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Aaron Nielsen ,

February 16, 2015 Email

Aaron Nielsen



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@ENBSports

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A year ago I did a list of the top 20 overlooked players by MLS and anyone who follows NASL or USL Pro, even casually, will know that the list was very strong, including players such as Miguel Ibarra, Mark Anderson, Dane Kelly and JC Banks. While none of those players are currently training with an MLS club this offseason, many who follow soccer in North America know those players are better than many players currently signed by MLS clubs. The league has made some improvements, giving trials this winter to players on last year’s list such as Ben Newnam, and listening to people such as myself in the discussion of potential players. Without promotion and relegation in MLS the recruitment of players will always be different here than globally. Players will not be followed as closely and in many cases they will never be given a proper opportunity to prove they can play at the highest level. Meanwhile, in leagues around the world, including the English Premier League, newly promoted teams of unknown players prove individually year after year they can compete with the largest names in the top flight. To do a top 20 this season, with the same criteria, would mostly be a repeat of the work from last year. I also understand and respect clubs in the NASL who have chosen to hold onto their top players instead of allowing them to trial with an MLS club, especially when MLS continues to try to low ball domestic transfer fees for players. Added, at the end of the USL Pro and NASL seasons this year, I did a prospect handbook for each league, which documented the players who I feel have the greatest potential. For this year’s overlooked players I decided to include only new players who I feel have the potential to play for an MLS club but haven't been given an opportunity through this off-season. As many are writing about the CBA and how little minimum salaries in MLS are, I will try to add to this conversation and look at soccer in Canada and USA in the bigger picture, including players at the PDL and League One Ontario level who are still chasing their dreams of being a professional soccer player. 1. Adama Mbengue - Orlando, USL Pro (unattached)



Mbengue was ranked number one in my USL Pro handbook for players not already signed with an MLS club and it is surprising despite Orlando making the move to MLS they did not give the 21 year old Senegalese midfielder a contract. A very active player who wants to shoot, Adama played three years with Orlando in USL Pro with 53 regular season games, scoring four goals and five assists. Mbengue has improved each season and had 31 shots on target in 2014, one of the highest totals in the league. I would expect Mbengue to continue to be a star at the USL Pro level, should he not find a club elsewhere, and if given the opportunity like Dom Dwyer, could make the step up to MLS. 2. Eugene Starikov - Tom, Russian Premier League (unattached)



Canada is not the only country who has players assigned currently with "Unattached FC". I could have easily included Bryce Alderson and Kyle Porter in this list although none of them were playing in a league as high quality as the Russian Premier League. Starikov, who was born in the Ukraine, grew up in the United States since childhood including attending Stetson University. He signed with Zenit St. Petersburg in 2009 and was on loan with both Rostov and Tom scoring four goals in 39 games. The 26 year old winger was released by Zenit at the end of last season and has yet to find a new club. 3. Dustin Corea - CD FAS (unattached)



The 22 year old winger was born and raised in Los Angeles and was a star with the United States U17 national team. At eighteen, Corea attempted to sign with a club in Europe, including trials with Juventus and Cercle Brugge. He eventually signed with a Danish club as well as making an international debut with his parent country of El Salvador. Since 2011, Corea played 40 games in Europe scoring 10 goals but was released by Skive IF in September. Currently training and playing with CD Fas in El Salvador he has an agreement that he could leave on a free transfer, including an MLS club at any point. 4. Johnny Grant - SIGMA FC, League 1 Ontario



Despite all the talk of Cyle Larin at SIGMA FC last summer in League One Ontario, many who watched SIGMA FC thought defender Johnny Grant as a comparable pro prospect. Grant can play multiple positions although most see him as a starting full back and he has very good speed, strength, and is a good 1v1 defender. Grant has had trials with European clubs including most recently KRC Genk in the Belgium Pro League. Still 20, Grant is younger than most MLS Homegrown and players in this and next year’s MLS Superdraft, and a better prospect with those comparable players. 5. Ilija Ilic - Young Harris, NCAA Division 2



During my end of season analysis for the 2015 MLS Superdraft the player who intrigued me the most was actually playing in NCAA Division 2, helping his school Young Harris to the NCAA Division final 16 spot. Serbian Ilija Ilic trained with Red Star Belgrade before joining the Georgia school and scored 37 goals in 51 games his first three seasons in college, while in 2014 he scored 24 goals and 12 assists in 19 games. The 6'1 forward scored goals from both free kicks as well in the 18-yard box and used his size and technical skills to dominate his opposition. 6. Cristhian Hernandez - Harrisburg, USL Pro (unattached)



