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Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn.
Newcomer Marcus Caldeira might be jolt the Loons need down the stretch
- Story byPioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn.
- Newcomer Marcus Caldeira might be jolt the Loons need down the stretch
With no new strikers yet to join in the summer transfer window, Minnesota United remains in need of an injection up top over the final 16 MLS regular-season games.
Could that jolt come from someone already here?
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Forward Marcus Caldeira , playing his first season with the Loons, showed this week he could maybe be that guy. In only his third appearance for the Loons' first team on Tuesday, the 21-year-old Canadian provided two assists in a 3-1 win over Atlante in Leagues Cup.
"He's done really well since he's been here," head coach Cameron Knowles said Tuesday. "He's very coachable, he's very reflective on his performance and you see the way that he's grown."
In the 2024 draft, Caldeira was taken 20th out of West Virginia, but he stayed with the Mountaineers for another collegiate season last year.
Caldeira signed a first-team contract with MNUFC for this year but has spent most of it with MNUFC2 in the MLS Next Pro league. At that lower level, he has posted a team-high 10 goals and three assists in 1,343 minutes.
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Knowles previously coached MNUFC2, so he's intimately aware of the big jump to MLS, and demonstrated his belief that Caldeira could clear the hurdle without a loan to a USL Championship club first. He debuted off the bench against Real Salt Lake on May 23, then subbed in again for the first team against FC Juarez in Leagues Cup on Aug. 4 and nearly scored the game-tying goal in that 2-1 loss.
Caldeira said he thought about that near-equalizer "a lot" in the week between the Juarez and Atlante matches, but referenced fictional coach Ted Lasso from the hit Apple TV show, who famously told a player to "be a goldfish" and have a short memory.
Caldeira made the most of his next opportunity against Atlante. Three minutes after subbing in, he kept possession in Atlante's half and laid the ball off to Joaquin Pereyra for a beeline run to score the first of his two goals. Then toward the end of the game, Caldeira worked to stay onside on a break and calmly crossed it to Pereyra for his second goal.
Caldeira was a yard or two from being offside, Knowles said. "But," the coach added, "the work rate to get onside, then the thoughtfulness to play the right pass to score, it shows real composure and maturity. I'm really pleased for him."
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Caldeira will be out of contract after 2026, but the club has options for the sprint season in 2027 and the following two full MLS seasons through 2028-29. He is on the reserve minimum compensation of $88,025, and certainly looks like a player worth investing in.
Caldeira said his adjustment to MLS comes down to one factor.
"Probably just the speed of play, to be honest," he said Tuesday. "But I'm also playing with players who can move the ball quicker, as well, so it helps with the players around me."
Pereyra, one of the Loons' best players, has seen Caldeira put in the time on a daily basis in Blaine.
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"Marcus is a player who trains really hard and trains really well," the veteran said. "It's difficult when you don't have a lot of competition minutes, but if you train really well, you prepare yourself for when the moment to play comes. … He responded really well.
"He did it in a spectacular way beyond his assists. … He came in (Tuesday) with a lot of energy. He delivered and fought for the ball. So, for a player that didn't have a lot of playing time, he was notable. I hope he enjoys this moment and that he continues to prepare and help the team."
