Youth Yanks Abroad, ‘01-‘04 YOBs (and younger): 2020/21 thread

'01 attacking mid apparently born in California. He was MVP of some youth tournament in Colombia for Pumas U20 and is apparently now training with their first team.

seguimos con todo ! Vamos por mas 👊🏽🤍 @PumasMX https://t.co/C8qGNhStH6

— Jorge A Ruvalcaba (@_jorgeeee17) November 30, 2021

https://www.futboltotal.com.mx/futb...coamericano-y-gran-esperanza-de-pumas/2021/10

 

Musah assist: https://streamja.com/qaqz1
Musah goal: https://streamja.com/moOZW

 

Nations with Most U21 Minutes Played in the Top 5 European Leagues this Season #USMNT🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/eN68tphg4f

— US Soccer's Bot (@USSoccersBot) December 2, 2021

 

France.................................
That's outrageous.

The financial issues in Ligue 1 (due to their tv deal problems, etc.) have led them to develop and utilize homegrown talent even to a greater degree. Then of course the other leagues gobble up the players too. Quite a pipeline they have going.

If the frickin' French league could only retain their talent, maybe their clubs would actually win something in European competition.

 

Caden Clark will first go on trial to RB Leipzig before the club decides what's next for him, a long-term stay in the squad or a loan move elsewhere. #RBNY #USMNT https://t.co/uxyScqoaxj

— Larry Henry Jr (@lhenry019) December 3, 2021

 

Wyparlo is the 13th-youngest player to play in the Ekstraklasa this season.

He is the son of former Poland senior international Boguslaw Wyparlo, so easier said than done to get him in a USYNT camp. But he seems to be worth scouting.

— ChuckMe92 Soccer (@ChuckMe92Soccer) December 4, 2021

🇮🇹 u19 Primavera

🧐
hat trick for 🇺🇸 Jack Devries with Venezia's u19s today!!!⚽️⚽️⚽️
also: 🇺🇸 Patrick Leal was on Venezia u19s' benchhttps://t.co/XV8GVY5ngL pic.twitter.com/ngIBRf906P

— 🇺🇸 ⚽ east (@eastdeflection) December 4, 2021

2. Bundesliga start and 88 minutes for Jalen Hawkins who played with the US U20s last cycle before it was cancelled. He's one of two German-American YNT-eligible attackers at Ingolstadt, the other one being Justin Butler. https://t.co/DF9JMYR5QH

— ChuckMe92 Soccer (@ChuckMe92Soccer) December 4, 2021

 

Cristiano Ronaldo’s vote for the Kopa Trophy, given to best performing player under 21.

1) Mason Greenwood
2) Nuno Mendes
3) Gio Reyna 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/yXGGvAXX2N

— USMNT Only (@usmntonly) December 3, 2021

 

In Italy: American Patrick Leal has joined the Venezia U-19 team. On the same team on loan from Philly Union is Jack DeVries, who scored a hat trick this weekend and from what I’m hearing, might be in the first team squad in the coming weeks.

— MLS Transfers (@MLSTransfers) December 5, 2021

 

I don’t know if this guy is good, but he’s responding on twitter to @ChuckMe92 and other US accounts. It seems like there’s some degree of interest in playing for the USA.

Can confirm, I was born in New York 🇺🇲

— Michael Wyparło 🇺🇸🇵🇱 (@MichaelWyparlo) December 5, 2021

 

US U20 attacker Diego Luna was at today's RSC Anderlecht match according to his IG. Pretty clear he sees his future in Europe.

With Gomez to Real Sociedad, Cervantes to Rangers, and moves from MLS-affiliate clubs like for Ledezma & Llanez -- USL is a growing exporter to Europe.

— ChuckMe92 Soccer (@ChuckMe92Soccer) December 5, 2021

 

Is USL selling these players or are they going on as free agents?

