Written by Juan Pereira

Photo from Houston Dynamo FC

Houston Dynamo FC have just announced the signing of Latif Blessing from Toronto FC. The Dynamo paid 75,000 dollars in GAM for the player. Blessing is a wide midfielder who has won several trophies in his MLS tenure. Blessing has won the MLS Cup, Supporters’ shield, and U.S Open Cup. While Blessing did get a lot of playing time for New England and LAFC, he only played 7 games for Toronto, so hopefully this chance of scenery works out well for him.

“Latif is a proven winner in our league, whose positional versatility will be invaluable as we continue to navigate the busiest competition calendar in club history,” Pat Onstad said. Blessing has played in 8 MLS seasons, earning a total of 17 goals and 25 assists.

In terms of where he fits into this team, I think it’s obvious that Blessing will play on the wings. Whether it’s on the left or on the right, he can play both. If needed, Blessing can also play in a 10 role, which isn’t really needed when you have Kowalczyk and Bassi on your team, but you can never have enough depth anyways. Latif Blessing is not a standard midfielder, although he can play closer to an HH role when asked to. Blessing likes to play out wide or in advanced central areas, the former being an area of need for the Dynamo.

I don’t expect Blessing to start on the left unless the Dynamo move Aliyu up to the front line. If this happens, then Blessing could start on the left. However, I think that it’s much more likely to see Blessing come off the bench and replace either Aliyu or Kowalczyk/Bassi. His versatility will definitely benefit the Dynamo when it comes to rotating those guys. The season has barely just started and Aliyu has had an intense workload. Gabe Segal, the current striker for the Dynamo, will also benefit from this signing. Now that Blessing can cover for Aliyu on the wing, we could see Segal getting even more rest.

In general, I feel like this signing has very low risk, but the possible reward is very high. If Blessing can return to his LAFC form, then he would easily start on this team and provide a real punch up front. However, the Dynamo should be looking to sign one more attacking piece who can complement Sebastian Ferreira and Aliyu. Hopefully, that signing comes sooner rather than later. So, what do you think? Is this a good signing? I’d love to hear y’all’s thoughts on this move in the comment section down below!