Minnesota United: Bolstered defense with Ike Opara put playoffs in view
By Tyler Hanson
Minnesota United continued their strong offseason with the addition of 2017 MLS Defender of the Year Ike Opara. Their newly bolstered defense now puts the playoffs in view.
Minnesota United have acquired center-back Ike Opara in a trade with Sporting Kansas City to bolster a defense that was among the league’s worst last season.
As a part of the deal, Minnesota will send $900k in Targeted Allocation Money to Kansas City, with incentives possibly bringing the total to $1M — those incentives are reported to be Minnesota making the playoffs next season.
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Though that is a lot to give up for a guy who turns 30 in a couple weeks. Some will say they overpaid. But the Loons needed immediate help at the position, and at his best, Opara is a Best XI-caliber player who should remain so for a couple more years yet.
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The club also had plenty of allocation money to spare after they flipped Christian Ramirez to LAFC last summer for $800k in combined GAM and TAM, with incentives that could bring the total up to $1M. With the addition of Opara and Romain Metanire, as well as well as Ozzie Alonso and Jan Gregus in front of the back four, Minnesota should improve significantly in defensive areas this season, much to the delight of Loons faithful.
It will be interesting to see who the Loons put next to Opara in central defense. Michael Boxall, Brent Kallman, and Wyatt Omsberg are all options, though Omsberg seems unlikely over the experience of Boxall and Kallman. It’s a close call between the two, but it is worth noting that it was Boxall who wore the captain’s armband last season when Francisco Calvo was on international duty, which shows that manager Adrian Heath likes him. For that reason, I expect to see Boxall next to Opara most of the time, though some rotation is possible.
However, Minnesota chooses to set up, though, the addition of Opara is an immediate and substantial improvement to a defense that conceded 141 goals in its first two seasons, an MLS record for a two-year stretch.
Opara is obviously not a fix-all signing, but his presence at the heart of the defense will have a major impact on every player around him. Minnesota only needs this unit to be average to put the playoffs in view.
And that is now the aim for the season. Minnesota is all-in this year. The spending this offseason dictates as much, especially considering Metanire, Gregus, Opara and Alonso are 28, 28, 30 and 33. It is now or never for Minnesota.
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The roster for Minnesota United is certainly coming together nicely. Still in search of a goalkeeper and some depth, it will be interesting to see who gets signed to round out the squad. But make no bones about it, the playoffs are now in view, and Opara is a key reason why.