Dejan Joveljić is most effective as a super sub

El Pistolero. Decky. The Serbian Dagger.

These are just a few of the nicknames lovingly bestowed upon Dejan Joveljić by a fan base eager to see the LA Galaxy striker on the pitch more often. On Sunday, the red-hot Joveljić who received a pass from Victor Vázquez at the corner of the penalty area, turned, and took a few dribbles before curling a ball from a tight angle past keeper Rocco Rios Novo and into the side netting to ice a 2-0 victory over Atlanta United FC.

El Pistolero celebrated in his usual extra style, wagging his trademark finger guns before pointing at the name on the back of the jersey and finally flexing his arms. The goal was his league-leading sixth off the bench and ninth overall in just 627 minutes of league play.

There’s been plenty of chatter by fans and pundits alike about Joveljić starting. Rightfully so, it should be noted. But it’s not difficult to understand why Galaxy head coach Greg Vanney has been reluctant to insert Joveljic into the starting lineup too soon. 

It’s really a case of trust the manager.

Joveljić is a more dangerous striker coming off the bench

For players with at least 600 minutes of play, Joveljic leads the league in goals per 90 minutes with a staggeringly high 1.29.

Starting with the April victory over Nashville — when Joveljić kicked off his scoring streak with a game-winning goal — we did some number crunching of our own. Over the past 14 MLS regular season matches, Joveljić has scored six goals in 223 total minutes off the bench and three goals in 336 minutes as a starter.

Those numbers translate to a goals per 90 minutes ratio of 0.74 as a starter and 2.42 as a sub. They also match the eye test. Clearly, Joveljić is exponentially more dangerous coming into a match than starting one, an observation Vanney made back in May after Joveljic had a pair of goals and two jaw-dropping assists in a scintillating 33-minute cameo against Verde.

“Yeah, every time Dejan [Joveljić] comes in off the bench, he’s scored a goal, he’s had a goal called back, he’s had assists, he’s made a difference, he’s brought energy, he’s brought confidence, he’s brought quality in the final actions. So, his opportunities are coming, and in starts, and hopefully he’ll continue to do the same thing and do it for large stretches of time.”

The team performs better with Joveljić coming off the bench

During that 14 game period we referenced earlier, LA has a record of 4W-3L-2T when Joveljić enters the match as a sub. When Joveljić starts, the Galaxy has just a single win and is 1W-4L-0T overall.

A reasonable person might argue 0.74 goals per 90 min is still a lethal scoring rate, so why not start Joveljić anyway? It’s a problematic proposal that requires choosing between two options, neither of which are optimal.

The Galaxy could play with Chicharito and Joveljić up top in a 4-4-2 formation, but that’s proving not to be an effective solution. Send Chicharito to the bench and you lose the team captain and energetic heartbeat of the squad.

Of course, a third possible option exists. Vanney could deploy a 3-5-2 which he has so far chosen not to use, but the idea isn’t as far-fetched as you might think, especially if the club can bring in another attacking piece before the Secondary Transfer Window expires on Aug, 4th. (That's something about which Vanney's expressed optimism.)  

Joveljić has fully embraced the super sub role

On the Fox postgame show Sunday night, Alexi Lalas and Rob Stone attempted to goad Joveljić into expressing desire for a starting job for the Galaxy. Joveljić was having none of it, though he did provide a few hilarious quotes as a consolation prize — including praising himself for scoring an "amazing goal." 

“I mean of course. If you ask me if I am happy when I'm on the bench, of course I'm not," Joveljić clarified in the postgame presser. "Every player wants to play 90 minutes. I mean, I am a professional. If I get five, 10, 90 minutes, my job is to do the best that I can in that moment. So, I will continue like that.”

If Joveljić was genuinely frustrated over playing time, this might be a different conversation we’re having. In reality, the 22-year old Serbian is happy as a clam with his progress under Vanney, who has done a masterful job keeping the striker hungry and motivated without that competitive desire to play boiling over into negative emotions.

More importantly, Joveljić understands the big picture. There’s an excellent chance Chicharito might not be around next year and the starting job is already within his grasp. The crowded summer schedule will also afford him more opportunities to start in the coming months.

“I am the future of Galaxy,” Joveljić said to Alexi and Rob, and he’s right. But his role as a super sub role suits him and his club best in the present.