They'll figure it out. But there are only so many first team contracts they can give out. Their developmental roster slots are full. Although does one open up with Sealy on loan at NTX? I don't know. Sometimes I'm also a little skeptical about these goalscorers at FCD. There have been some prolific academy goalscorers at FCD that have flopped at even an NCAA level. Sometimes you wonder whether the FCD youth teams are so much better than the academy regular season competition, that these kids just rack up goals against garbage teams. Tosh Yasuda, Gio Montesdeoca, etc. Its up to the staff to look beyond goal stats and say "is this kid really an MLS caliber player?" The next guy up in that particular queue is Brayan Padilla. As prolific as it gets in the academy. I don't really know the particulars of why he wasn't signed to a homegrown deal. But he went to Maryland, and has kind of fallen off the map. Got an ankle injury that cost him much of the season, and when he returned Maryland had forged an identity without him (they won the national title, right?) So gotta see him this season. Johan Gomez has committed to Portland. Portland! Something has to get done there. Somebody asked me the other day if a player is going to Bayern this year if Roberts isn't (and Roberts seems needed by the first team). The timing doesn't work for youngsters like Redzic and Tessman. It works for Gomez, whose 18th birthday is in July. That could be part of the carrot to get him to sign a deal.
I've always been a little skeptical of his goalscoring numbers. I didn't think they matched his play, but I have liked his play better this season. I don't know if he's as good as his goal scoring numbers, but I think he's a real first team prospect. Are there rules that stipulate a team can only sign a certain number of academy players? What if Dallas wanted to sign Johan Gomez to a league minimum contract that wasn't a homegrown deal? Could they do that?
https://www.mlssoccer.com/league/official-rules/mls-roster-rules-and-regulations From what I gather, they can sign as many homegrown players as they want (up to the 30 roster spots allowed), but only the first 10 are salary exempt. All that means is that if they go over 10, one of the guys has to be moved onto the “senior” spots, which means he counts against the cap. I don’t think they’ll have much of an issue with doing that, but it does limit them from signing literally every academy player. There’s other things that dissuade them from doing that before adding 70k to their cap, though. To me, it seems like the aversion from Dallas then comes from paying a guy the reserve minimum of 56k before loaning him to NTXSC. It’s kinda both sad and cute at the same time how frugal MLS is with money compared to other American sports. I wonder how far we are from MLS paying Americans more than colleges pay basketball and football players. Sadly, we’ll never know.
It's also very worth noting that he leads USL in assists. And we know he's a strong ball winner. He's taken a circuitous path. Hopefully he finally gets a chance. But he wound up on one of the worst teams to be integrated from. I don't even know why PDX, of all clubs, acquired him.
Tanner Tessman named to USL League One Team of the Week. Also up for goal of the week. Check out the full team --> https://t.co/VzWnNNN7zH#WeAreOne pic.twitter.com/TkuhLU1kAB— USL League One (@USLLeagueOne) May 14, 2019
USYNTer.....................most recently with the U15s I believe. Bright little cameo last night from 15-yr-old Leo Torres in his professional debut for San Antonio FC in U.S. @opencup. For me this was the highlight. pic.twitter.com/XNJPU5sMBg— scuffed (@scuffedpod) May 15, 2019
Those kids are smart and have options so passing on a USL deal makes sense for them. They will get plenty of time in the USL without having to sign. There is only two brothers, the other Gomez you mention is not their brother.
Yeah, I think that in 2019...........................its a little odd to sign a USL deal. Sign a Chris Richards-style MLS deal, or wait. We can think of this from points of view all along the talent map. Why forgo NCAA eligibility for a USL deal on the low end? Why forgo Euro/Mexico opportunities for a USL deal on the high end? Particularly if you're going to play in USL games anyway. Johan Gomez is playing in USL games right now, why sign a USL deal? Maybe in 2025 I'll think completely differently about that as the developmental pathway thru the USL is really established. If I'm emperor of MLS right now and wanting my league to become a "selling league," I would allow clubs to sign an infinite number of homegrown kids to MLS deals.
