2021-2022 Academy Season

Who are the top academy players outside of the MLS clubs? And what are their plans for the future?

 

Kristian Fletcher, Brooklyn Raines, Izaiah Garza, Angel Bernal, Moises Arciniega, Bryce Jamison, Diego Garcia, Korede Osundina, Joseph Buckley, Josemaria Barrera, Ansu Kanneh are some of the non-MLS names to know.

Fletcher is reportedly signing with Borussia Dortmund. Raines is not decided on where he’ll sign last I heard, but it’ll be Europe. Garza and Bernal are with San Antonio. They’ll probably both play for the first team next season, to some extent, but I worry about those San Antonio kids. It’s not the best pathway to pro success for their academy players. Garcia is El Paso. Debuted this season. Hopefully he plays a bigger role next season. Barrera is at Sacramento. Hopefully we see him play in USL next season. Kanneh will probably go to college. The other kids are all Barca. Osundina is supposedly joining an MLS club this offseason. The other kids are probably a year off, if not longer, from leaving.

If we want, we can include Joshua Wynder of Louisville, but he spent nearly the full season with the USL team. Corcoran may be another one to include, but he’s only moving from an MLS academy to a USL club.

 

Thanks.

Do you rare any of the kids who are matriculating to college next year? Any future Matt Turners, Miles Robinsons or Daryl Dikes out there?

 

Yes, but I suspect many of the ones that are committed to college still don’t ever get to college.

I’ll try to make a list when it comes time for the 2022 version of this thread (https://www.bigsoccer.com/threads/ynt-eligible-college-players-2021-thread.2116755/), like I put in posts 2 and 3 of the 2021 thread.

 

Any news about Ransford Gyan (St. Benedict's Prep)? Haven't heard his name in a while but he definitely looked impressive in the highlight reels of the International Champions Cup back in 2020. He's an '06 right? Great scoops, by the way.

 

Sorry, I wouldn’t know. I’ve never seen him play and not heard much about him. @David Kerr may know more.

 

To be fair while the icc film had flashes imo he was still pretty underwhelming had obvious flaws in his work rate and technical abilities

 

Last write-up. My year-end rankings will come tomorrow. I will make a separate thread for it, as I did last year.

DC United U-16: As I’ve said before, this team likely has better prospects than their U-17 team. DC United’s 06’s are one of the purely deepest age groups I’ve seen. They have 12-13 players with a chance to play pro soccer. Luke Peacock (‘06) was excellent in goal this game. He only played one half, but he made numerous tough 1v1 saves. You saw the difference in the second half when the back up came in. I don’t know that he’s that good with his feet, but I like his game, aside from that. He’s one of the better ‘06 keepers.

Ethan Pendleton (‘06) is a player that I’m not sure will be able to stick at CB. He hasn’t physically grown much recently from what it looks. I think he has versatility to play anywhere in defense or as a defensive midfielder, but I think the best option right now may be as a RB. He was a little sloppy in this game. I don’t want to make too much of one game, but he’s known for his consistency, and didn’t show it here. Dash Papez (‘06) is a player with a lot of good tools at the CB position. He has the occasional defensive error and I find his passing approach to be too inaccurate, but there are a lot of tools there between size, speed, defensive ability, passing ability. I go back and forth on which of the two big-name DC ‘06 CB’s I prefer. They are actually quite similar in what they bring.

Gleb Bogdanov (‘06) is a newer player this season, but has impressed me. He’s a big midfielder. Can play as an 8 or 6. I think he’s probably a six. There’s nothing too flashy about his game, but he has a lot of average or better tools. Graham Jones (‘06) is not a newer recruit to the academy, but a player I didn’t know of until this season. I’ve liked what I’ve seen. He’s an offensive LB with good size. A type of lumbering LWB. I don’t think he’s too bad defensively, but it’s hard for this guy to play both sides of the ball because he’s not very quick, and he has a very attack minded approach.

Barca U-17: I haven’t been too impressed this season with what I’ve seen of Moises Arciniega (‘06). I’m not saying he’s a bad prospect. He’s certainly not, but I feel like he’s struggled to beat players 1v1 against some of the better teams Barca has faced than some of these friendlies against local Arizona teams that I saw a lot of last season. I find this to be one of the general problems with assessing this team. They all look like stars when the team wins 10-0 against a non-competitive team nobody has ever heard of, but they don’t all look like stars when they play a real team.

