YNT-eligible lower division-pro players: 2021 IN-SEASON thread

Concacaf Men’s Under-20 Championship to qualify teams to 2023 FIFA U-20 Men’s World Cup and 2024 Summer Olympic Games

Details: https://t.co/dkgjsdHqLG #CU20 pic.twitter.com/EfbGIlyNCC

— Concacaf (@Concacaf) September 16, 2021

2022 will be a very busy and interesting year for 2003 & 2004 players (and a few 2005s!) two big prizes at stake in the same tournament !

 

Chicago U-23: Gabe Slonina (‘04) didn’t have much work to do. He allowed a few goals, but they weren’t savable goals. He also made one easier save. He looked comfortable though, and in command of the game. His ability with his feet has also gotten better over the years, and I would say he’s about average for a GK now playing out of the back. Justin Reynolds (‘04) put in some good crosses. Quiet game otherwise. Ryan Quintos (‘04) is a fringe prospect at CB. Doesn’t do anything poorly, but no real strengths. Maybe his passing is slightly above-average, if there was any part of his game that I would say is any better or worse than average. He didn’t look great on one of the goals, but he was defending 1 v1 after the LB was out of position. Tough play to defend. I think the caliber of player that plays 2-3 years of college soccer, if not a full 4 seasons. I can’t imagine he’s playing first team minutes much earlier than 20-21.

Javier Casas (‘03) had a respectable outing in CM. Made good decisions with the ball and made a few defensive plays. He’s not a high ceiling player, but he’s dependable and consistent. He’s likely not yet ready for MLS. I think he might even benefit from a half or full season loan to USL next season, but I don’t think he’s that far from being MLS ready on a regular basis. Sergio Oregel (‘05) struggled to impact the game, but he was one of the youngest players on the field. He might’ve been the youngest. It’s not unusual that he struggled. Alex Monis (‘03) was disappointing. For a guy with an MLS contract, no real impact and I’m not sure the tools are any better than multiple guys on the field that will not be getting MLS contracts.

Allan Rodriguez (‘04) was effective, but I struggle to see his role in MLS. I hope he proves me wrong, but for the role he plays, I don’t think his skillset can be effective in a high caliber pro league. Luka Bezerra (‘03) is a player I continue to be impressed with. He’s a CF with good size and mobility. I’m not sure he’s a prolific goal-scorer or more than average technically, but big CF’s that can move have roles in the pro game. I didn’t realize either that his brother is one of the best players in college soccer, and a likely Chicago HG signing in the winter. I wonder if they are both signed right around the same time, although Chicago did recently sign an ‘03 striker, so Luka’s future with Chicago might be up in the air.

Orlando U-23: Michael Halliday (‘03) had a dependable half. Did his defensive work, and got forward a little, although without much end-product. Thomas Williams (‘04) was very good. That’s great to see because he’s struggled a lot against older competition with the speed of the game. I thought his decision-making in this game was much better. He’s a very talented player, but a little raw. He can be really good, if he eliminates the errors and reads the game a little quicker. David Buccuzzo (‘04) had a good performance. Not very flashy, but he’s an effective holding midfielder that can do some of everything.

Ethan Subachan (‘05) had a good performance. He was one of the only 05’s on the field, but was able to keep up with the older players, and scored a goal. He’s a #9 with good speed. I think he’s probably the best prospect of Orlando’s 05’s. Alexander Freeman (‘04) came off the bench and replaced Halliday. He was good. He helped create a goal with a nice run through midfield and did well getting forward. He nearly scored as well. He must be 6’3/6’4 by now. He looks too big to be a RB/RWB, but he’s so athletic in the small area athletic skills for a kid his size that the traditional problems for very tall athletic players don’t apply for him. He’s an offensive fullback/wingback, but I continue to think he’s not bad defensively.

 

The owner’s son that plays as a winger played more minutes today than Felipe Valencia has played all season. Valencia is on a first team contract. I can’t find almost any info on the owner’s son’s career prior to signing with Ft. Lauderdale, which would be highly unusual for a good player.

 

Click his name on the roster:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Lauderdale_CF

 

You’ve made my point. Why is there no info about his career? Could it be he’s not good enough to play at a level we would’ve heard of?

