Nobody can deny the impact that defenders Matt Miazga and Kemar Lawrence have had on the New York Red Bulls’ season; it’s why the team has had such a successful defensive record, why head coach Jesse Marsch said it was “hard to take [Kemar] off the field” and would be “tough” to lose Miazga to international duty, and especially why they were both ranked in Major League Soccer’s 24 Under 24. Miazga came in at #5 and Kemar at #15 – though Marsch believes they “could have been ranked higher.” Here are 24 things to know about Matt Miazga.
1: number of teams Miazga has played for, turning down other teams’ offers and a chance to play at Michigan to stay with his homegrown and hometown club
(7.1)2: number of clearances per game Miazga averages, the fourth-most in the league
3(rd): Miazga has taken 8 shots on target this season, tied for the third-most by a defender
4: number of times Miazga’s been named Man of the Match this season.
5: in the past 5 years, only 4 players – Miazga included – have won at least 8 aerials and made at least 8 clearances, at least 7 interceptions, and at least 4 tackles in one game. Miazga is the youngest of those 4.
6: “Since I was six years old it [has been] soccer, soccer, soccer.”
7(7): percentage of games the Red Bulls have gone unbeaten (15 wins, 5 draws) in the 26 games Miazga has featured in this season
8: number of clean sheets the Red Bulls kept with Miazga on the field. They only kept 1 without him
(1)9(1): Miazga’s won 191 duels this season, the second-most of any player in the league.
10: Miazga’s only lost 10 of the tackles he’s made, winning 52 of 62.
11(3): aerials Miazga has won, the third-most in the league. He’s also made 117 headed clearances, another third-highest amount. Considering he stands at 6’4”, neither of these comes as much of a surprise.
12: number of games in which Miazga hasn’t recorded a shot – meaning he’s had a go at goal in 52% of matches.
13: blocks Miazga has made this season, the most of all 24 Under 24 awardees
(U-)14: Red Bulls team Miazga started with, joining in 2009.
15: Percent of total duels Miazga has won this season have come against D.C. United alone. Only 3 players have won more against a single team.
(Rio 20)16: Miazga made it 2-0 against Cuba in a US U-23 qualifying match for the 2016 Rio Olympics, his first international career goal
17: age he signed his professional contract with the Red Bulls, on May 30, 2013. Four months later, he got his first league debut for the first team in the 76th minute against Houston; his first start came against New England on June 8, 2014. The Red Bulls won both matches.
18(5): total number of clearances Matt has made, the sixth-most in the league.
19: When Miazga had barely turned 19, Mike Petke already hailed him as someone he hoped would “one day [be] a captain of this club”
20: in his 20th career game, his 12th of the season, Miazga scored his first goal. The stunner against NYCFC was followed by an even better celebration.
21 (Under 21): Matt Miazga topped the list in ESPN’s 21 Under 21 rankings this year.
22: In just 22 minutes, Miazga completed 9 of 10 passes against the Vancouver Whitecaps. This is his highest pass success rate against a team, closely followed by 86% against San Jose and 83 against Orlando City.
(U-)23: Though Miazga currently represents the United States’ U-23 team, the team’s head coach Andi Herzog believes it’ll be just a “couple of months” before he’s called up to the senior team.
24(-man roster): when Miazga was named to the most recent one, for Olympic qualifying, it marked his 23rd call-up at all levels.