I don’t think they are helped too much either with their schedule within MLS NEXT. They don’t compete in GA Cup, and they don’t play too many good teams throughout the league season either. I haven’t seen the same level of quickness or 1v1 dribbling skills that I thought Arciniega had. I would still say he has slightly above-average quickness for a winger and 1v1 dribbling skills, but it may not be as good as I initially thought.

Portland U-17: Milo Wray (‘06) didn’t play in the first Portland U-17 game I saw this season, but I was interested in watching him play because he’s a player I hadn’t seen play before and he got called into the first US U-17 camp. I like what I see. He’s a player that is more about potential than current production, but watching him play you see some of the same skills as people like with Kevin Paredes. They started him playing RW, and he did a very nice job cutting inside. He has very quick feet, pretty good passing vision, good set piece delivery, and some creativity. He eventually moved to LW, where I find him less effective. I don’t know that I see more than average speed and some of his contributions look nicer than the effectiveness they have, but there are some tools there.

Houston U-15: Lionel Gitau (‘08) is a #10 with a good feel for the game. He circulates the ball well, turns with it under pressure, has good passing vision, and soccer IQ. He’s a little physically underdeveloped. He’s small and no more than average quickness. If you extrapolate his physical development to that of his brother, which may not end up happening, there’s big potential in his game adding ability to run past players. Daniel Menyoli (‘07) is a CB with good size, athleticism, and some ability on the ball. He’s raw defensively, so his game is a project. Jose Nunez (‘07) is a RB that is also capable of playing LB. He’s small, but his quickness isn’t bad. Offensive-minded skillset, but can play the defensive side of the game. Not a great prospect, but has some potential.

Chris Guillen (‘07) has some of the best composure on the ball in the age group. He never is panicked on the ball. I’m not sure he’ll be able to stick at CB though. I don’t want to call a 14 year old an early developer because he could have another few growth spurts left, but he was bigger than other players his age a few years ago, which I think is part of why he played above his own age group. Now, players his age are catching up height-wise. I wouldn’t say he’s undersized, but he’s at best average height for a CB. If he doesn’t continue to grow to 5’10-5’11, he will need to move his position. I think he could have some success as a #6 though. His ability on the ball will work equally well at that position.

Axel Gonzalez (‘07) is a central midfielder, either an 8 or 6, with an all-around game. I think he’s more of a #8, but his potential may be higher if he can stick as a #6 due to how he plays. There’s nothing too flashy or great offensively to how he plays. He makes a lot of effective plays. He’s a little undersized. The Houston Dynamo website lists him as an ‘08, but I believe that’s incorrect. Sebastian Rodriguez (‘07) is another central midfielder. I think like Gonzalez his best position isn’t too clear. I think he’s a #6, but I could see why someone might suggest he’s a destroying #8. He’s a midfielder with good size and very good defensive ability. He wins the ball extremely well. His passing game is very basic and I wouldn’t say he’s more than an average athlete, but he’s a good defensive-minded midfielder.

Omar Bolanos (‘08) is a midfielder with some potential. A little undersized for a #8, but can play some nice passes and I didn’t mind the rest of his game. I need to see more though, and I suspect he’ll play a bigger part of this team next season.

NYCFC U-15: Lukas Syah (‘08) played as a holding midfielder, and was excellent. He was able to carry the ball forward, pass the ball over different ranges, make tackles, cover a lot of ground, and had a good amount of skill on the ball. He had the offensive game to play further forward. Jonathan Shore (‘07) is a good two-way midfielder. Good size, pretty athletic, can pass the ball, and also do the defensive work the position requires.

Maximo Carrizo ('08) was the clear MOTM in the first game I saw and very good in the second game I saw. He looked like a future star CAM, if this is anywhere near the level of play he normally plays at. These kids had absolutely no chance at stopping him. He dribbled past them with ease cutting inside on his left, his passing ideas were a step ahead of anyone, he showed very good creativity, he was very quick, he could play quick combinations, showed a very good soccer IQ, and technically he was able to get out of very small spaces.

His ability to stop and then completely turn around to get onto his left foot is fun to watch. I’ve not seen this type of thing before. I’m not comparing him to this player because they play differently, but the dominance from that position was reminiscent of what Andrew Carleton looked like at the same age. The two wingers were also pretty good. Christopher Arias (‘07) looked faster and more dynamic. Better ball skills. Yahir Tafoya (‘07) was also good, could combine, smaller and maybe not as athletic.