 

Jonathan Gómez was sold for a minimal fee but he also has a sell-on fee attached. But's it how the USL will get these guys to sign. Play for them, have a minimal fee to be sold to Europe. Not be held hostage by MLS.

 

I feel like this "held hostage by MLS" frame is not the correct one. MLS teams are spending quite a bit of money on youth development, it's not crazy that they want to see some kind of return as opposed to just letting players leave for free. It's the same way virtually every other club in the world operates.

It's fine if a player doesn't want to sign with MLS and prefers to try their hand abroad, but MLS isn't holding anyone hostage by giving them chances in their youth academy and trying to sign them to a professional contract.

 

Hostages like Davies, Adams, Cannon, Aaronson, McKenzie, Reynolds, Busio, Tessmann etc?

 

That "MLS holds players hostage" tripe was old and outdated a long time ago.

You don't even have to mention those guys. They sold Richards and Scally before they'd ever played a first team game.

I've never heard that any MLS club has actually been interested in signing Luna. Now or previously. So its not like this is an MLS versus USL argument for him. Gomez presumably had to consider both pathways, and he was able to get a ridiculous "out" in his USL contract. Good for him.

Luna is a weird one for me. He's a short, stocky, advanced playmaker/winger. When I watch him I say to myself "this guy is interesting, but is his profile really what Euro clubs in middle to top tier leagues are looking for?" Yes, there are some great highlights of him dribbling thru USL defenses showing nice ball control. If he played at even an MLS level, he wouldn't be getting away with that.

 

Remember that time when Gallegos destroyed FCD's defense? Yeah, Luna is better on the ball than Gallegos.

He's better on the ball than Paxten Aaronson.

 

In an early pre-season matchup, and then he proceeded to have a good but not overly productive year in MLS. Defenses aren't usually great couple weeks into camp.

He's got good on the ball skills, but that game was ... flattering.

From what I've seen of Luna and Aaronson, he's not. And I like Luna. Or maybe we're talking about a different range of skills.

 

If MLS teams hold players hostage, then every team in the world holds players hostage.

 

Both clubs were in pre-season.

Paxten played more than Luna, at the Revelations Cup but had 0 goals and assists.

 

I think Luna and Aaronson is a really good contrast.

On one hand, I find Aaronson to be exceedingly boring. The kid is an okay enough player that I think he can have a successful career and maybe reach the USMNT. He doesn't have any huge holes in his game that would keep him from that, but nothing makes me think he has particularly high potential. He gets pumped up big-time because his brother is a well-liked USMNT player whose accomplishments have exceeded his skillset.

On the other hand, Luna clearly has some big holes in his game. It's hard for a team to get past his fitness issues, and thats he's not the most athletic. He also is a more naturally talented player technically and tactically than a player like Aaronson. I've tried really hard to attempt to assess if what Luna does at the USL level would work at the MLS level (or higher). I'm still not sure. I wasn't too convinced it'd work in USL either though. He was also good at the recent U-20 tournament, which I believe is a slight step up from USL. Luna may just transcend conventional logic.

I wouldn't be so sure that Luna is going to fall by the wayside, and Aaronson is destined for the Champions League. I think it's a little too much about what people want to happen as opposed to what an analysis of the players would suggest should happen.

There's also the factor that opportunity matters a lot. Luna may never get a chance to showcase his skillset due to his limitations. There are going to be some teams that take one look at him, and say they don't want him on their team. Aaronson supposedly was going to be called into the USMNT, so he's already on a fast-track with the federation.

 

This is true, with the exception of USL clubs and non-mls academies. The issue is not that the mls holds players hostage more (although the nature of HG contracts may make that slightly true), it's that they do it while having development that isn't great.

