Lalas Abubakar

From 2014 to 2016, Abubakar attended the University of Dayton, where he played for the men's soccer team. Over three seasons, he made sixty one appearances for the team, scoring four times and assisting six times. In the 2015 season, Abubakar won the A-10 Championship with Dayton, and made it to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.[1] In the 2016 season, Abubakar was named the Defensive Player of the Year,[2] and was also named in the A10 Men's Soccer All-Conference First Team.[3]

In the 2015 PDL season, Abubakar played for the Charlotte Eagles,[4] where the team was undefeated in the regular season.[5] He was named in the Eastern Conference Team, and was a finalist for the PDL's Young Player of the Year, losing out to Timothy Mueller. In the 2016 PDL season, Abubakar played for the Michigan Bucks,[4] where the team won the Great Lakes Division (Central Conference) and the PDL Championship.[1] Abubakar was named the PDL Defender of the Year,[6] and was also named in the All-League Team.[7]

On 13 January 2017, Abubakar was drafted by Columbus Crew SC as their first-round draft pick in the 2017 MLS SuperDraft, and the fifth draft pick overall.[8] During his first season in Columbus, Abubakar split time with Columbus and the Pittsburgh Riverhounds in what is now the USL Championship.[9] In total, Abubakar made 15 appearances during his first professional season; ten with Columbus and five with Pittsburgh.[9] Moreover, during his rookie season, he scored his first professional goal on 19 August 2017 against Orlando City SC.[10]

In 2018, Abubakar played in 23 games, scoring one goal.[11] However, despite Abubakar's uptick in appearances, his performances were largely considered inconsistent and he was relegated to a reserve role for new Columbus coach Caleb Porter in 2019.[11] Due to this, and Columbus's depth in the center-back position, Abubakar was sent out to fellow MLS side, the Colorado Rapids. This was a move, that paid off in strides for all parties. Abubakar made 22 appearances for Colorado, while becoming the team's Defender of the Year and helping the resurgent Colorado side make a late season playoff push that ultimately fell short.[12][13]

Abubakar made one appearance with Columbus in 2019 before being loaned to Colorado Rapids in exchange for $125,000 in 2019 Targeted Allocation Money[14]

In 2019, Abubakar made 22 starts among 22 appearances for Colorado and was named the club's Defensive Player of the Year at its annual end-of-year awards gala. On Nov. 20, 2019, Colorado permanently acquired Abubakar from Columbus in exchange for $400,000 in General Allocation Money and a 2020 international roster spot.[15]

Abubakar continued his solid play in 2020, starting 17 regular season matches. Abubakar scored his first Rapids goal in stoppage time to equalize against Houston Dynamo on Sept. 9.[16] Abubakar started and played a full 90 minutes in Colorado's first-round playoff loss to Minnesota United FC.[17] Abubakar finished the season with 24 blocks, which was the second-most in MLS.[18] Abubakar was named the club's Defensive Player of the Year for a second consecutive season.[19] Abubakar signed a contract keeping him in Colorado through the 2024 season with a club option for 2025 on Dec. 15.[20]