Orlando City Stadium hosts MLS Combine
More than 70 top collegiate, youth and international soccer players arrived in Orlando on Thursday for Major League Soccer’s annual player combine.
They will undergo physical exams and performance testing before competing in three days of matches to showcase their skills in front of coaches and representatives from all 23 MLS teams.
The field includes seven underclassmen signed to Generation Adidas contracts, four seniors signed to MLS contracts, NCAA champions, MAC Hermann finalists and more, all hoping to catch coaches’ eyes before the 2018 MLS SuperDraft on Jan. 19 in Philadelphia.
WHAT IS IT?
The MLS Player Combine will feature two matches a day on Saturday, Monday and Wednesday.
The players attending will be split into four teams — Team Nemeziz, Team Predator, Team X and Team Tango. Every team will play one game on each of the three match days.
All games will be held at Orlando City Stadium and are open and free to the public. No ticket is required.
Gates open an hour before the start of the first match each day. All combine matches also will be streamed live on MLSsoccer.com and the MLS YouTube Channel.
RECENT CHANGES
MLS announced the signing of University of Virginia junior Edward Opoku to the 2018 Generation adidas class, making him the seventh player in the class. The league also signed Notre Dame forward Jon Gallagher ahead of the combine.
Also added to the Combine are seven college seniors – Luis Argudo (Wake Forest University), Alex Bumpus (University of Kentucky), Jose CarreraGarcia (University of California), Diego Campos (Clemson University), Xavier Gomez (University of Nebraska Omaha), Josh Morton (University of California) and Thomas Vancaeyezeele (University of Charleston) – and youth International signing Issaka Nyemewero. Jake Rozhansky and Rafael Sanchez withdrew from the combine. Rozhansky signed with Israeli side Maccabi Netanya FC. Stanford’s Drew Skundrich also withdrew due to injury, but he is still eligible for selection in the SuperDraft.
WHERE IS THE SUPERDRAFT?
The first two rounds of the draft will take place at 11 a.m. Jan. 19 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia.
There are four rounds total with 23 picks per round. The final two rounds will be held via conference call on Jan. 21.
Los Angeles FC has the top overall pick, followed by team that did not qualify for the playoffs in 2017 in order of fewest points earned.
“The remaining 12 picks are ranked by fewest regular season points among teams that were eliminated in the same round of the Audi 2017 MLS Cup Playoffs,” according to a statement released Thursday by MLS.
NAMES TO WATCH
In the past, players such as Seattle Sounders FC forwards Clint Dempsey and Jordan Morris, NYCFC’s Jack Harrison, Philadelphia Union’s Andre Blake, Atlanta United’s Julian Gressel and Orlando City’s Cyle Larin have been selected in the SuperDraft.
This year, some names to watch include:
Generation adidas players — English midfielder Mo Adams (Syracuse); Ghanaian forwards Francis Atuahe (Michigan) and Ema Twumasi (Wake Forest); Portuguese defender Joao Moutinho (Akron); German forward Gordon Wild (Maryland); and forwards Edward Opokun (Virginia) and Mason Toye (Indiana) from New York and New Jersey, respectively.
Signees — Midfielder Alex Roldan (Seattle), a California native and the brother of Seattle Sounders' Cristian Roldan; defender Tristan Blackmon (Pacific); and forward Mohamed Thiaw (Louisville), among others.