On Thursday in Philadelphia, 42 college prospects will hear their names called and get the opportunity to further their soccer careers as part of the 2015 MLS SuperDraft class. The first two rounds will take place there as part of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America convention, while the final two rounds will be held via conference call next Tuesday.
The six-day MLS Player Combine, which took place in Fort Lauderdale, FL and just wrapped up on Tuesday, gave the coaching staffs of each team one final chance to evaluate the talent leading up to Thursday’s draft. 70 players were invited for the event, which consisted of performance testing drills, interviews with prospects and three days of on-field competition. The players were divided into four teams (Predator, NitroCharge, Adi Zero and Nativo) and faced off against each other in a round-robin format.
For Columbus Crew SC, the Combine enabled head coach and sporting director Gregg Berhalter along with his staff to look at how they want to shore up their roster through the draft ahead of the 2015 season. Much like a majority of the teams, Berhalter has stated that depth at key positions is a primary focus in terms of the prospects he has his eye on. The team selects 14th in the first round and 35th in the second.
Much has been made of the fact this incoming class will likely not be as deep as those in previous years. A handful of players have decided to stay in school, while others have opted to pursue options in overseas leagues. There has been an ongoing controversy over the manner in which the league is compensating its new arrivals which may be contributing to many players’ wariness to sign either a Homegrown or Generation Adidas contract. Our own Eric Walcott does a wonderful job breaking down that issue in a recent piece I suggest you take a look at if you haven’t done so.
Regardless of what’s taking place on that end, there was still plenty of top-level talent on display at the Combine, and Crew SC can definitely augment the depth on the squad with their two picks on Thursday. To me, their most pressing needs are in the central defense and up front at forward.
Though the back line was solid en route to clinching an MLS Cup playoff berth, it had its share of issues against New England. It might help to add another body to this unit after having lost Eric Gehrig to the expansion draft and seeing Tyson Wahl’s less than stellar play at center back in the playoffs against the Revs.
Though the Black and Gold did address their glaring need for attacking prowess up front with the signing of Kei Kamara, it can’t hurt to bring in a young striker via the draft. Aaron Schoenfeld and Adam Bedell had their moments but lacked consistency from a finishing standpoint. Their other common insertion up front in Berhalter’s 4-2-3-1, Jairo Arrieta, did not get his option picked up by the team and in addition to Gehrig was taken by Orlando City SC in the expansion draft.
As an aside, it should be noted that neither of those two players acquired by Orlando will end up playing for the Lions in 2015. Gehrig was later traded to Chicago for a 2016 SuperDraft pick and it was announced Wednesday that Arrieta was dealt to DC United in exchange for an international roster spot.
But I digress. Let’s get back to the task at hand and take a look at the players I think have the potential to get picked by Crew SC during Thursday’s draft. Here are five prospects who stand out to me:
Columbus Crew SC MLS SuperDraft Preview
Otis Earle, left back, UC Riverside
Over the course of the Combine you saw a lot of top defenders hurt their cause from a draft stock standpoint. Earle was not one of them. The UC Riverside product showed immense versatility at left back, holding down the back line while also making runs into the attacking third on counters. He reminds me a lot like Waylon Francis in that respect, who I always remind my readers led all MLS defenders in assists last season.
Earle was born in London and his father is current NBC commentator and former English Premier League player Robbie Earle, who also made an appearance in the 1998 World Cup with Jamaica. That said, he possesses a green card and so Crew SC would not need to use up an international roster spot to sign him. He may already have been drafted by the time they make their pick at 14 but if not he certainly should be considered.
Axel Sjöberg, center back, Marquette
The Black and Gold have added quite a bit of Scandinavian flavor to the side with a few of their offseason signings, having brought in a few players (Mohammed Saeid and Kristinn Steindórsson) that were on Swedish top flight clubs last year. Even their starting goalkeeper Steve Clark played for a Norwegian side before signing with Crew SC.
Sjöberg would add to that theme, having been a product of the academy system at Swedish side Djurgardens IF before deciding to play collegiately for the Golden Eagles. He has a massive 6’7″ frame and would add to an already imposing defense that includes the 6’2″ Wahl and 6’3″ Emanuel Pogatetz. Of course, with a player of his size, being able to deal with the speed and finesse of opposing attackers is a primary concern.
Oumar Ballo, center back, UMBC
Part of a stout back line that didn’t concede a single goal en route to their Cinderella run to the College Cup semifinals before losing 1-0 to Virginia, Ballo is another player that could aid in Berhalter’s drive to add more depth to the back line. Though not as tall as Sjöberg (who is?) he has a lanky 6’2″ 190 pound frame and has the potential to be a solid anchor on the Crew SC back line.
Miguel Aguilar, winger, San Francisco
It could be argued that nobody had as impressive a Combine as Aguilar. Though Crew SC have a pretty loaded lineup of versatile wingers that includes 2014 breakout stars Ethan Finlay and Justin Meram, it might be too good to pass up on Aguilar if he’s available.
During the Combine, he was all over the field and showed a high level of adeptness with the ball at his feet, continuously whizzing by defenders and providing good distribution from the wing. Like Meram, he’s also capable of beating the goalkeeper from beyond the 18-yard box.
Dzenan Catic, forward, Davenport (NAIA)
Catic literally came out of nowhere at the Combine having played collegiately at Davenport College, an NAIA school in Michigan. He’s already being compared to Tesho Akindele who had a similar emergence from obscurity last year, getting drafted sixth by FC Dallas after playing for Division II Colorado School of Mines.
His stats for the Grand Rapids, MI based school this season bordered on the absurd. He scored 39 goals while also notching 11 assists and had 12 multi-goal games that included six hat tricks as he led the team to the 2014 NAIA national title. He’s the quintessential sleeper pick of the draft and could honestly go anywhere from top ten to early second round.
One thing that will need to be taken into account not just for Crew SC but for all teams is international roster slots. Each team initially starts with eight but can trade for more. It’s possible a lot of promising non-US players might fall in the draft as a result. In the case of Columbus, nine players on the roster currently occupy these spots so more than likely they will need to stay domestic from a draft standpoint.
Either way, when all is set and done the Black and Gold will have added five players (through all four rounds) to their roster via the 2015 SuperDraft. Expect most of them to ply their trade in a loan capacity with the Austin Aztex of USL Pro who recently announced a partnership with Crew SC. With the season less than two months away, it’s only a matter of time before we see these prospects on the field in some capacity or another as their dream of playing high level professional soccer becomes ever closer to reality.
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