I tend to agree with you but it is as case by case basis based upon the player. If a kid knows he will probably never go to college, then go ahead and sign the USL deal and get the 24K a year now and work like hell to make your way up the ladder. If you think college is good thing in your future, it may take a little more nuanced approach to playing USL games without signing, maybe some college and trying to get the MLS HG deal or going overseas at 18.
Memphis is racking up YNT-eligible MLSers on loan: Dally, Lindley, now Kunga. For Atlanta's part, if you are sending out guys like Kunga on loan to other USL teams because it's a more interesting challenge than playing for ATL2, I think it's a sign that ATL2 is overdue for a drop to USL League One. Orlando has loaned out Lindley and Stajduhar because they are probably past OCB's level, but aren't in the first team plans. (What's going on with Pierre da Silva these days, anyway?) Seattle should drop Tacoma to D3 too, if USL can populate the western half of the country with a few more teams.
Kunga barely plays. I think that’s why he was loaned out. da Silva was loaned to a team in Brazil. He’s playing for the reserves of Athletico Paranaense.
Because DC United was too stupid to keep him for a year until they began Loudoun United. Why have an academy or a second team in USL if you are going to deal off an under 20 national team player without even attempting to develop him as a pro before you trade him? My guess is that DC didn’t rate him, but why not make an attempt to develop him as a pro before you unload him. He obviously has some ability. Both franchises do some things very well, but some things are hard to watch.
Tanner Tessman wins USL League One Goal of the Week. He's also been listed on the gameday roster for this weekends match against Lansing. Tanner Tessmann's first professional goal claims the Week 7 Goal of the Week! Congrats, @frantanjam5! #WeAreOne | https://t.co/V1l0e7jZxF pic.twitter.com/FgTm93Aqwa— USL League One (@USLLeagueOne) May 16, 2019
Chattanooga signed '97 midfielder Alexi Jaimes, who had been with their League Two affiliate Park City Red Wolves and played some JuCo ball in Utah. https://www.uslleagueone.com/news_article/show/1021738
That game between FCD and Lansing finished 2-2. Here's FCD lineup, which started 5 academy players...……………. Here's tonight's starting XI to take on @lansingignite!Watch us defend our unbeaten record at 6PM on ESPN+ ➡️ https://t.co/eJNdDyzg7l#WeAreNext | #LANvNTX pic.twitter.com/YUN49QTS3k— North Texas SC (@northtexasSC) May 18, 2019
Thats a "we don't respect the opponent" type of lineup. It's almost completely attacking players across the midfield. It seems like these "II" teams have reached a point where they are too good for USL League One and not good enough for USL when fielding nearly full academy teams. The best academies playing in USL League One and lesser academies in USL might exasperate the point, but I think there have been very few clubs who are getting their players proper development. How much better is USL League One than games against some of the better U-19 DA teams?
It might be easy enough to win, but the Dallas guys have to at least use their technical skills to win the whole time. You might not necessarily say that at the U19 level, where they won't be disadvantaged athletically. It's better that USL league two, and that was where a lot of top college guys would spend their summers, so League One can't be that bad. The league will grow fairly quickly. These teams are only on their first iteration of players. Even if the salaries don't go up, which is highly unlikely, the teams will find better players willing to be paid the same. That, and there'll be way more teams.
I think we need to give USL League One a season or two before making hard conclusions about the level of play. First, North Texas SC has the advantage of having a group of players who have been together in the same system for a long time. There's a familiarity advantage that will be less relevant in seasons to come, when indy clubs are able to bring back much of their core from the previous year. Second, if you look through a lot of indy rosters, there are a lot of guys who probably wouldn't be in pro soccer if not for the existence of this league. In the first few years, the lesser talents in this group will be weeded out and it's not crazy to expect the overall talent level to increase a tick or two. I'd be more concerned if North Texas SC were dunking on everybody. They have a 12-5 goals record in six games which is quite good, but not "the competition is a joke for us" good.
Patrick Bohui played 20 minutes for Bethlehem today. I've got to say, every time that he plays, he just can't find the game. I've seen him have like 10 touches total in all 85 minutes he's played. I'm wondering if it may be too early for him. I'm sure Philly has a plan for him and must rate him highly because he is a December '03.