Red Bulls Protect Maximum of 11 Players; Seven Homegrowns Automatically Protected

HARRISON, N.J. (December 10, 2017) - The New York Red Bulls announced today the list of players available for the 2018 MLS Expansion Draft for Los Angeles FC, along with the list of players protected. The Red Bulls have elected to protect the maximum of 11 players from the senior roster. Seven additional Homegrown Players are automatically protected. The expansion draft is set for Tuesday, December 12th at 2 p.m. ET.

New York Red Bulls protected players:

Goalkeepers: Ryan Meara, Luis Robles

Defenders: Fidel Escobar, Kemar Lawrence, Aaron Long, Michael Amir Murillo

Midfielders: Felipe, Sacha Kljestan, Danny Royer

Forwards: Bradley Wright-Phillips, Gonzalo Veron (rights)

The protected list includes 10 players under contract and the rights to Gonzalo Veron. The Red Bulls hold Veron’s rights for the 2018 season. Sporting Director Denis Hamlett has confirmed that the club is in talks to keep Veron as part of the team in 2018.

Additionally, Homegrown players on the supplemental roster are automatically protected. Those players are: Tyler Adams, Sean Davis, Derrick Etienne Jr, Evan Louro, Alex Muyl, Arun Basuljevic (rights) and Brandon Allen (rights).

This list of unprotected players is as follows:

Goalkeepers: None

Defenders: Gideon Baah, Aurelien Collin, Connor Lade, Hassan Ndam, Sal Zizzo

Midfielders: Muhamed Keita, Zeiko Lewis, Mike Grella, Dilly Duka, Dan Metzger, Vincent Bezecourt

Forwards: Anatole Abang