YNT-eligible MLS players: 2020 In-season thread

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Scouting Report on Brenden Aaronson.

His movement is really good, but what does that mean? I tried to explain/show as best I could. #USMNT

Very exciting young player to add to the US player pool. https://t.co/PCsxwqus5I

— HalfSpaces (@blharreld) April 14, 2020

 

Chris Durkin’s transfer to Belgian side Sint-Truiden is a done deal - only detail that remains is a signature.

Terms: #DCU will make another $1.2mil - in addition to the 200k they received initially. $1.4mil total.

Durkin stands to make approx 400k Euro/yr base in Belgium.

— Pablo Iglesias Maurer (@MLSist) April 16, 2020

 

25% sell on fee for DCU as well according to Maurer.

 

https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2020...referral&utm_content=news&utm_campaign=unpaid

Can't not love Reg.

 

This Durkin transfer should indirectly help Nyeman's playing time. They might not be the same type of player, but they both play centrally somewhere in midfield, and the team only has so many players who do that. If Durkin returned, that was another option in midfield that would get into games ahead of Nyeman. Then again, this thinking requires Olsen to be logical about using Nyeman, so there's no guarantee there.

There's been some discussion this week about when MLS might reopen. I don't want to get into the topic of predicting that stuff. Nobody could predict that accurately at this point, but one thing that I hope comes out of this when MLS starts is a maximum number of games that they can play. Garber and some MLS figures have been talking about a possible shortened Champions League style tournament instead of a season. That would be a lot worse for young Americans getting playing time than would a season with maximum number of games.

The eventual schedule for this season will likely have less games than the initial season schedule was projected to have, but if the revised schedule has a lower number of games with higher stakes instead of a higher number of games with lesser stakes, that will lead to less playing time for young Americans. Games will be more spread out, less players will need to be used in a squad, and teams will be less willing to experiment with their lineups. Young Americans will suffer. If they play a lot of games, teams will be forced to use the depth players on their roster, and maybe a few extra young Americans will get playing time, and emerge.

One of these two options benefits young Americans significantly. Let's hope for a lot of games in a short window when the season starts back up.

 

MLS said it is going to squeeze a lot of games into the season even if it means closed door games. That seems like a good opportunity for these youngsters.

 

Good point, but I think in some ways it is 6 of one and half dozen of the other. The young players could probably be divided into 3 general groupings: those that have broken into the lineup with their play last year (this could even include a few that didn't see big numbers), those that would get the opportunity to break through this year, and those that likely would get minutes but aren't likely to be in the teams real plans (other than development) for this year.

A season with more lower stake games vs more higher stake games would likely hurt the established players somewhat because those games are critical to their development. The alternative would definitely be likely to hurt the other two groups by reducing the number that break through this year and/or put themselves in a good spot for moving to the next level next year or just not getting any sort of playing time at all and being a bit of a wasted season.

 

I understand your point and no scenario would be zero-sum, but if I’m going to have to pick one, I’d prefer more games. I think everyone will gain something. With a UCL style of tournament, like had been discussed, I don’t know how much more the guys that are starters will gain that they’d lose from a season that has more games with teams using more players they wouldn’t normally want to use. It’s still not a top league. You aren’t going to find Messi or van Dijk on the field if you condense the amount of players that will be used.

 

Most pressures per 90 in MLS 2019. Look at Aaronson's and Urruti's contribution upfield!

(data from @fbref and @StatsBomb) pic.twitter.com/cNUU4vtk2K

— Charles Wilson (@andthenthehex) April 18, 2020

Amaya 1st, Aaronson 3rd, Basset 6th, Busio 18th, Dotson 21st, and Pomykal 22nd.

Dotson does best on the pressure success statistic among the above players (defined as the percentage of time the team wins the ball back within 5 seconds of the pressure). Pomykal, Amaya, and Aaronson are all have above average success percentages based on the regression line drawn. Basset's success percentage is average and Busio's below average.

 

Fun data.

There looks to be two pieces of context to be aware of, though I don't have the exact math.

One, either because of skill set or more likely because of placement on the field (and less remaining options/space), defenders tend to have a much higher success rate than mids or attackers. All the very highest success rates are there.

Two, because pressing really is a team effort in terms of being successful -- if only one guy is pressing it's useless, there seems to be a strong covariance across teammates. All the Red Bulls are effective; all of LAFC.

Worth noting as you pick and choose individuals. If an attacker is especially effective or by far the most effective presser on their team, it might mean more than pure high, raw, stats.

 

Any idea how they define "pressure"?

 

Glossary just says number of times the player applied pressure to the opponent with the ball. I assume there's some distance you need to be within.

