Red Bull New York head coach Michael Bradley could see the determination in Julián Bazán’s eyes when he spoke to the 20-year-old defender via Zoom prior to the Colombian defender’s late-March transfer from Deportivo Pereira.
It didn’t take long for the former United States men’s national team captain to recognize that Bazán possessed the intangibles to go along with the physical attributes needed to succeed as an MLS central defender.
“Through Zoom from New Jersey to Colombia, you could see that this was the character and the mentality that we needed,” Bradley said earlier this month. “We saw really good things in Colombia when we spoke to him, before we signed him. It’s not always easy when you speak to players before you get them here. In a perfect world, you get to spend time with them in person.”
While Bazán was awaiting a visa, he spent time training with Red Bull Bragantino’s reserve teams in Atibaia, São Paulo, Brazil. Bradley followed Bazán closely from New Jersey and was amazed by the commitment and desire he demonstrated in training.
Bradley on Bazán: ‘We Knew He Was Going To Be an Important Guy’
“He was down in Bragantino and we were getting video and watching him,” Bradley recalled. “I was watching him train with a second team or under-21 group in Bragantino, a team that’s not even his. He was playing and training like it was the Champions League Final.
“So we knew that getting him here was going to be a real positive, but it always takes a little time for guys to settle in. So when he got here, it was in that window just before the break over the summer. We used the second team as a way to get him some minutes and get him acclimated. He had a really good summer preseason, and we knew that now in the second half of the season, he was going to really establish himself in the group and we knew he was going to be an important guy.”
Bazán has logged 926 minutes through his first 12 MLS matches. The 6-foot defender has made 12 clearances and won 41 aerial duels.
Lately, Bazán has teamed with veteran Tim Parker in central defense to record consecutive 1-0 shutout victories over the Columbus Crew and Hudson River Derby rivals New York City FC.
Parker on Bazán: ‘He Enjoys Defending, Enjoys the Dirty Work’
Parker compared Bazán’s mentality and approach to old-school defenders.
“Bazán has come here and done really well in terms of adjusting to how we play because it is quite demanding and it’s probably unlike anything he’s played in system wise,” Parker said last Thursday. “We have a good relationship. What I like about Bazán is that he enjoys defending. He enjoys the process of blocking shots and enjoys the dirty work, and a little bit of an old-school flair that I’m pretty familiar with, and I tend to like myself.”
Bradley is encouraged by the rock-solid performances that Bazán and Parker have strung together in the heart of defense as the eighth-place Red Bulls look to secure a berth in the MLS Cup playoffs.
Bazán-Parker Central Defense Partnership Earns Praise From Bradley
“In a short amount of time in matches, they have developed a really good relationship, and so that’s been really positive for us,” Bradley said of the Bazán-Parker partnership. “It’s been the basis for some really important wins for us over this last period.
“All the credit goes to Tim and Bazán for their mentality, the way that they have really been the backbone for us over these last few games. I would throw Tim into that category as well with Bazán, where they love to defend. They enjoy the part of making the game really hard on the other team’s attacking players, and when you have guys with that mentality, it’s the foundation to being a team that is really hard to play against.”
The Red Bulls will host St. Louis CITY on Wednesday night in a rescheduled match after Saturday’s contest was postponed due to severe weather. Wednesday’s match will kick off at 7:30 p.m. at Sports Illustrated Stadium and will be streamed on Apple TV.
If you enjoyed this story, please consider supporting independent, local soccer journalism by buying me a coffee.
Contributions made through Buy Me a Coffee help support the time, travel and resources that go into bringing you on-the-ground coverage, reporting and original stories — without paywalls.
More Red Bull New York Coverage
Enjoyed this story? Follow us for the latest updates! | Bluesky | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
Leave a Reply