The goalie Harrison Wolfrom (‘07) looked reliable. Maybe not a star, but a good all-around player without any big weaknesses. Christian McFarlane (‘07) was pretty good coming off the bench at halftime. His size/speed gives him a big advantage in recovery defense against players his age. He had a few too many errors with giving the ball away and with his positioning for such a highly touted player, but he is talented between his ability to play individual defense from LB, being athletic, and having some ability going forward.

Inter Miami U-15: The best player on the team is Justin Ellis (‘07). Big left-footed (yet two-footed) target forward. This guy is an absolute beast. Tall, strong, physical. Forwards this age cannot handle him. He’s also a very talented player. Every striker at this level misses chances, so no one is a prolific finisher at this age, but this guy is one of the better finishers you’ll see. He makes excellent runs, has an instinct to be in the right place in the box, and he plays with a real urgency when he can sense an opportunity to score. He’s a very good passer for a CF. He plays so many excellent passes by peeling off the CB’s, and playing the ball into space, sometimes over a line or two.

He’s very deceptive in how he can leverage his body to create space and he has above-average foot skills. He’s very good at holding the ball up and he’s very good in the air. The only weakness is that he’s a little slow. He’s not terribly slow, but he’s not going to score goals by running past defenders. This is the most impressive ‘07 I’ve seen so far this season in this age group. This guy’s feel for how to play the game is really good. He’s way too good for this level. I don’t know if he’s the flashiest or highest upside ‘07, but I think he’s probably the top ‘07 right now.

Tyler Bush (‘07) is a lot like a left-footed Joe Scally. Big full-back with a pretty complete skillset. Maybe not the quickest coming in-field, but a really good skill-set, aside from that. Santiago Morales (‘07) is a small CAM with very good passing and soccer IQ. His combination play is also good, and he has some creativity. He’s really small though, and pretty slow. I just don’t see a real elite level prospect due to his physical/athletic limitations. If this part of his age gets to an average level, he could absolutely elevate to that, but right now it’s a big question. He’s pretty good at this level though.

Victor Fung (‘07) and Lukas Choux (‘07) are similar style of very basic midfielders. I like Choux slightly more. He has a little more of an offensive contribution, and can play as a holding midfielder or box to box midfielder, while I think Fung is likely only a holding midfielder.

Keshawn Pownall (‘07) is a talented all-around winger. He has a lot of good tools. He’s very small though and that impacts his success at this level. He is quick though, so I would say he’s only lacking a growth spurt. Ahmed Yaqub (‘07) is a metronome style of #8. He’s not very flashy or the most athletic, but he’s a good passer, makes good decisions, and I think he can do enough defensive work to have a chance at a pro career as a #8.

NYRB U-17: Agnaldo Germano (‘06) struggled a little with his positioning, but he’s an aggressive CB that shows good ability to win the ball high, and also ability to pass and carry the ball out from the back. He’s one of the better ‘06 CB’s.

FC Cincinnati U-15: Ben Manfroy (‘07) is a big and rangy CB. Very good 1v1 defender and reads the game excellently. His passing is somewhere between average and above-average. He has the occasional error, but the best player in this team and one of the better ‘07 CB’s. Lucas Fearn (‘07) is an all-around LB. Does a lot well, doesn’t do anything at much worse than an average level. Maybe his pace could be slightly below-average, but it’s not much below-average, if it is. Mathew Samways (‘07) is a #8 that can play both sides of the ball, but is more offensive, and has very good composure on the ball. David Do (‘07) is also a CM, but a little more of a worker type of midfielder. Sam Weeter (‘07) is a winger with a direct approach. I’m not convinced he’s too talented though, but he can make some plays at this level.

Charlotte U-15: Anthony Pena (‘07) is a CF with very good speed, excellent runs, and good finishing. He plays a pretty simple game, and while his best asset is his speed, I don’t find him too one-dimensional. He’s able to play within many different types of paces. He has about average height and I would say his foot skills are also around average. Derek Powell (‘07) is a CB with good mobility, about average height for a CB, good ability on the ball and passing range, and some defensive ability. I find him to be a little inconsistent defensively, so that’s what he’ll need to work on most. Josmar Lopez-Hernandez (‘07) is a winger with very good ball control and quickness. He’s an effective dribbler, plays quick, and has some creativity. He’s very small and I don’t see much end-product.

