Matt Miazga has become a regular starter for Belgian side Anderlecht this season and has vowed his commitment to the club after helping them pull off an important league victory this weekend.
Miazga and Anderlecht defeated Standard Liege 3-1 on Sunday, a win which moves them into fifth place in the Belgian Pro League standings. The result came one week after Miazga was left on the bench by manager Vincent Kompany ahead of a 2-0 defeat to relegation threatened Kortrijk.
The Chelsea loanee returned to the starting lineup and showed his impact by helping the club rebound with three points. Miazga, who has previously mentioned about his interest in staying in Belgium on a permanent deal, reiterated his interest in playing every match when available.
“I want to help this team,” said Miazga post match. “Of course you have to be involved for that. I understand that the coach has to make decisions and that means you are not in the squad. But I want to be decisive and I have to be on the field for that.”
Miazga has made 20 combined appearances for Anderlecht this season, with 19 of those coming in league play. His inclusion in the defensive corps has paid off for the club so far this season, with Anderlecht only conceding 30 goals through 29 matches, the second-fewest in the Pro League to date.
After being loaned out once again by Chelsea, Miazga has taken advantage of the opportunity put in front of him and continued to rack up first team minutes. He’s also gotten the chance to work with a former experienced club and international defender like Kompany, who has played on the world’s biggest stage for Belgium and Manchester City.
For now Miazga will aim to continue producing top performances with Anderlecht in hopes of achieving a top-four spot with the club. A strong end to the domestic season could not only boost his chances of earning a permanent move away from Chelsea this summer, but also boost his stock for the U.S. Men’s National Team in a busy 2021 year.
The club is one point behind fourth place Oostende and also remains in the Belgian Cup competition, with a date against Cercle Brugge approaching on Wednesday.
I agree that Miazga does not seem to get the respect he deserves here. Part of that is that he is not fast. But really, speed in a CB is most important when the team either plays a high line defensively or it has lots of attacking possession. Those two tactical traits can put backs in positions too often where they must try to stay with speedy forwards on counter attacks. Of course, clever positioning can limit the number of times a back is called upon to have a footrace, but it will happen. So for me, the question is, just how not fast is Miazga?
I still believe Miazga is best used in the middle of a 3 man back line. Funny, Kompany likes a 3 man back line also, with 3 former NYRB/MLSers. Miazga is the best defender, by far.
Miazga is benefitting from being under a coach like Kompany. While never the fastest defender, he has always had good skills and technique, and is expanding his overall defensive game in Belgium. He can help the US in qualifying when the matchups are to his advantage.
We will see how much longer Kompany is there. I have friends in Belgium who r huge Anderlecht supporters. they equate him to Frank Lampard. Limited as a head coach, but getting a lot of slack because he is a legend. D wise they r solid. Offensively they r borderline inept. Has assistant coach written all over him.
I feel like Miazga is often written off by the fanbase here in the US. I’ve been lucky enough to watch Anderlecht a number of times, each time with Miazga on the pitch, and a couple of things stand out: 1. He wins almost everything in the air 2. He is really strong 3. His distribution is underrated; he won’t break lines with his passing really, but he gets the ball moving quickly and plays the best ball to retain possession 4. His focus levels are good and he doesn’t tend to blow assignments. The not so great parts of his game are pretty obvious as well. He’s slow, not just “not very fast” but pretty slow on his feet. He is sometimes drawn a bit out of position, and he is overly aggressive at times and prone to discipline lapses (not of positional defending or tactics, but rather in being too rough). I rate him higher than Long (the past two years have been crap for him, sadly) and Zimmerman, but certainly behind Brooks and Chris Richards. I know Richards is young and has only been playing first team football for Hoffenheim for a short while, but he has more than looked the part. He’s quick, strong, smart, good on the ball, and has potential to be the strongest CB in the pool very soon.