MLS Next Pro Season Openers and a GAM Numbers Grab Bag
I actually like MLS Next Pro. Weird, I know. I even like their logo.
It’s sometimes a tough watch. Early on, the cameras were clearly not controlled by human operators and would miss key parts of the game. Commentators were watching remotely and often working entirely by themselves, which could be stilted and awkward. At times, it was clear they couldn’t even make out the numbers on the jerseys and tell players apart.
The last couple years have been marked by improvements in both the broadcast quality and the quality of play. It’s become a much easier watch, and the talent that is coming out of MLS Next Pro is ready to compete at the next level. Sometimes, that next level is MLS. Sometimes, it’s USL Championship or League One.
The league is primarily known as a development league for young players - a chance for hyped up players like Cavan Sullivan to cut their teeth against a more significant level of opposition. That said, the most interesting players are not necessarily the academy kids, but the players who are trying to grind their way up the professional ladder. This includes a lot of draft picks who are doing their best to stick with the MLS teams.
If not for these players, the quality of play would be fairly low and about equivalent to the older levels of the academies. Thankfully, these players - still young in most regards - help elevate the league and make it something a bit more compelling.
Here’s some of the players I’m excited to watch this season:
Ed Davis, ST, Philadelphia: The Union 2 have an incredible synergy between their game model and the kind of players they have to execute it. They made the MLSNP Final last year, and look to be even better this year. Davis is an 18 year old striker who put up 13 goals last season and will pick up right where he left off.
Aron John, CM/CAM, Crown Legacy: John had a fantastic season in 2024 after being relatively unheralded as a youth prospect. Crown Legacy had a bit of a down year last season but usually are a team that’s trying to find interesting talent from all over the country.
Robert Turdean, CM, Chicago Fire: The 15 year old is currently the youngest player on a first team MLS contract. He’s not likely to play much even in MLS Next Pro, but definitely one to keep an eye on for the future. If he does play, at all, it’s a big deal.
Emil Jaaskelainen, ST, St Louis City 2: The prolific college striker did not earn a senior deal, which is a surprise to me. He also didn’t opt for an MLS team or heading back to England, another surprise. I think he’ll be dominant at this level, and should be in contention for the MLS Next Pro Golden Boot. At the same time, St Louis City also have Brendan McSorley (G+ leader from 2024) and young striker Caden Glover on the roster. He’ll have to beat both of them out for minutes.
Sidney Wathuta, CAM(?), Rapids 2: Wathuta won a the NCAA National Championship with Vermont, and was one of the most interesting players on the field while doing so. The Rapids have a ton of really interesting players on their 2 team. They were also terrible last year. Hopefully this year they can show up and do a bit more in the West.
A good number of the games are on YouTube, and the rest are on MLS Season Pass (though they can be tricky to find). Here’s NYCFC II and Crown Legacy’s season opener, starting at 7PM ET:
Grab Bag:
MLS released GAM amounts for all teams, a valuable insight into team building. As a fan of NYCFC it’s heartening to see them at the top of the list, but also disheartening knowing that they got there by refusing to spend. Not sure that’s going to change.
LA Galaxy putting up a bagel shows just how bad of a spot they’re in (see last weeks 500 WP90). They desperately need players back from injury, because they can’t bring in anyone to replace them
Nashville is in a tough spot - they weren’t good last year, they didn’t find much in the way of reinforcements, and they don’t have a lot to work with GAM wise. It’s actually better than it was last year as the contracts aren’t quite as difficult to work with but it feels like a teardown is coming. BJ Callaghan was brave taking the head coach role, but I’m not sure he’s going to be able to salvage much.