by Ridge Mahoney @ridgemax, Dec 23, 2014

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Soccer America's Best MLS Players:

Strikers: Obafemi Martins (Seattle)

Blaise Nkufo

Obafemi Martins

Clint Dempsey

Soccer America's Top 10 MLS Strikers:

1. (10) Obafemi Martins

2. (NR) Bradley Wright-Phillips

3. (NR) Dom Dwyer

4. (NR) Erick Torres

5. (=7) Gyasi Zardes

6. (+7) Chris Wondolowski

7. *Jermain Defoe

8. (5) Blas Perez

9. (3) Alvaro Saborio

10. (1) Marco Di Vaio

Forwards: Robbie Keane (LA Galaxy)



Robbie Keane

Landon Donovan

Gyasi Zardes

Soccer America's Top 10 MLS Forwards:

1. (3) Robbie Keane

2. (NR) Clint Dempsey

3. (NR) Luis Silva

4. (NR) Joao Plata

5. (NR) Fabian Castillo

6. (+9) Giles Barnes

7. (NR) Fabian Espindola

8. (NR) Maximiliano Urruti

9. (+7) Deshorn Brown

10. (1) Mike Magee

Attacking Midfielders: Lee Nguyen (New England)

Lee Nguyen

Soccer America's Top 10 MLS Attacking Midfielders:



1. (NR) Lee Nguyen

2. (2) Diego Valeri

3. (1) Javier Morales

4. (4) Federico Higuain

5. *Pedro Morales

6. (7) Dillon Powers

7. *Gonzalo Pineda

8. *Cristian Maidana

9. (NR) Benny Feilhaber

10. (NR) Mauro Diaz

Right Midfielders: Ethan Finlay (Columbus)

Ethan Finlay

Federico Higuain

Soccer America's Top 10 MLS Right Midfielders:

1. (NR) Ethan Finlay

2. (1) Sebastien Le Toux

3. (NR) Lamar Neagle

4. *Stefan Ishizaki

5. (+5) Graham Zusi

6. (9) Lloyd Sam

7. *Luke Mulholland

8. (NR) Brad Evans

9. (NR) Teal Bunbury

10. (=8) Mauro Rosales

Left Midfielders: Landon Donovan (LA Galaxy)





Thierry Henry

Landon Donovan

Gyasi Zardes

Robbie Keane

Soccer America's Top 10 MLS Left Midfielders:



1. (+4) Landon Donovan

2. (=4) Thierry Henry

3. (2) Brad Davis

4. *Marco Pappa

5. (NR) Justin Meram

6. (&2) Kelyn Rowe

7. (NR) Chris Rolfe

8. *Harry Shipp

9. (5) Shea Salinas

10. (9) Bernardo Anor







Central Midfielders: Perry Kitchen (D.C. United)

Perry Kitchen

Soccer America's Top 10 MLS Central Midfielders:

1. (NR) Perry Kitchen

2. (+5) Marcelo Sarvas

3. (=7) Eric Alexander

4. (1) Will Johnson

5. (NR) Tony Tchani

6. *Michael Bradley

7. (&4) Russell Teibert

8. (3) Brad Evans

9. (8) Michel

10. *Maurice Edu

Defensive Midfielders: Osvaldo Alonso (Seattle)

Osvaldo Alonso

Soccer America's Top 10 MLS Defensive Midfielders:

1. (2) Osvaldo Alonso

2. (1) Kyle Beckerman

3. (NR) Wil Trapp

4. (3) Dax McCarty

5. (+10) Juninho

6. (NR) Victor Ulloa

7. (7) Jeff Larentowicz

8. (=10) Amobi Okugo

9. (NR) Matias Laba

10. (NR) Sam Cronin

Right Backs: Andrew Farrell (New England)

Andrew Farrell

Soccer America's Top 10 MLS Right Backs:

1. (3) Andrew Farrell

2. (4) DeAndre Yedlin

3. (NR) Dan Gargan

4. (NR) Je-Vaughn Watson

5. (10) Sean Franklin

6. (6) Steven Beitashour

7. (NR) Hector Jimenez

8. (5) Tony Beltran

9. (1) Sheanon Williams

10. (NR) Lovel Palmer

Right Centerbacks: Bobby Boswell (D.C. United)

