No. 1 pick excited by chance to face hero

KANSAS CITY — Andrew Wenger looked a bit sheepish when he was asked what teams and players he followed growing up. He knew his reply wasn’t all that daring.

“Well, Manchester United,” he said. “And, of course, David Beckham.”

Now, Wenger may have a chance to play against him.

The expansion Montreal Impact selected the Duke forward with the first overall pick in the MLS SuperDraft on Thursday, choosing the most complete player available in the tworound draft.

The Hermann Trophy winner as the top NCAA player, Wenger was the ACC defensive player of the year last season and offensive player of the year this season, finishing with 17 goals and eight assists.

“We have a lot of potential,” said Wenger, who will join the new MLS club in a couple of weeks, once his responsibilities with the U.S. under-23 team are through. “It’s exciting.”

Just as exciting is the chance to potentially play against Beckham. The midfielder’s contract with the L.A. Galaxy has expired, but negotiations are ongoing and Beckham reportedly has said he’d rather remain in Los Angeles than return to Europe.

Montreal plays the MLS champion Galaxy on May 12.

Akron forward Darren Mattocks was selected second by the Vancouver Whitecaps. UCLA midfielder Kelyn Rowe went third to New England, followed by UC Santa Barbara’s Luis Silva to Toronto FC and Maryland forward Casey Townsend to Chivas USA.

In other trade news, the Portland Timbers have traded forward Kenny Cooper to the New York Red Bulls for a first-round pick in the 2013 draft and allocation money.

Elsewhere, L.A. Galaxy loaned Ireland forward Robbie Keane to Aston Villa of the Premier League until the start of the new MLS season.