I was asked by the always-awesome Dave Clark, who you may know from great Seattle soccer coverage, to talk about USL guys who might be on the radar of MLS clubs or European sides. I've broken this down into tiers, focusing on youth, candidates who fit the bill for MLS, and unsung stars who may be less likely to move but who I adore. I'm omitting players from affiliate teams since they already have a route to bigger things. Without further ado...
The Youth
Young stars destined for big futures
Joshua Wynder (CB, Louisville)
I recently profiled the teenage defender over at Backheeled, and the main points stand. Wynder is wildly comfortable in possession if a bit tame, but the nascent passing vision is clear. His physical frame is optimal; he's well over six feet tall and runs like a legitimate gazelle. Wynder won't blow you away with his acceleration, but he's fast enough, and he has great instincts in the box as a defender. Frankly, I rate the Louisville man a clear step above Kobi Henry, who just earned a $700,000 move to France. That should say a lot, even if I'm a wannabe scout.
Cristian Nava (AM, New Mexico)
In the same column where I spotlighted Wynder, I also put in a good word for Cristian Nava as the next Diego Luna to come out of the USL. Nava is an attacking midfield player with two brilliant feet, fierce dribbling skills, and great gumption as a creator. His shooting and finishing skills are still developing at the senior level, and he's slight in terms of his build, but there's a reason his rise has coincided with a hot run of form for New Mexico. Pair that ability with an industrious work rate, and you've got a player who can hold down a top-tier wing spot for years to come.
Isaiah Foster (FB, Colorado Springs)
Though less favored in recent weeks amidst slight system changes, 18-year-old fullback-cum-winger Isaiah Foster is for real in the high-flying Switchbacks system. He has experience in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy and other national programs, and he oozes confidence on the left wing in any role. Foster's defensive tracking is solid, and it's bolstered by his blazing pace. The Maryland native is best when he can get forward on the overlap. His dribbling and passing aren't world-beating, but he has creative moments and a mean cross in his arsenal. For a teenager like Foster to slot so cleanly into a title-contending side means a lot to me and speaks to his positional intelligence as well.
Diego Abarca (AM, El Paso)
Another talented teen coming out of the unendingly productive El Paso youth program, Abarca combines solid linking play and hints of Luna- and Nava-caliber technique with the fact that he literally just turned 17 this week. His stunning goal in traffic to earn a draw against Hartford drew eyes, but I was more impressed with Abarca's shift in an early-season game against Las Vegas. There, the teen played as a creative number eight and combined and interchanged with his right-wing partner to great effect. Abarca is raw and needs to improve as a defender if he wants to break through fully, but the instinct is there in spades.
See also: Noe Coutinho (AM), Venancio Calderon (AM)
Rafael Jauregui (AM, Sacramento)
Tasked with a role as a hard-pressing winger in the Republic's fearsome 5-4-1 in 2022, Jauregui first signed a professional deal at just 15 years old. He has a handful of caps and goals for various U.S. youth teams, and he has a goal to his name in the USL this year to pair with great underlying xG and shot creation numbers. If there's a question for the California native, it comes creatively. Jauregui can be a cog in a coherent attack, but he's not the type to play a game-breaking through. Still, the eye for goal and defensive steel - even considering his lacking physicality - make Jauregui a player to watch.
Second Looks
Players with a previous cup of coffee at higher levels
Michee Ngalina (FW, Colorado Springs)
Last season, the wing dynamo for the Switchbacks left for Los Angeles FC after about 20 matches, but he failed to catch on in MLS. I profiled Ngalina's game in my write-up of Young Player of the Year favorites recently, but it all bears repeating. Ngalina might be the fastest winger in the USL, and he combines that pace with tight ball control, endless ways to beat defenders one-on-one, and a good sense for movement to find shooting lanes. He can race to the touchline to whip in a cross or cutting in for a shot of his own; seven goals and seven assists so far this season don't lie.
Alejandro Guido (CM, San Diego)
Speaking of former LAFC players, look no further than Alejandro Guido, the beating heart of San Diego's offense. Comfortable as a true number ten, a box-to-box eight, or a string-pulling six, Guido sits in the 83rd percentile for defensive actions amongst midfielders in addition to his obvious creative chops. He has a wicked shot from range, and his pedigree as a product of Tijuana in Liga MX speaks to the technical ability. If there's something to pause the momentum here, it's a slight penchant for injuries, but the potential is worth the risk. For my money, Guido is the best player in the whole of the USL on his day, and he's still just 28 years old.
See also: Nick Moon (FB/AM)
Aaron Guillen (CB, Tampa Bay)
Usually found on the left side of the Rowdies' back three and recently elevated to occasional captaincy duties, Aaron Guillen was my preseason pick for USL Defender of the Year and hasn't been far off that mark. FC Dallas reared the centerback but never quite gave him a full look-in, and he's been a technically-sound, defensively prodigious presence across the lower-league landscape ever since. He was in the 99th percentile for aerial win rate and top third for tackle win percentage last season, and those numbers are both top-quarter in 2022. Pair that with great composure in possession, and the only thing that holds Guillen back is a pedestrian physical profile.