Nimfasha Berchimas (‘08) is a winger with good speed, dribbling, some creativity, soccer IQ, and playmaking. He’s playing up a year and was pretty good. I thought he showed good potential. James Nyandjo (‘07) is a big defensive midfielder with good athleticism, composure on the ball, and passing ability. He looked a little raw, as well. He only was subbed on at the end, so I need to see more before giving a bigger assessment.

NYRB U-15: Aiden Stokes (‘08) has a very good soccer IQ for a keeper. I find him very consistent for a keeper playing up an age group. Most of the top ‘07 keepers have some inconsistency, and his consistency is pretty similar to those guys, which tells me that he has a high soccer IQ to not be making too many mistakes and to adjust to a higher pace against older players. I would say his skill-set doesn’t have any standout tools, but I don’t see anything bad either. He may also show better tools against kids his age, so judging his full potential against U-15’s right now may not be fair.

Nate Worth (‘07) has a very high soccer IQ. One of the highest in the ‘07 age group that I’ve seen. He makes so many effective plays. He’s also excellent at taking direct free kicks. He’s a player whose game takes a lot of time to appreciate. He’s not someone who immediately makes flashy plays, but the consistency in effectiveness adds up.

NYRB U-17: Curtis Ofori (‘05) looked a little more frantic for this level than I was expecting. He’s a player with extensive pro experience, so I was expecting him to be better positioned and controlled in how he was attempting to defend. Samuel Williams (‘05) once again looked pretty average from what I saw. He’s played a lot of reserve minutes and the team clearly rates him. I haven’t seen much to criticize, but I also haven’t seen anything about his game that is more than average. Being a versatile and hard-working player helps, but it’ll be hard to be an MLS player if that’s all he brings that works at the MLS level. Nicholas Rabiu (‘04) is winger/striker with a blend of athleticism, size, and skill. Not great, but he can make some plays.

This was the first game I’ve seen of Bento Estrela. It seemed like every time I’d watch his age group play he would be missing for many reasons. Estrela is the only real big name in the age group I hadn’t yet seen play. I thought he was good, and lived up to the expectations. His athleticism is as advertised. Good size and speed. Athletic player that can cover a lot of ground. I also liked his passing and decision-making. What I would question is his assertiveness and defensive ability. He plays too tentative and doesn’t use his size and athleticism on the defensive end. He could take over games at this level with his ability, but he blends in. He also doesn’t contribute defensively like you’d expect. I think the potential is there defensively, but he plays very soft for a player his size and doesn’t seem to be much of a defensive player at this point for a player that is a natural #8.

Chicago U-17: Cristian Tores-Gale (‘05) is one of the more underrated players in Chicago’s academy from what I find. He’s always making plays offensively when I watch this team. I don’t know that any of his skills are elite, but for a winger he has a bunch of effective offensive tools that work at this level, and could translate to a pro career. Sergio Oregel (‘05) is a player I’d term effective, but not much more. He’s somewhere in that #8/10 realm, he moves the ball, has some offense in his game, and isn’t too bad defensively. I’m not convinced his upside is high, but I think eventually he can help Chicago’s first team.

Patrick Los (‘07) had the best game that I’ve seen him play so far. He’s playing up an age group, so it’s hard to completely assess his tools compared to players his age, but what I see is a lot of average tools across the board. Chicago rates him high though and they have a good track record with keepers, so maybe he’s a little better than what I’ve seen so far. Adrian Giron (‘06) is the other keeper. He’s not a bad prospect, but I don’t see any tools that are any better than average, and he may be slightly undersized.

Chicago U-15: Nicholas Nobles (‘07) is a player that I find tough to assess. I think his defending is usually pretty good. He’s mobile and reads the game well. His height for a CB is probably about average. He can play some nice long passes, but I think his technique is below-average and his passing is his biggest weakness. I don’t know that I see any great areas to his game and I do see a clear weakness, but he usually does play pretty well and has had success playing up with the U-17’s. Christopher Cupps (‘08) is in my estimation the best prospect in the academy. He’s a CB with a very complete skill-set, and I find his reading of the game defensively to be excellent for a player his age. For a kid his age he’s very consistent defensively.