Bobby Boswell

Soccer America's Top 10 MLS Right Centerbacks:

1. (8) Bobby Boswell

2. (1) Jamison Olave

3. (9) Chad Marshall

4. (2) Omar Gonzalez

5. (NR) A.J. Soares

6. (NR) Zach Loyd

7. (5) Nat Borchers

8. (3) Aurelien Collin

9. (NR) Zach Scott

10. *Michael Parkhurst

Left Centerbacks: Matt Hedges (FC Dallas)

Oscar Pareja

Matt Hedges

George John

Soccer America's Top 10 MLS Left Centerbacks:

1. (NR) Matt Hedges

2. (1) Jose Goncalves

3. (4) Chris Schuler

4. (2) Matt Besler

5. (6) A.J. De La Garza

6. *Steve Birnbaum

7. (NR) Zach Scott

8. *Liam Ridgewell

9. *Kendall Waston

10. (NR) Ibrahim Sekagya

Left Backs: Chris Wingert (Real Salt Lake)





Chris Wingert

Soccer America's Top 10 MLS Left Backs:

1. (4) Chris Wingert

2. (8) Chris Tierney

3. *Waylon Francis

4. (1) Seth Sinovic

5. (NR) Justin Morrow

6. (7) Leo Gonzalez

7. (NR) Robbie Rogers

8. (NR) Roy Miller

9. (NR) Jordan Harvey

10. (2) Chris Klute

Goalkeepers: Nick Rimando (Real Salt Lake)

Nick Rimando

Soccer America's Top 10 MLS Goalkeepers:

