Tyler Miller Traded to Minnesota United
It was announced today that LAFC traded their 2018/2019 starting goalkeeper Tyler Miller to Minnesota United for some Garber Bucks. This move came shortly after LAFC went out a signed former Ajax and Feyenoord goalkeeper Kenneth Vermeer.
Let’s break this down. LAFC seem to be looking to try to out MLS the league and be competitive in the region regularly. I do have to give them and Atlanta United credit for being ballsy enough to try to jump out for immediate success in MLS. How have they done that? Not looking to be just as good as they were and continuously looking to improve their team. Thats exactly what they did here with Tyler Miller.
Was Tyler a good keeper in MLS? Sure. Many people would come out and say that his numbers were great when you compared them to the likes of Vito Mannone and even Bill Hamid in 2019. I would argue a bit differently, watching Miller play I have never been truly sold on him as an elite level keeper.
Tyler had a decent year but I would argue more for the play of Eddie Segura and Walker Zimmerman in front of him that helped LAFC have a top defense for the past two seasons now. I’ll give credit where credit is due, in two seasons for LAFC he has racked up 68 games in net and 20 shutouts. But I just don’t ever feel that we’ve see what someone with his physical capabilities can do out on a soccer field. Tyler is a big guy (standing at 6’4) and currently in his prime (26 years old), but we’ve never truly seen him thrive and force himself into a top season for a keeper. Even in 2019, the season in which he was the starting keeper and helped LAFC win the Supporter’s Shield, his backup in Pablo Sisniega shinned in more standout moments to me. Sisniega really got his shot in the U.S. Open Cup to show what he could do and he proved himself, even to a point where he filled in nicely for Miller while he was injured.
This may just seem like me shitting on Tyler Miller and that’s not what I am trying to do by putting out this post. Tyler has proved himself so much over the year and I can only hope that he continues to grow and can prove to be a top U.S. keeper. But Miller needs to keep pushing and challenge himself to be better. Being traded to Minnesota showed MLS fans and Minnesota United fans some things.
Minnesota will not be bringing back Vito Mannone or dropping a lot of cash on Joe Hart. Fine, stay interleague and grab Tyler Miller on a cheaper deal. But can Miller truly fill in for the the reigning MLS Goalkeeper of the Year? I guess we will see. I have my doubts and feel that the Loons got a little worse in this spot. But will Miller also thrive having Ike Opara and Michael Boxall in front of him? Of course!
I really hope that Tyler reads this soon, because I want to challenge him. I want to see him prove it to himself and to us U.S. fans that he can be a top guy. We saw a keeper like Matt Turner really explode onto the scene in 2019, now can we have 2020 be the year for Tyler Miller? I hope. Tyler, let’s cut down on those mental mistakes (thinking back to the LAFC game vs the Galaxy in the 2019 playoffs), let’s make some key moments in net to help the Loons win, and lets get some revenge on LAFC? Work hard, keep improving and prove my dumb ass wrong!