 

In any case, why his name linked to father's page?

 

Does Diego Luna's contract, expire in November? Maybe he's going to try his luck in Europe, after the USL Championship season ends.
https://www.transfermarkt.com/diego-luna/profil/spieler/880626

 

Also true that Harvey Neville, Phil's son, plays for Fort Lauderdale.
(Who oddly is an Irish youth international)

So its sorta a Manchester United affair.

Also true that there's a reason Fort Lauderdale is awful.
They were the worst team in USL League One in 2020, and would miss the playoffs if the league one season ended today. [As would North Texas SC.] In a shift from previous years, the independent USL League One teams hold the top 5 positions in the standings. The quality of their play has greatly improved.

Anyway, my point is that Fort Lauderdale doesn't seem particularly interested in winning or being successful. Their head coach is Darren Powell. Of course they hired an English guy with a mediocre USL resume. I think he had one decent year amongst the four he spent coaching San Antonio.

 

They also have a great academy, but they may become LAG 2015-2020 for their first few years in MLS.

 

Diego Luna finds the equalizer for @eplocomotivefc ‼️#ATXvELP pic.twitter.com/fZYJX6jYLV

— USL Championship (@USLChampionship) September 23, 2021

03 Luna continues to perform very well in USL, now has 10 combined goals and assists with a few games left in the season.

 

Real Monarchs: Jeff Dewsnup ('04) had another great week of games. He was good in the first game without being called onto do much, and then kept RSL in the game in the second one that should've been a big defeat. The second game was probably the best game I've seen him play. He was the clear MOTM. I think I've figured out why Dewsnup makes the game look so easy. His ability to read plays is incredibly good. He beats the ball to the spot it's going. He's always in position, and rarely doesn't read the ball well off of the shooter's foot. When you also have great athleticism, foot skills, size, ability in the air, and game to game consistency, thats an elite player. Dewsnup is gaining on Jonathan Gomez for the top young American in USL this season. He's been the better of the two the last month or two.

This was my first two viewings of Yekeson Subah ('04). He's a CF. I would say he's a slightly above-average athlete (6'0, good power, some speed), he holds the ball up well, he's good in the air, he has some foot skills. He didn't record any shots in the two games and had nearly no dangerous attacking chances, but the team was also outplayed in both games, so it's hard to blame him for the lack of attacking chances. Nonetheless, I can't give much of an opinion on his finishing.

Christian Nydegger ('03) is a player that doesn't look the part physically (sub 5'10 CM with a mullet) and his game is not clean, but I think he has a lot of untapped potential. He's listed at 5'9, although he looks 5'8 (maybe 5'7), yet he's good in the air for a player his size. He wins the ball extremely well, he has decent speed, plays with a lot of energy. He also has good foot skills for a box to box midfielder, and his passing isn't bad. Due to the wrecking ball style of play that he uses, he doesn't always make the best decisions, but I don't think his soccer IQ is low. He needs to let the game slow down, and play a little differently, and I think he'll have more success. The tools are there.

Louisville: Jonathan Gomez ('03) rebounded from a pretty terrible prior week of games with a good performance. He didn't do anything spectacular, but he was very solid on both ends of the field in a win for Louisville.

Tacoma Defiance: Alex Villanueva ('02) continues to play extremely well. I've liked his play all season, and he's had very few bad games. His defense has improved a lot. I don't know that Seattle will give him a first team contract, but he's a quality LB. A lot of MLS teams could use him.

Reed Baker-Whiting ('05) was able to play more of a CM role, and I thought he was performing better. I do however need to mention that there is something in the way he plays that is starting to worry me. I've considered bringing this up many times before, and have always decided against it because assessing the tools I didn't see anything wrong. The effectiveness though is a problem. The easiest way to describe it is that I don't think he strikes the ball cleanly. His passing vision is above-average, and his passes often get to the intended recipient, but he seems to give teammates a lot of passes that they can't do much with. I don't know if its a technique deficiency, but it does worry me slightly that he has some tools with his passing, but very little effectiveness. His passes often lead to very little, even if they are completed.

