience. Now we have an understanding about the league and we’ve seen how things are at one of the best teams in the league.”

The path they have stepped out on isn’t easy, because the clock on an athlete’s career is never a long one.

“We couldn’t wait,” Bermudez pointed out. “As soccer players, we don’t have time to do that. The chances we have to play and make a living and help our families are very few. I’m 22. How long should I wait? Until I’m 27? What team is going to be interested then? I have a chance now, if not with this team, then somewhere else. In Cuba, how can I get better when I can’t play or earn money playing? We won’t ever get better opportunities than we will now. They don’t look at your potential when you’re 27.”