See also: Conner Antley (FB/CB)
All-League Americans
USL studs who wouldn't occupy an MLS international slot
Milan Iloski (AM, Orange County)
In his first season with the defending champions after a stint in the Real Salt Lake system, 22-year-old Milan Iloski already has seven goals in an offensively challenged squad. Indeed, Iloski was in the 99th percentile for xG amongst midfielders in Utah last year as well. Though a tick thin and not the most athletic player in the universe, Iloski more than makes up for it with his league-best eye for space in the center of the pitch. He often operates as a number ten, but he's able as a narrow winger or the low man in a forward pair thanks to his wonderful reading of a given game. MLS sides typical prefer athletic forwards like Tyler Pasher, but I'd be snatching Iloski up if I were a first-tier general manager.
Devon Amoo-Mensah (CB, Detroit)
Detroit has been surprisingly great in a wide array of categories this year, but their defensive solidity is chief among them. No one better encapsulates the efficacy of Le Rouge's system than Amoo-Mensah, a mid-twenties defender who embodies the oft-mocked idea of a "NISA All-Star" rising up to the USL. All kidding aside, the Illinois native is the real deal. His confidence in possession opens things up for Detroit's all-important wingbacks and consistently lets the side build with patience and intentionality. Amoo-Mensah's defensive efficiency numbers hover around average, but I never see him get beat on dumb mistakes; every step he takes feels like it's purposeful.
Connor Sparrow (GK, Miami)
If you need a goalkeeper who's brilliant on his line, sweeps with the best of 'em, and passes confidently within a possessive system, look no farther than Connor Sparrow. The Miami keeper rated in the 93rd percentile for value last year, bolstered by his high levels of defensive actions and clean distributions. 2022 has been a step up; the ex-Real Salt Lake man sits in the 98th percentile for GSAA, up from top-quarter performances in years past. Sparrow has a real sense for the moment, always stepping up when Miami needs him most. He might be the most immediately viable leaper in this entire article given the track record of short-notice moves for goalies to MLS.
Personal Favorites
Less likely movers that I stan for without a second thought
Anderson Asiedu (CM, Birmingham)
No player better captures the idea of effort and work rate than Anderson Asiedu. Though slight at 5'6" and laden with an unsuccessful Atlanta United stint, Asiedu so obviously dominates play in the USL that it's insulting for MLS to not give him another try. In the meantime, it's Birmingham's benefit, and the Ghanaian brings unbelievably strong and driven dribbling and progression with a bulldog-like defensive instinct to the center of the park. Asiedu is an underrated passer, sporting 74th percentile xA and forward pass rates this year alongside that box-to-box brilliance. Physically, he's a tank that constantly shoulders foes away, and his acceleration in recovery stands out. Safe to say, I love Asiedu's game.
Mitchell Taintor and Fabien Garcia (CB, San Antonio)
I'm unabashedly cheating here, but the duo of 27-year-old centerbacks is too darn good to pick just one. Taintor, an American with experience across the lower tiers, is a potent aerial threat with four goals to his name in 2022, but he combines that dominance with aggressive yet measured closing into the midfield from his wide centerback spot. Meanwhile, Garcia brings French experience to the table and serves as a somewhat more passive, positional force at the center of San Antonio's back three. Both are sharp forward passers in addition to their technical defending, and both deserve a chance at the big-time.
Neco Brett (FW, New Mexico)
Between stints in Pittsburgh, Birmingham, and New Mexico, Brett has shown himself to be a clever finisher and even smarter mover at the tip of any offensive system. The shifty, midfield-driven Riverhounds, defense-first Legion, and hard-pressing denizens of the Land of Enchantment could all rely on Brett to pop up at the perfect moment in the box and provide spirited pressure going the other way. He's not a creator and doesn't strive to be one. The Jamaican knows that his strength is finishing from any and all angles and drawing opponents out with his movement otherwise. At age 30, his ship may have sailed, but that's to the benefit of every USL fan.
Justin Ingram (CM, Indy Eleven)
I've been entirely sold on the Loyola-Maryland product since the early days of his rookie year in the USL, but his recent stint as a right back has me dreaming big. Ingram is an awesome passer, and he's filled in at every point of the Mark Lowry diamond in addition to that defensive deployment. He sits in the 30th percentile for xA by my calculations, but I flatly reject the lack of vision and progressivity that the number implies; Ingram is brilliant on the ball. He combines his technique with top-half progressivity and defensive actions. I own that I'm biased towards an Indianapolis native plying his trade for the Eleven, but Justin Ingram is so, so impressive.
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