LAFC: Niko Hamalainen another dart to throw at left-back problem

LAFC made a late roster move ahead of the MLS opening weekend by adding left-back Niko Hamalainen. He is another dart for Bob Bradley to throw at the problem.

Los Angeles FC supporters have been accustomed to offensive signings in the club’s short history. But the latest big signing comes on the defensive side of the pitch, and that made be precisely what is required.

Florida native Niko Hamalainen will be joining LAFC on loan from Queens Park Rangers of the English Championship. The left-back is poised to offer help at a much-needed position for the Western Conference club, providing Bob Bradley with another option to throw at the problem.

Hamalainen, who is 21, has been a member at QPR for his entire professional career as he was signed by the English club from the FC Dallas Academy in 2014. Having experienced trouble breaking into the starting XI, this six-month loan will give him the playing time he needs to continue his development.

This won’t be the first loan spell of his career. He spent time with Dagenham & Redbridge in League 2 in 2015 but soon returned to the QPR youth teams.

Although Hamalainen spent time with the FC Dallas Academy, the defender is a member of Finland’s national team. He has spent a majority of his time playing for their youth teams but broke into the senior team after being called-up in January.

https://twitter.com/LAFC/status/1100131294556565505

While all this may seem a little meaningless given that almost all of his experience is at a low level of competition, he arrives at a team needing help at the left-back position.

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Jordan Harvey stands as the starter at left-back heading into the 2019 season. LAFC did not have any other solid options at this position prior to Hamalainen’s addition. Signing the defender, then, provides LAFC with a player who can start and come off the bench when needed.

One area LAFC need improvement as a whole this season is on the backline. They were suspect throughout, conceding 52 goals in the regular season, more than every other team in the playoffs bar Real Salt, and then they were found out in the playoffs by that very Salt Lake team.

Hamalainen will bring energy to the backline. He is a quick, athletic young player, built very much in the mold of the modern-day full-back, bounding up and down the flank, contributing at both ends of the pitch.

For LAFC, very simply, he is another body at a position of need. Left-back may end up being an issue that Bradley has to accommodate for this season. But sometimes, in building a team, the best you can do is throw numbers at the problem and hope something sticks.