Seeking size and a center back, Minnesota United selected Indiana University 6-4 defender Hugo Bacharach with the ninth pick in Tuesday's MLS SuperDraft.
Minnesota United selects Indiana defender Hugo Bacharach in MLS SuperDraft
Hugo Bacharach, the ninth overall pick in Tuesday's MLS SuperDraft, is expected to move to the Loons' back line, next to Michael Boxall.
December 20, 2023 at 2:01AM
He played defensive midfield in three seasons at Farleigh Dickinson and one at Indiana but is projected to play the back line in the pros. As a center back, he will play a position of need alongside veterans Michael Boxall and Micky Tapias.
"He's a unique college player due to his size and his positional versatility," Loons acting technical director Hank Stebbins told reporters on a video call. "And he has soft feet. He projects nicely into our first team and was the best player on our board at that time. That was the plan all along. Positionally, it's a good fit for us, absolutely."
The Loons made a pre-draft trade with New England, sending $100,000 in 2024 general allocation money for the Revolution's first- and third-round picks (20th and 78th overall) as well as MLS Next Pro forward Jordan Adebayo-Smith.
That left the Loons with two first-round picks — their own No. 9 and New England's 20th — and the 67th and 78th picks, too. They took 6-2 West Virginia sophomore forward Marcus Caldeira with the 20th pick. He helped lead his team to the final four College Cup this month and could return to college for his junior season or go to preseason with the Loons starting in early January.
The Loons took NCAA champion Marshall defender Marshall Duggan and Wake Forest midfielder Babacar Niang with their final two picks, both in the third and final round.
Bacharach was born and raised in Spain and trained for a decade with La Liga club Villarreal CF's academy before he left home to play American college soccer.
"They got a great kid, a fantastic player," Indiana coach Todd Yeagley told the MLS draft broadcast. "His passing is something very unique."
Older friends who went before Bacharach recommended he come to America. He said he went to develop his academics, his soccer career and learn English.
"Those were my main goals," said Bacharach, an only child who celebrated at home Tuesday with his parents. "As soon as I hear my name, it was a very happy moment. I'm very excited to get started."
New Chief Soccer Officer Khaled El-Ahmad provided his opinions, but the draft was conducted by staff — including Stebbins and interim head coach Sean McAuley — already on board.
El-Ahmad finished his time with Barnsley in England's third division Friday and will start work after the holidays for a team that still must hire a head coach to replace the fired Adrian Heath.
"He was informed about our process and provided feedback," Stebbins said. "He'll continue to be in the process more and more. We look forward to his arrival."
Minnesota started only two strikers against Seattle, leaving Sang Bin Jeong and Joseph Rosales to provide the width behind Teemu Pukki and Kelvin Yeboah.