Juan Villa (‘07) is a good prospect. I like what I see. He’s more of a fullback than winger IMO, but does play both for Chicago. He can play RB or LB. Good quickness, some dribbling ability, can combine. Works hard defensively and soccer IQ isn’t too bad. He could probably work on his defense, but for a natural winger I wouldn’t say moving him to fullback is any type of long-term project. Jayden Quezada (‘07) may be Chicago’s top ‘07, which is a little strange, considering Los and Nobles are the only two 07’s that have played with the U-17’s. I think Quezada could work on his defense. He’s an offensive RB, and makes a big impact going forward. His aggressive approach does lead to the occasional defensive error, but I also wouldn’t say he’s bad defensively. He’s a quick RB with good combination ability, some dribbling, and a direct attacking approach.

Nick Mitrega (‘07) is an #8/10 that can create some chances going forward. Aleks Duncevic (‘07) is a big defensive midfielder with pretty good passing ability. He’s an effective player at this level, but I think he’s too one-footed (left-footed) to be successful at higher levels without improving his right foot.

San Jose U-15: Chris Nguyen (‘07) may be the most consistent of the ‘07 keepers right now. He’s an all-around type of GK. Does a lot at an average or better level. His feet may be at a slightly better than average level and soccer IQ may be at a similar level. He’s a little undersized though for a keeper. Oliver Tan (‘08) showed good dribbling going forward with some speed and ball control from the RB position. The rest of his game looked about average, which isn’t bad, considering he’s playing up an age group. Emmanuel Garcia (‘07) is a big CB with good passing ability and positional defensive play. He’s a little slow. Oliver Hernandez (‘07) is a big CM, either an 8 or 6, that can effectively pass the ball and win it back. He’s not too flashy, but one of the better prospects in this team.

Sporting KC U-15: Johann Ortiz (‘07) is an attacking midfielder that doesn’t look the most athletic, and I wouldn’t call him athletic, but he gets around the pitch deceptively well. He’s also a good creator of attacking chances. He can score, assist, and has a good soccer IQ. I think he’s a very underrated player in this team. Angel Franco (‘07) has such excellent ball control and dribbling acceleration. He’s a constant threat to create attacking chances, and one of the top wingers in his age group. Troy Lor (‘08) is a defensive midfielder with good ability on the ball, passing ability, and enough ability defensively. For a player playing up an age group, I didn’t think he was too bad, but assessing his tools may be easier against his own age group. Trajan Wormington (‘07) is a big winger that has very good foot skills. He’s slow for a winger, so he may be better suited as a CF.

DC United U-15: Raul Avalos (‘07) is a player I find similar to Ortiz. He’s an attacking midfielder that doesn’t look the most athletic, but his athleticism plays well enough, and he’s consistency able to create attacking chances. He may not have dynamic ability, but I see good enough tools to have pro upside. Emidio Castro-Valdez (‘07) is an athletic CB with good defensive ability. His ability on the ball is slightly below-average. Braxton Hayes (‘07) is a midfielder that usually plays up with the U-16’s and played last year in the U-15’s. I think he’s a prospect, but I don’t see anything that stands out. He’s a hard-working midfielder, probably a #8, with a well-rounded skillset.

This DC United U-15 team isn't very good and suffers heavy defeats against good competition. Nelson Hernandez (‘07) is an outlier on this team though. He carries the team on his back. They were using him as a CF to start in this game. I don’t understand why because the team almost never had the ball past midfield, so he’s chasing defenders around and isn’t able to be as effective as he can. I think he’s a much better prospect as a #8. They moved him there later in the game. At either position, you see the same skills. He’s pretty skilled and creative, he’s mobile with about average size, he has excellent ability to win the ball, he plays with a lot of energy, and I saw better passing ability than I had previously seen. He’s one of the top players in this age group, and probably my favorite player to watch play in this age group. He has really high upside.

 

That was a typo about Villa. I mostly agree. I like the player, but have some small reservations. I initially thought he looked great the first time I saw him play, but this season I’ve seen him play a bunch and my opinion is that nothing he does is too great IMO. It’s too early for me to begin ranking the 08’s, but just ball-parking it, I’ve seen probably 10 or so better than him and I’ve probably not even seen half of the main 08’s yet. Cupps for me is clearly a tier higher. It’s early, but for me he’s their best prospect since the two ‘04 keepers. That’s how I see it. I could be wrong about either guy.