But all this moral judgement stuff is moot, the only relevant point is that players are going to do what is best for them. As long as the option of doing USL, etc. and being able to move to any club in the world on free transfer (not even TC seems to apply) is going to appeal to some people. It's simple supply and demand. Every other 18 year old in the world will cost a big 5 club at least hundreds of thousands in TC to sign. An American who is free is going to get a better look from teams and a better contract than he otherwise would. Now sure, you have to balance that with the increased exposure you'd get playing in the MLS, but the reality is very few 17 year olds are ready for that anyway. You think Hoppe gets a Schalke contract if he wasn't free? Who knows, but it's very possible he doesn't.

 

Right, but early on in pre-season, defensive organization is usually a problem.

Unless you are making the argument that USL defenses are better than MLS defenses ... that was two years ago now (March 2020). Gallegos had a pretty disappointing 2020 in USL, and had a very nice (if not dominating) year in 2021.

He looked like a world-beater on that day, though, and I suspect that if San Antonio played FC Dallas mid-season, we wouldn't see that kind of display.

I'm not judging Aaronson or Luna solely of what I've seen at Revelations Cup and definitely not just on goal productivity. We had a team with no cohesion, played three quick matches and both Aaronson and Luna showed some things.

But overall, the team wasn't good, and judging players on small samples in international tournaments isn't a great way to do it, and judging them when the team underperforms definitely has a track record of underestimating players (Reyna, Busio, Scally and others say hi!).

I've seen Aaronson a ton with Philly, and I think he's got "it" offensively. Strong dribbling skills, good vision, good first touch, decent passing, good tactical sense, and plus finishing for a young central mid. Size is a concern, and he's not the defensive player his brother is. Also doesn't quite have his tactical sense or half turn.

I've seen far less of Luna. Revelations Cup, some El Paso. So I could absolutely be wrong. I've seen a player who I think is a better prospect than Gallegos at the same time. He's got a strong dribble, but it's more direct, more purposeful. He has the tactical skills to know how to get to the net, when to pass, etc. He does seem to go back to some of the same tricks over and over even in the little I've watched -- cut in, shoot near post -- and it's an open question what he does when that gets cut off.

I don't have a strong enough handle on Luna to say Aaronson is definitively better, but I have yet to see anything from Luna that says he's better on the ball than Paxten.

 

I'd question that last line since there's a player in the World Best XI with MLS roots. Like any league, actual development varies, but some of this feels like old tape.

Hoppe got a Schalke academy contract, it's worth noting. And it worked out for him, which is great. We can't effectively play "what if" -- if Hoppe had signed with an MLS club, would he have broken through like at Schalke? Maybe, maybe not.

Of course, we also have a number of not so great stories, from Josh Perez, Emerson Hyndman, Keaton Parks generation to Soto, Gloster, Llanez, even Bryang Kayo. I don't think Kayo's done or anything ... but DC United gave a ton of play to players younger than him this year, and he seems to be floating at Wolfsburg.

There seems to be this running assumption that every European team is better at development than US squads. And that every European situation is simply better. When a player crashed out in Europe, it's on the player. When a player crashes out in MLS, it's the league's fault.

And yet, if you look at the track record, it's not so clear cut.

Schalke didn't hold Hoppe "hostage" but Hannover certainly held Sebastian Soto "hostage" -- much more than any young MLS player in the last few years. Where's the cries of "don't sign in the Bundesliga, you'll be held hostage!"

I just think the whole attitude is outdated. Players should look for the right situation for them, but the idea that there's subpar development in MLS or they are going to inordinately hold you hostage is completely outdated.

I mean, everyone loves Borussia Dortmund as a development platform, and they held Jadon Sancho a year longer than he wanted, and I don't see people screaming that Reyna has screwed himself signing for Dortmund.

 

Actually, I've seen several instances of what I would consider "holding players hostage". Maybe other countries do it too. I do expect to see someone lawyer up and find out the limit of their power one day.

 

Dortmund turned down like $100M for Jadon Sancho, who wanted to leave, and people are like "that's just business."

Dallas wants to milk a bit more out of Pepi before the transfer window has even opened and they are "being held hostage."

I'm curious what you think in these situations is so able to be challenged in court?