1. (3) Nick Rimando

2. (NR) Bill Hamid

3. (NR) Jaime Penedo

4. (NR) David Ousted

5. *Steve Clark

6. (6) Jon Busch

7. (NR) Bobby Shuttleworth

8. (NR) Raul Fernandez

9. (NR) Stefan Frei

10. (10) Sean Johnson

Soccer America’s positional rankings have wrapped up its seasonal coverage of Major League Soccer since the league’s launch in 1996.Performances in the Concacaf Champions League or U.S. Open Cup or on national team duty aren’t taken into account. Players may have played more than one position during the season, but their ranking reflects their play at the position at which they are ranked. As MLS has expanded from 10 teams a decade ago to 19 teams, the competition for consideration in our top 10 rankings has intensified.Despite their instant success, the Seattle Sounders couldn’t seem to land that bonafide world-class striker for most of their existence. Remember? But in the spring of 2013, the club announced it had signed Nigerian internationaland while he was good last year, this season he was nearly unstoppable.Martins racked up 17 goals and added 13 assists as Seattle swept to the Supporters’ Shield featuring a pulverizing force up top withand Martins ripping apart back lines. Martins slashed though defenses on the dribble, blasted shots from distance, or worked intricate passing combinations to leave defenders flailing. His unrelenting intensity powered Seattle to a team-record 20 wins and 65 goals.(Seattle)(New York)(Sporting KC)(Chivas USA)(LA Galaxy)(San Jose)(New York)(FC Dallas)(Real Salt Lake)(Montreal)In parentheses: Player's ranking in 2013.*Not an MLS player in 2013; +Ranked as a forward in 2013; =Ranked as a left midfielder in 2013.Since he first stepped onto an MLS field in the summer of 2011, Irish internationalhas delighted Galaxy fans and tormented its opponents. Another spectacular season -- he led the Galaxy and was third in MLS with 19 goals, and his 14 assists trailed only teammate– moved him atop the rankings of the league’s top forwards.With the emergence of youngin a striker’s role, Keane worked the spaces out wide and underneath his young partner up top to drive an attack that scored a league-high 69 goals. His constant berating of match officials and teammates livens up every match, as does his clever and incisive touches. He's the third Galaxy player to win the league's MVP award and age 34 is still called up by Ireland's national team.(LA Galaxy)(Seattle)(D.C. United)(Real Salt Lake)(FC Dallas)(Houston)(D.C. United)(Portland)(Colorado)(Chicago)In parentheses: Player's ranking in 2013.+Ranked as a striker in 2013.It was a very good year for attacking midfielders; many teams rolled out systems geared to get forward propelled by a skillful, brazen orchestrator. Most are double threats to score a goal or set one up, a few specialize in one department.takes the position to its goalscoring extreme; he netted 18 goals, a total surpassed by only three players, all of them forwards or strikers.(New England)(Portland)(Real Salt Lake)(Columbus)(Vancouver)(Colorado)(Seattle)(Philadelphia)(Sporting KC)(FC Dallas)In parentheses: Player's ranking in 2013.*Not an MLS player in 2013.Some college products need time to find their feet in the pro ranks, some just need to find the right fit in the right system. And some just need a breath of success to take off. Case in point is Crew attacker, who since leaving Creighton and being selected in the 2012 SuperDraft had failed to score in his first 40 MLS appearances before breaking through May 17 against Portland in a 3-3 tie at Providence Park.By season’s end, Finlay had tied for the team lead in goals (11) and assists (7) with Argentine veteran. The club rewarded him with a contract extension in late October and he’ll be an important element as the Crew tries to build on its first playoff appearance since 2011. Stationed on the right side of an attacking trio in support a striker, Finlay found ample opportunities to arrow for goal himself or serve productive balls into the danger zone.(Columbus)(Philadelphia)(Seattle)(LA Galaxy)(Sporting KC)(New York)(Real Salt Lake)(Seattle)(New England)(Vancouver)In parentheses: Player's ranking in 2013.*Not an MLS player in 2013. +Ranked among attacking midfielders in 2013; =Ranked among attacking midfielders in 2013.Two of the top players in league history ended up on the left side of midfield this season and whileadded to list of notable moments in MLS, the top spot goes toThe emergence ofas a forward partner forshifted Donovan to the left wing.In addition to scoring 10 goals, Donovan registered a career-high (and league-leading) 19 assists during the regular season, and in the Western Conference semifinals rang up a hat trick against Real Salt Lake, just the third such accomplishment in postseason history. He labored through lean periods in late spring and amid farewell ceremonies in the final third of the season before re-igniting in the playoffs. There were enough magical moments to mark his 14th and final pro season as one of the best.(LA Galaxy)(New York)(Houston)(Seattle)(Columbus)(New England)(D.C. United)(Chicago)(San Jose)(Columbus)In parentheses: Player's ranking in 2013.*Not an MLS player in 2013; +Ranked as forward in 2013; =Ranked as striker in 2013; &Ranked as central midfielder in 2013.In MLS there are many variations of the No. 8, a central midfielder who can cover the vast space between the penalty areas. While not every one of them is a true box-to-box player the best ones can break up the opposition’s attacks as well as get forward effectively.may be too combative for his own good; he was second in cautions (11) and fouls committed (65). He also scored five goals and registered four assists as United rose out of the ashes of a disastrous 2013 season to win the Eastern Conference regular-season title.It’s not unusual to see Kitchen delivering a cross from near the corner flag and shortly thereafter closing down an opponent’s dribble in his own half of the field. He’ll need to cut down on the cards and fouls, but in 2014 he typified a scrappy United team that set a league record for improvement (43 points) from one season to the next.