This is probably how I’d tier the Chicago U-15 and U-17 guys.

Cupps
Ineh/Villa/Quezada
Los/Nobles/Borso/Ramirez
Held/Giron/Torres-Gale/Aiyenero/Duncevic/Orejarena/Mitrega

The first tier I would say is a real USMNT/high level Europe path. Second tier is players with that potential, but also clear flaws I see that could hold them back. Third tier is guys that have a good chance to help the first team and maybe an outside chance for the NT. Fourth tier would be players that I think are on a pro path. Maybe it’s MLS with Chicago, but it also might be somewhere lower.

 

From what I heard germano has definitely had emerged as the best of the 3 06 cb’s rbny has though I still believe Ethan Ortiz and Jed akwaboah have solid potential cb is such a hard position to judge so many good late bloomers. Sam Williams is one of those guys imo who looks better at the usl level than he does at the academy just not a take over the game type of guy so at a higher level he has a specific role but at the acadmey he is the guys so the pressure change. He will be a solid college guy.

 

I don’t know if this is a hot-take, but I think we’ve gotten to the point where Inter Miami has the best academy in MLS.

In all their age groups they have 5+ pro prospects, and some of their age groups they have up to 10-12 guys with a chance for pro careers. They also have a top prospect or two in every age group (Azcona, Allen, Valencia, Perkovich, Ellis, Bush, etc.).

I think they combine a lot of the traditional American tools and influences (size, athleticism, American mentality) with the influences of South American football culture (flair, quick play, technique, creativity). They also play very nice football. You can tell they are well coached.

The missing step is the first team integration. We started to see a little of that with Azcona last season. Hopefully next season Azcona plays a regular role, and we can see some minutes for Valencia and Allen.

 

Not a hot take. But...

I mean, it's pretty hard to judge until a player actually provides real benefit, no? Until a player is developed ... it's hard to rate them #1 in player development?

 

This player development should be judged on professional development

 

“Best” is debatable regarding “development” as of today, however this is not a hot take when discussing the talent in their academy. With the recent additions to the structure of academy and club it’s too early to tell, but it looks like bright future for them and reason to be optimistic . As with Columbus, good things are happening in Miami.

 

Whoa. Columbus came out of left field. Please explain

 

all pieces of the puzzle are coming together from what I hear from parent perspective, ranging from recruitment of players AND coaches, to facility and commitment to pro pathway. I think both academies are trending up and that they will push the other more traditionally regarded academies in coming years.

 

For the record my son doesn’t play for either of those clubs.

 

To clarify, I completely agree about the player integration. Dallas, Philadelphia, NYRB, RSL have historically been the best. Miami has almost no track record. I was talking about what we see at the academy level.

It’s possible that the player integration to the first team will not come. How long have we been waiting for this with LAG (and now LAFC)? These big city clubs sometimes don’t integrate their academy products.

Even if they don’t integrate, you can have a great academy, potentially the best. Does PSG not have the best academy in France? All their best academy players go elsewhere. If needed and with further improvements to the rules of the system, we’ll see homegrown territories eliminated and if these kids aren’t integrated, they’ll go to MLS clubs that will integrate them.

 

Agree on all points.

 

Respect your opinion, I'd probably say my opinion is the opposite. Obviously we have different perspectives of what a "pro prospect" or "top prospect" means and that's ok, it's all subjective anyway for us. It's far too early to suggest kids like Ellis and Bush are top prospects when the level they play at on a regular basis is so terribly low. The U15's were good at the recent showcase but wouldn't say any of them other than Santi Morales (Javier Morales son) stood out. I think the Valencia signing was very premature and has probably done more damage than good for the boy. We see far too many kids perform at the youth/usl-1 level and say they are ready for the next step, but the gulf in quality/intensity/professionalism is huge, sometimes these kids aren't ready to meet the demands.

Not sure if anyone on here has a kid in the academy that can weigh in but I've heard some pretty bad feedback on the experiences of some (coaching, politics, environment).

 

Only spoken to a couple of parents from there and on the issue of negative experiences you mention, which I believe most on here probably heard, and they said for past year, there has been a noticeable change. Maybe it is a coincidence but the timing coincides with Chris Henderson’s appointment.

 

To clarify not suggesting Inter Miami is ‘best’, simply that they do have high-level academy talent right now and indications are the behind the scenes issues have been and are being addressed. It will take time.