A successful pressure means you secure the ball within 5 seconds of applying pressure.

 

I do not have answers to those questions. But they do have stats for recoveries, duels, etc., so I would think the player would need to have clearly established possession.

Just a guess, though. Statsbomb may have a more detailed explanation.

 

Georg Heitz was sporting director at FC Basel for nine years, while Cedric Cattenoy spent 15 years at Paris Saint-Germain, recruiting and developing the best Île-de-France talent.@JustinSousa99 spoke to both about their plans and the challenge Chicago presents.

— SCOUTED (@scoutedftbl) April 24, 2020

 

I like Cattenoy a lot. At the annual coach’s convention a few years ago, I listened to him give a presentation on what he was trying to do at Chicago. I came away extremely impressed. I have heard lots of negative things about Chicago’s DA, but if they truly allow Cattenoy to do what he wants and the club commit themselves to making their academy work for them, Chicago could very quickly jump into one of the top 5 academies in the league. Cattenoy is that good.

Is Chicago a good enough organization to take advantage of Cattenoy? That is a different question. We’ll find out the answer to that one in the next couple of years.

Regardless, it is exciting that Chicago is making the attempt to be a good club. That is a big city in the middle of an important region and it is critical to the league to have a strong presence in Chicago. I am looking forward to seeing how this turns out.

 

In my first ASN piece today, I spoke with #RBNY right back Kyle Duncan on his impressive development, his comeback from an ACL tear, his U-23 goals, & his close relationship with his cousin Tim Weah (who have supported each other though recent injuries) https://t.co/7YVRoALSLF

— Brian Sciaretta (@BrianSciaretta) April 24, 2020

 

There was a Belgian report on the 19th on interest in Reggie Cannon from Belgian Pro League clubs.

From Google translate:

"RSC Anderlecht was associated with Reggie Cannon last year, but the 21-year-old right wing defender stayed with FC Dallas. The American international may still go to the Jupiler Pro League.

...

According to our sources, three clubs from the top five have Cannon on the radar. AA Gent is already one of them.
KRC Genk was already mentioned in the corridors, but that interest is still vague. At Anderlecht, Cannon is also on the shortlist, but with the arrival of Michael Murillo, a new right back is not a priority in Brussels."

FC Dallas technical director Andre Zanotta later said:

"There is a lot of speculation, I saw an article that there was interest in Belgium on him, but nothing came to me," Zanotta told reporters on a video call. "Just rumors, I don't know if they're real. But for us, we didn't get any call or any formal approach for Reggie."

🚨🚨🚨 #USMNT transfers news...

Am hearing that both USA defenders DeAndre Yedlin and Reggie Cannon are targets for Bundesliga clubs with a move after this season possible for both. 🇩🇪

— Roger Gonzalez (@RGonzalezCBS) April 25, 2020

 

Gonzalez hasn't developed a reputation for thoroughly vetting the rumors he passes along on Twitter, to say the least.

 

As a Bolivian I can confirm that this has a lot of validity.

 

“I’ve had a couple of calls with the coaches of the men’s team. They’re more checking in to see how it’s going. We did go over some game film & tactics.”

🗣 James Sands (19) on the USMNT

Our full interview with the NYCFC defender 👇👇https://t.co/23Eq0uVdv6#USMNT #OneGoal pic.twitter.com/WuHqMiy8au

— OneGoal (@OneGoalUS) May 6, 2020

 

I guess Robbie Robinson’s injury wasn’t that bad, and he’s looking to improve. He was the top new US prospect in MLS I’d say.


https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.ml...son-takes-criticism-stride-i-thrive-under?amp

 

Cannon probably suffered more than any of our young MLS players due to the shutdown (vis-a-vi transfers). We all saw the plan that Cannon and FCD put in place. It was pretty clear that both player and club hoped performance in MLS as well as various US programs (U23s, USMNT) this season would lead to an imminent move abroad. Hopefully as soon as the summer transfer window.

Now he hasn't been in the shop window, and many of the clubs that might be interested in Reggie are penny-pinching.

But................completely out of his control. C'est la vie.

 

Doyle: Best 22 Under 22 contender on each MLS team

Doyle: The best prospect on each team

“One of the players I actually think I’m a lot like is Alvaro Morata from Atletico. I do see some similarities in Robert Lewandowski, but I'll say I look more like Alvaro.”

🗣 Ricardo Pepi (17) on his playing style.

Our full interview 👇👇👇 #USMNT https://t.co/hWSPpfKVcr

— OneGoal (@OneGoalUS) May 17, 2020