(D.C. United)(LA Galaxy)(New York)(Portland)(Columbus)(Toronto FC)(Vancouver)(Seattle)(FC Dallas)(Philadelphia)In parentheses: Player's ranking in 2013.*not an MLS player in 2013; +ranked as defensive midfielder in 2013; =ranked as right midfielder in 2013; &ranked as right midfielder (4th) in 2013.Our selection is no surprise; since he defected from his native Cuba to the USA in 2007,has been a skilled, savvy, combative presence, first for the Charleston Battery and with the Sounders since 2009. This is the third time he’s been top of the class. In 2014, he completed an astonishing 90.9 percent of his passes and started in all 33 of his appearances. His typically minuscule offensive stats -- no goals and two assists in league play -- belie his remarkable range, savvy positioning and unquestioned commitment.(Seattle)(Real Salt Lake)(Columbus)(New York)(LA Galaxy)(FC Dallas)(Chicago)(Philadelphia)(Vancouver)(San Jose)In parentheses: Player's ranking in 2013.+ranked as central midfielder in 2013; =ranked as right centerback in 2013.Their efforts don’t always show up in the statistics, but the greater fluidity with which defenders distribute the ball is a subtle aspect of the improving play in MLS. Outside backs overlapping and pushing up the flanks are among the game’s sexier elements but the primary role of securing that corner of the field remains first priority.Once the Revs had recovered from an eight-game losing streak,’s resolute work emerged as a key factor in their strong finish. He didn’t notch a goal nor an assist but he committed just 18 fouls and received one yellow card while hitting solid numbers in tackles (2.5), interceptions (2.3) and clearances (5.1) per game.(New England)(Seattle)(LA Galaxy)(FC Dallas)(D.C. United)(Vancouver)(Columbus)(Real Salt Lake)(Philadelphia)(Chicago)In parentheses: Player's ranking in 2013.How important a centerback can be to a team’s fortunes is illustrated by the case of, whose move from Houston via the Re-Entry Draft prompted a demise of the Dynamo and a record turnaround for D.C. United.He was just one of several MLS veterans acquired in the team’s transformation, yet buttressed by Boswell, United won the Eastern Conference after winning just three games in 2012 and reduced its goals allowed from 59 to a league-best 37. Boswell started all 34 games, scored a goal, registered three assists and was cautioned only twice. He finished among the league’s top 10 in clearances per game (6.9).(D.C. United)(New York)(Seattle)(LA Galaxy)(New England)(FC Dallas)(Real Salt Lake)(Sporting KC)(Seattle)(Columbus)In parentheses: Player's ranking in 2013.*Not an MLS player in 2013.The arrival of head coachat FC Dallas changed the team’s persona from front to back and brought more possession responsibility to the back line. One of the beneficiaries was, who stepped up when a season-long injury sidelined veteranto take over as captain in just his third pro season.In 32 appearances (all starts), Hedges scored three goals and finished among the league leaders in interceptions (3.2) and clearances (6.9) per game. FCD cut down its goals allowed by seven (52 to 45) from the previous season and lost in the playoffs to Seattle despite conceding just one goal in 180 minutes of play.(FC Dallas)(New England)(Real Salt Lake)(Sporting KC)(LA Galaxy)(D.C. United)(Seattle)(Portland)(Vancouver)(NewYork)In parentheses: Player's ranking in 2013.*Not an MLS player in 2013.The 2014 season wasn’t a banner year for left backs. There weren’t any truly outstanding performances though the experienced veterans in the top tier were again reliable and sturdy.In a close finish the top slot goes to, a stalwart on the Real Salt Lake back line since they emerged as an elite team late in the last decade. He started in all 30 of his league appearances, ranked among the leaders at his position with 3.0 clearances a game and earned three assists as RSL posted the third-fewest goals allowed (39) in MLS.(Real Salt Lake)(New England)(Columbus)(Sporting KC)(Toronto FC)(Seattle)(LA Galaxy)(New York)(Vancouver)(Colorado)In parentheses: Player's ranking in 2013.*Not an MLS player in 2013.The goalkeeping position is rather stable in MLS; a few teams have proven veterans who are entrenched, and several others have gone with younger players through good times and bad. Not many teams change keepers often, though some shaky times in the Colorado goal this year had fans scratching their heads. Montreal, too, never seemed to get that sure-handed, reliable stalwart in the nets.The rankings are based on statistics as well as the traditional goalkeeping elements of reflexes, quickness, positioning, distribution, leadership and command of the penalty area. Only keepers who played in one-half of their team’s games were considered.At 35,is the classic case of a keeper maintaining high standards longer than field players. His reflexes, command of the box, and positioning are still sharp. His legendary PK prowess continues -- only one successful kick out of five attempts -- and his goals-allowed average led the league. A 5-0 playoff blowout by the Galaxy didn’t change the fact that only two teams conceded fewer goals this season than RSL’s 39.(Real Salt Lake)(D.C. United)(LA Galaxy)(Vancouver)(Columbus)(San Jose)(New England)(FC Dallas)(Seattle)(Chicago)In parentheses: 2013 ranking at position.*Not in MLS in 2013.