If you read the piece on possible formations the Loons could use without Emanuel Reynoso, you’ll remember a common theme was how thin they are on the left side. Remember the Matthew McConaughey?
The team took a step to address their one-sidedness, having agreed to terms with left-footed center back Miguel Tapias either this summer when his contract officially ends or in February if they can reach an agreement with Pachuca, which, according to the Pioneer Press’ Andy Greder, they’re very close to doing.
Big picture: this is a really good signing. Being A) under 30 years old and B) left footed make Tapias an ideal addition for the Loons, who needed younger options in the back, especially on the left side and pressingly with Bakaye Dibassy still rehabbing from the ruptured quadricep tendon he suffered at the end of last season.
Tapias was a regular starter for Pachuca in the 2022 Clausura when the team topped the table in the regular season and finished runners-up to Atlas in the playoffs. In the 2022 Apertura, the team finished fourth with the third fewest goals allowed, but Tapias saw his role diminish behind veterans Óscar Murillo and Gustavo Cabral. While that’s not always the best sign for a player’s form, it does mean the team is comfortable without him, which likely made it easier for the Loons to get him into the squad now as opposed to waiting until the summer.
It is worth noting, however, that Tapias has started two of Pachuca’s three 2023 Clausura games, so this isn’t a similar situation to Adrien Hunou’s departure from Rennes where he was frozen out of the squad and rusty as an old ship by the time he joined the Loons. (The less said about Tapias’ most recent game against Tigres the better. He was outjumped for the first goal and turned the ball over directly leading to the fourth as Tigres battered Pachuca 4-1.)
So what kind of player are the Loons getting?
Tapias is an aggressive one-on-one defender, facing down opposing dribblers at a much higher rate than average and winning tackles at a rate in the top 10% of defenders globally. The downside? He also gets dribbled past quite a bit, which is something of a function of being willing to step up and defend instead of dropping back, but “high-risk, high-reward” isn’t exactly how most successful center backs profile.
He’s incredibly skilled at blocking passes — in the 98th percentile of blocked passes per 90 — and above average as a shot-blocker as well. He can be beaten in the air, but there, too, his profile is strange because he contests everything, so has both a ton of duels won and lost. In short, he’s an exceptionally high-volume defender which is…not really a phrase that’s used very often.
His top MLS comparables according to Fbref are Columbus’ Miloš Degenek, his new Loons teammate Michael Boxall, Seattle’s Jackson Reagan, and D.C. United’s Donovan Pines. Boxall and Pines in particular are aerial aces, so their inclusion may be an artifact of Tapias’ high volume of aerial wins rather than a fair representation of his skills, but those are very solid comps to start from.
Given that Tapias is so close to being out of contract, I can’t imagine it cost a fortune to bring him in early, but unless the fee was truly exorbitant, it was a good decision to pay up and start the defensive gelling process.
Tapias could very well start the Loons’ first month’s worth of games with Dibassy still recovering before the team settles into a defensive rotation, so getting him familiar with Boxall and…whoever starts at left back given Kemar Lawrence’s continued absence is critical. His style could help the Loons snuff out attacks down that left side, but there are going to be growing pains as he will inevitably leave some space behind if he misses out on his tackles.
At 26, there’s still time for Tapias to improve. But even if he’s close to a finished product, I like this move for the Loons. He’s going to be a huge improvement over Brent Kallman, he allows the team to take their time with Dibassy instead of rushing him back, and he very well could be a long-term answer at the back for a team that perpetually has holes to fill.
His willingness to defend one-on-one is something the team hasn’t had much of, however, and it will create issues unless his teammates are ready to slide in behind him to keep attackers that do beat him from getting a free run. Getting him in February gives the team the chance to get a feel for how that needs to work during a meaningless preseason tournament in California instead of in the dying minutes of a meaningful midseason match against RSL.