Sacramento Republic: Patrick Weah ('03) got his first game since being loaned to USL. He was playing out of position at RW, so it's hard to take that much from how he played. He's certainly not a winger. He's too big and not quick enough to play out wide. He did show some nice power when he was dribbling, and he's technically capable for a bigger forward, but he has very little effectiveness in wide positions.

LA Galaxy: Jalen Neal ('03) had another excellent performance. His passing in this game was a big factor in starting LA's attacks. He's been really good since returning from his injury. Johnny Perez ('03) has also had a slight resurgence. He's been very good and LA's best attacker in recent games. He drew the penalty for their only goal, and was part of a lot of attacks. I also think he's deceptively quick.

LAFC: Antonio Leone ('04) had a bad performance, but he suffered what looked to be a head injury in the first half, and was allowed to stay in the game. I'm not sure that was such a great decision, considering he was struggling and continued to struggle after the head injury. I think that might've effected his performance. Javen Romero ('06) came on late at CB. He struggled with the pace of the game, although I liked what I saw from his passing ability. Alex Rando ('01) gave up four goals, but it could've been a lot more. He's had a very good season.

 

This is absolutely not a statement about the specific player as I've never seen him but the profile you describe can sometimes make for a pretty good wingback.

 

Gomez assist.

Cameron Lancaster finds the equalizer early 👀 #MEMvLOU | @loucityfc pic.twitter.com/eA9JivPqNZ

— USL Championship (@USLChampionship) September 26, 2021

 

Mountain Dewsnup does it AGAIN!! 👏👏 https://t.co/iC4LwQlko4

— Real Monarchs (@RealMonarchs) September 24, 2021

It feels like every time Nicholas Holliday plays, he wins Fans' Choice Save of the Week 😂

Congrats to @NorthCarolinaFC's young goalkeeping star! pic.twitter.com/WpTk2sIBqf

— USL League One (@USLLeagueOne) September 24, 2021

Kayden Pierre places it perfectly 🎯#SKCvTUL | @SportingKCII pic.twitter.com/zpPHcDOmXZ

— USL Championship (@USLChampionship) September 25, 2021

 

Holy shizz. The rare header from outside the box

 

Right place at the right time ✨

Jalen Neal scores his first goal of the season to give #LosDos the lead! pic.twitter.com/JHVhlksXev

— LA Galaxy II (@LAGalaxyII) September 26, 2021

EAAASY 🔥@CamDunbarr scores off a beautiful pass by Jorge Hernandez pic.twitter.com/inGsW99uQY

— LA Galaxy II (@LAGalaxyII) September 26, 2021

 

El Paso signed '05 Brooklyn Raines to an academy deal.
Lou City signed '03 Carlos Moguel to a pro deal.

 

I thought Raines was ready to leave Barca. He needs to be playing pro soccer now. He’s a very complete player. He doesn’t need to work on as much as most players his age. He’ll step into the pro game and have instant success IMO.

I wonder if he’ll do a deal with El Paso (or another USL club) similar to what Jonathan Gomez did. Two seasons (2022 and 2023). He gets to trial and train with European clubs, and will sign on a free with a European club after the 2023 season. That allows him to play pro soccer for two seasons, and then leave to Europe. USL is a dead-end for a prospect like him. Any long-term contract makes no sense, but he also needs somewhere to play for the next 1.5-2 seasons, and he’s too good to be playing against academy kids any longer.

 

Not to freak anyone out, but this is a path we are hearing players and their representation talking/inquiring about more and more. USL clubs seem to be engaging and I would consider it at the beginning stages. There could be a few top prospects that legitimize this path between now and the following USL season.

 

So far it's a path to nowhere.

 

What is an academy deal? Paid to play? Or does he retain eligibility to play in college?

 

retains college eligibility just can't get paid

 

eh convenient reading when the trailblazer hasnt finalized his next move but its obviously happening soon?

 

Which begs the question, what does a contract look like when there is no compensation involved?

 

Typically these contracts do include room and board which enables players to keep college eligibility, though I doubt college came into the equation on this.

It is also a mechanism for the club to bring a player in their environment and buy some time for the club to decide if the player is worthy of a professional deal.