Tijuana Xolos: Coudet Brings in Midfielder from Chile and is Close to Signing Defender from Brazil
Eduardo Coudet has begun his international signings this off-season by bringing in his first official signing to Tijuana from the international market.
This Thursday, June 22, it was officially announced by Club Tijuana that midfielder Enzo Kalinski was coming over from Chilean club, Universidad Catolica. Kalinski, 30, is Argentine, as the trend has been this off-season in the Xolos’ signings and is a box-to-box midfielder with greater defensive capabilities than offensive ones. His best attribute by far is his passing ability and he does have a decent physical presence, standing in at 6-foot.
Kalinski offers a plethora of experience and has been part of successful teams in the past.
The midfielder started his professional career in his native Argentina in 2007 with Quilmes and stayed with the club until 2011. The Argentine then moved on to a much bigger club in Argentina, San Lorenzo, where he lived some of his best moments in his career. Kalinski won a league title in 2013 and the most prestigious title by South American teams, the Copa Libertadores title in 2014. After his stint with San Lorenzo, the midfielder moved to Chile in 2016 with Universidad Catolica. Success followed Kalinski as he was part of a league title in the Apertura 2016-2017 season and a Supercopa de Chile title in 2016 as well.
There is a huge void in the midfield without Guido Rodriguez and Kalinski could be the man who replaces Rodriguez in the heart of the starting 11.
The move is a solid one but it also raises questions as Damian Musto, another midfielder, is set to come in, and it could push San Diego native, Joe Corona, out of the Xolos’ starting 11, or Kalinski out to the bench as well. The move should be able to help the border city side have a more formidable midfield and have another option just in case Damian Musto struggles in the Liga MX like Jorge Ortiz did in the Clausura 2017 tournament. There should be a huge position battle in the off-season for those midfield spots that will only help strengthen the team going into the Apertura 2017 campaign.
Eduardo Coudet is close to bringing in more players from abroad in the coming weeks.
The Gustavo Bou and Damian Musto moves are already known, but there is another name now in the mix as well. It was recently announced by the Argentine journalist, Cesar Luis Merlo, that the Xolos are close to signing the Argentine defender, Alejandro Donatti, from Brazilian club, Flamengo. Merlo even announced that Donatti was set to have his physical this Friday, June 23, and that the signing would be made official this Monday, June 26. The Argentine is a centre-back with a huge physical presence, standing in at 6-foot-4, and offers a wealth of experience at 30 years old, having started his professional career back in 2008.
Eduardo Coudet did manage Donatti back at Rosario Central as the defender played there from 2013-2016. Donatti seems like a formidable defender and Coudet already knows what he is capable of, which is another plus. Like the Enzo Kalinski signing, this signing also raises a lot of questions as the Xolos already have two very solid centre-backs in Juan Carlos Valenzuela and Emmanuel Aguilera. All three of these players seem experienced and solid enough to crack the starting 11 which could mean another intense position battle this off-season. It is still unclear what Coudet’s go-to formation will be, which could then add value to these signings and make sense of them as well. Either way, it seems that the Aztec Canines will not lack depth in this upcoming tournament, which was a problem last tournament, especially when it came to the defense.
Francisco, 26, Chula Vista/Tijuana. I have been a Padres fan all my life, did most of the series previews and recaps in the Padres’ 2016 season for EVT. Now I focus more on the local soccer scene. Tijuana Xolos, San Diego Loyal, San Diego Wave.