What New England Revolution fans can expect from Wilfrid Kaptoum

There are a lot of reasons for New England Revolution fans to be excited about the recent acquisition of Wilfrid Kaptoum. He has played at one of the biggest clubs in the world, but what about his skills on the field?

Kaptoum’s most recent experience came with Unión Deportiva Almeria in Spain’s Segunda División. It’s fair to say that Kaptoum and his club weren’t exactly on the radar of Revs fans.

So The Bent Musket reached out to Andrew Miller who is the founder of Betico News for the lowdown on Kaptoum.

Miller’s description of the Cameroonian will have fans excited after the club’s struggles scoring. He seems like a player that will help feed Gustavo Bou, Adam Buksa, and Tajon Buchanan.

He said. “Kaptoum is a very modern central midfielder. His composure and vision in picking out a pass is excellent. He’s got a great eye for utilizing the wide players and stretching the pitch to open space. He also has great footwork and technical ability to carry the ball forward, a tell-tale trait of players who’ve come up through La Masia. He’s not the strongest defensively so he would-be comfortable playing as part of a double-pivot provided, he’s partnered with a deeper-lying option and given the freedom to roam further forward, one of the reasons his time with Betis didn’t quite work out as there was more pressure on him to provide some cover for the back-line.”

Miller also mentioned that Bruce Arena would be wise to use the Cameroonian further up the pitch alongside Carles Gil. While initially plenty of parallels could be made between the two players due to both having experience in Spain, it now seems like these two could develop quite the relationship once games begin.

But even at the age of 24, Kaptoum’s health has been an issue. The midfielder has already had to deal with a torn meniscus, multiple hamstring injuries, and some lingering muscular issues. Revolution fans will be hoping those injury issues don't follow Kaptoum to the turf of Gillette Stadium.

The major factor that should leave fans hopeful is that when he is able to play, his potential is easy to spot. “The last time Kaptoum had a real consistent run was towards the end of the 18/19 season under Quique Setien when he played in a midfield 3 with Sergio Canales and Andres Guardado,” Miller said. “Playing in that possession-based “Johan Cruyff” style of football suits his ability to move the ball quickly and efficiently but as I mentioned before, the health issues never allowed him to carry the momentum into the following season.”

Also off the field, Kaptoum is a player that is easy to root for. “He’s incredibly humble, hardworking given all the injury problems he’s faced in his short career so far, he’s extremely determined,” Miller said.

Overall, Miller believes that Revs fans should be excited. He describes the move as “low-risk, high reward” and a smart pickup for the club.

With the regular season creeping up on us, fans won’t have to wait too long to see what Kaptoum can do and it seems likely that they will be impressed.