There may not be a better player in the Canadian Premier League, and not a more important one to his team, than Pacific FC midfielder Manny Aparicio. Aparicio is absolutely crucial to the way the Tridents play when they’re at their best, and had another impressive season in his second year on Vancouver Island. The 27-year-old, who previously captained York United (then York9 FC) through their 2019 and 2020 CPL campaigns, is a tireless runner, an elite passer of the ball, and defensively sound – the three things all coaches want most from a box-to-box midfielder. At the start of the season, Pacific came flying out of the gates, winning their first three matches, and five of their first seven. They jumped out to an early lead in the table, and Aparicio was at the forefront — scoring in matches two and three of the season.
He went the full 90 minutes in all but one of those matches, a 2-1 victory in the seventh match over FC Edmonton, in which he assisted the winning goal from Josh Heard. The Tridents were looking like the early favourites to retain their CPL title, with everyone playing well with high spirits, and head coach James Merriman, in his first year in the top job, getting the best out of his side from the start. Then, in match number eight, they started to be brought back down to earth a little bit. Aparicio, arguably the best player in the CPL to that point, picked up an injury and was forced out of the match in the first half, and wouldn’t take the pitch in the club’s next five matches. In that span: three losses and two draws. While Aparicio certainly isn’t the only key piece in Pacific’s puzzle, and there is no such thing as a one-man team, his absence was certainly felt. “Everyone knows what he brings, and there’s been periods this season where we’ve missed him for sure,” said Merriman ahead of the playoffs. “He’s that link from our buildup to our attack, he also pushes the lines when we’re pressing in higher areas. He’s really, really important to how we want to play as a team, and we’re happy to have him in our team.” They missed his energy in midfield, and they missed his leadership on and off the pitch. After a month on the sidelines, during which “how’s Manny doing?” was asked regularly of Merriman in press conferences, Aparicio was finally able to take the pitch again on June 30 against Cavalry FC. His return was welcomed by his club and fans alike. “We’re very much looking forward to his return,” said Merriman of Aparicio at the time. “We’ve missed his engine a little bit in the middle of the pitch, so we’re looking forward to having him back, and he’s excited, he wants to play, he wants to get back in and help to help the group and help the team.” Aparicio began the match on the bench, but was brought in to replace Djenairo Daniels, who was forced out with a knock 20 minutes into the first half. Aparicio returned to the pitch with a round of applause from the fans at Starlight Stadium, but just nine minutes later it was all over again. A scuffle with David Norman Jr saw both players sent off, and Aparicio set for another two-match spell on the sidelines.
Pacific would win those two matches, and when Aparicio did come back on July 22, funnily enough against Cavalry, the momentum just kept going. After their poor month-long slump from the end of May to the end of June, The Trident would find their footing again. After the victories against FC Edmonton and York United in early July, Aparicio’s return saw them add three more wins to their belt – against Cavalry FC, Atlético Ottawa and Valour FC no less. Aparicio has proven that no matter who is playing alongside him, whether it be Sean Young, Cedric Toussaint, Jamar Dixon, or someone else, he is able to adapt to them while maintaining his ability to run forever and dictate the match from midfield. Doing it against Ottawa in particular, who Pacific will take on in the Canadian Premier League semifinals beginning on Saturday, was important. Aparicio was involved throughout and looking like he might be back in the hunt for Player of the Year, going to battle with another likely candidate for that award – Ottawa’s Ollie Bassett. In the next match, however, against HFX Wanderers, it happened again. Aparicio picked up a red card in the first half, this time missing four more matches as Canada Soccer added an extra game to the automatic three-match ban. It felt as though despite being one of the most talented players in the league, Aparicio was sometimes his own worst enemy. By regular season’s end Aparicio had played just 51 per cent of the minutes his team did as a whole this year, but when he did play it was abundantly clear that he’s one of the best players in the league, and arguably one of the best in the league’s history going back to 2019. Since he’s returned from that second suspension, Pacific are back to winning ways again. After falling out of the top four altogether, The Tridents closed the season strong, with Aparicio’s third return coinciding with three wins in their final four matches to lock up fourth place. Their midfield maestro provided two brilliant assists in that span, including one to Josh Heard to seal three points in Halifax, and one to Marco Bustos very early in their game against FC Edmonton that all-but-officially secured them a spot in the postseason.
“You see what happens when he is out there,” said Heard after the former. “He makes a direct impact and he put a perfect ball on the end of my foot and I just had to put it away. So it is great to have him out there, and it is great to have our full team out.” When Pacific are firing on all cylinders, watch out. They won their title last year by being a resilient team that can do a bit of everything – score goals, defend well as a unit and win individual battles in key moments of the match. Manny Aparicio is absolutely crucial to all parts of their game, and if he can play at the level we’ve come to expect from him, The Tridents will always have a shot. He’s entering the playoffs in red-hot form as well, which is a welcome sight for Merriman. “He’s working extremely well and he’s starting to catch form now that he’s had a couple of games,” Merriman said last week. “He’s playing very, very well. He’s playing how he was at the beginning of the season.” 