After two seasons with Harrisburg, Philadelphia Union's homegrown player Cristhian Hernandez was cut after the 2014 season. Hernandez played two MLS games as a 19-year old during the 2012 season, and gives a warning to young players signing HGP contracts that it does not equal automatic future MLS success. During the grueling USL Pro season Hernandez was out muscled by more veteran players, although showed good movement and balance with the ball and scored five goals and five assists in 33 games. With USL Pro becoming younger via MLS farm teams, Hernandez, if given another chance, could further develop into a potential MLS player. 7. Christian Davidson - Wilmington, USL Pro



I first brought up Davidson's name last season when Toronto FC was struggling at Centre Back. Their affiliate, the Wilmington Hammerheads, had two Centre Backs who were very impressive during the 2014 season and both are on this list. Davidson is a 6'2 Scottish no nonsense defender who controls his 18 yard box, yet plays very smart and hardly fouls his opponent. Christian has been playing soccer in the United States the last seven years, including four years with UNC Wilmington at NCAA level, Indiana in the PDL, and the last three seasons with Wilmington in USL Pro. MLS could be his next step. 8. Anthony Grant - Seacoast United, PDL



Smaller then some of his fellow Jamaicans who have been awarded GA contracts, Anthony Grant has proven to be goal scorer and provider. He has done well at the NAIA level where he scored 23 goals and seven assists in 18 games, at the NCAA Division 1 level where he scored 12 goals and seven assists in 39 games with Bowling Green University, at the PDL level where he scored seven goals with the Michigan Bucks, and 14 goals in ten games in 2014 with Seacoast United. Grant would be a great asset to any USL Pro or NASL club, and like Mbengue and others in this list could convert at the MLS level if given the opportunity. 9. Ashani Fairclough - Wilmington, USL Pro



Ashani Fairclough was Davidson's centre back partner in Wilmington in 2014, after finishing school at South Florida the season before. Davidson and Fairclough are around the same size, although the Jamaican Fairclough is more athletically gifted but doesn't have the soccer awareness as Davidson. Also strong and aggressive, but less risk at the position in terms of unnecessary fouls than many of the Centre Backs who were drafted in the 2015 MLS Superdraft. Still only 22, if Fairclough should develop further, he could be signed by Wilmington’s new affiliate New York City FC. 10. Mahamoudou Kaba - South Carolina - NCAA Division 1



Of the players missed out, in my opinion, from the 2015 MLS Superdraft, the one who surprised me the most was Mahamoudou Kaba from South Carolina. Kaba was on the same college team of drafted players Clement Simonin and Conor Donovan, so was undoubtedly scouted. He is an athletic powerhouse at a 6'2 frame and a big bullying force who can play either defensive midfielder or centre back. Kaba's technical and passing skills can be questioned, although his awareness on the field is strong including nine goals over the last two college seasons. Kaba would be a great project for a MLS team with a USL Pro club. 11. Teddy Mullin - Denver, NCAA Division 1



Teddy was a prospect when he went to Wake Forest out of high school, although found it difficult to get the playing time he wanted and transferred including moving across the country to Denver for his senior season. Mullin took advantage of these minutes and the pressure of being a team leader starting 20 games scoring 6 goals and an assist in the process. Mullin is technically gifted and as better size then other players who were in the 2015 MLS Superdraft with similar skillset. A traditional winger, Mullin can play the flank and cross the ball when asked, comparative to AJ Corrado the season before who performed well with Indy Eleven in NASL. 12. Jarek Whiteman - KW United, PDL/York University, CIS



Here is another player who was lost in Toronto FC’s poor player development system. Whiteman is a traditional forward who has scored for both Canada’s U17 and U20 team. He spent 2014 playing with York University, leading the country in goals and winning a CIS championship while playing the summer with KW United in the PDL. In a game I scouted between KW United and the Chicago Fire last summer, Whiteman looked to be the strongest player on the pitch in the game that also featured Jay Chapman, Sergio Camargo and a number of Chicago Fire Academy and Homegrown prospects. Whiteman has a great engine, can finish when asked, and is the type of athlete that MLS freely gives GA contracts to. 13. Cory Keitz - Kitsap Pumas, PDL



Keitz finished his college career with IPFW in 2010, and was a starter his last two seasons. Keeping his soccer dream alive, Keitz has remained playing PDL last summer as captain of Kitsup Pumas. He made it to the overall PDL final after winning the Northwest Division that included Vancouver, Portland and Seattle U23 sides. Keitz, now 25, played a season in the lower leagues of Australia and is known as a team leader, has a strong work ethic, great fitness and is another player who would fit very well for a MLS club with a new USL Pro team. 14. Mamadee Nyepon - High Point, NCAA Division 1



I'm not sure what more Mamadee Nyepon could of done in college to be drafted. The 6'2 forward scored 41 goals at High Point including double digit goals the last three seasons. MLS scouts I spoke with like him, saying he's an athletic striker with a good touch and scoring ability and also has decent ball control. There are some concerns with his overall speed, although he had a much greater conversion rate, including chasing long balls and scoring, than many forwards who were drafted. Nyepon, 22, played multiple sports, even volleyball in college, and was born in American Samoa so will also not count as a foreign signing. 15. Emeka Ononye - Wright State, NCAA Divison 1



I've talked about Ononye a number of times leading up to the 2015 SuperDraft. He was in my NCAA Division All-Canadian team the last two years and I'm not the only one who has given Ononye praise as he has won a number of Horizon conference awards and won KW United player of the year on a team that include Jarek Whiteman, Jay Chapman, and Sergio Camargo. Ononye, like Kaba, has a number athletic qualities and can play both defensive midfield and as a central defender. If not signed, Ononye might return to PDL this season, but I feel he would be a great asset for one of the Canadian USL Pro clubs or with Ottawa and FC Edmonton in the NASL. 16. Nolan Intermoia - Thunder Bay Chill, PDL



During the League 1 Ontario inaugural season, one of the strongest players was Canadian forward Andrew Ornoch, whose vast experience gave him an advantage over younger players. Thunder Bay Chill midfielder Nolan Intermoria is another player like this and has actually played with the Chill at a PDL level since 2006. Intermoia was awarded with a PDL All-Star team selection showing he still has fitness and desire in his late 20's. Traditional scouting concentrates on younger players, although in a region that lacks history in the game, players who have this type of experience are a greater asset in not only winning but can help teach other players in a development system. 17. Oscar Cordon - Woodbridge Strikers, League 1 Ontario



Another player with great potential who was lost in the Toronto FC system and this article, despite as it looks, does not have a Canadian or Toronto bias. If Cordon was part of the American system he would be heading into his senior year of NCAA play and based on his skill set and natural talent he would probably be a highly touted prospect with 60 documented games to his credit. Cordon is 22, was a midfield general for Woodbridge in League 1 Ontario last summer, and could be a useful addition to Montreal or Vancouver’s USL Pro side and restart his stalled Canadian National team career. 18. Ricky Garbanzo - Coastal Carolina, NCAA Division 1



One of the things I hope from the new USL Pro is an experiment in systems and tactics, including ways of allowing the smaller player to succeed. Even with Sebastian Giovinco’s multi-million dollar deal, size is still a factor in MLS recruiting, and the shortest player selected in the 2015 draft was 5'8. Garbanzo is 5'6, scored 40 goals and 16 assists in 94 career college games at Coastal Carolina. He is active, has quick feet and a burst of speed, as well as a good ability to dribble. A scout I spoke with thought he has better pro potential as an outside midfielder in a 4-4-2 system than a forward or a 4-3-3 Winger. 19. Victor Manosalvas - New York Red Bulls U23, NPSL



Unfortunately for Victor opinion on him being a MLS player has fallen from when he first was part of the New York Red Bulls academy team and started his career at Seton Hall University. This is despite leading the Red Bulls U23 and the NPSL in scoring during the 2014 season scoring 12 goals and seven assists from an attacking midfield position. Like Cordon Monsalves is very skill full showing great technical ability although struggles with injury and not being as dominant as one might expect at the college level meant he was given a Homegrown contract by the Red Bulls or drafted in the 2015 MLS Superdraft. With NYRB starting a USL Pro club it is yet unknown if he will be given a chance with that club. 20. Moses Danto - WSA Winnipeg - PDL



Danto might be the great soccer story from the prairies, playing for Canada’s U17 and given a chance with the Vancouver Whitecaps residency. However, the forward is no longer part of either set up, but Danto is still a key contributor on the Canadian soccer landscape. Danto has been the face of PDL side WSA Winnipeg as their main striker the past three years, scoring 24 goals and eight assists in close to 50 career PDL games. At 6'2 Danto has the athletic ability to think beyond PDL and as soccer grows across our country and the United States there will be more players with MLS potential from non traditional soccer regions.