Here is some Philadelphia Union news for the week of 1/25
The third and fourth rounds of the 2016 MLS Superdraft occurred on Tuesday the 19th and the Union had the 44th and 64th overall picks. With the 44th pick in the third round, the club selected Mitchell Laurie from Rutgers. Laurie is a 6’2, 170 lb defender from Atlanta, Georgia. Laurie was an essential piece for Rutgers as he appeared and started in 21 games for the Scarlet Knights. He assisted six goals on the season and was named Second Team All-Big Ten in his senior season. Laurie has USMNT experience after he played for the U-18 team in 2011. He also played in four PDL seasons,Professional Development League, for the Ocean City Nor’Easters and the Portland Timbers team. Laurie was also a big part of the eight clean sheets Rutgers kept this season.
With the 64th pick in the fourth round, the Union selected Cole Missimo from Northwestern. Missimo is a 6’1, 160 lb midfielder from Dallas, Texas. Missimo was named Second Team All-Big Ten his junior and senior seasons. His freshman year he was also named in the Big Ten’s All-Freshman team. He scored five goals and four assists in his junior season as well as scoring one goal and two assists his senior year. Expect to see Missimo be loaned to Bethlehem Steel FC for the 2016 season.
The Union have resigned three members of the 2015 squad this week. The club has announced that it has resigned defender Fabinho, midfielder Brian Carroll and mid/def Warren Creavalle.
Fabinho is a fullback from Brazil. He’s been with the club since 2013. He’s made 59 appearances for the Union with 52 of those in the starting 11. He’s scored two goals and seven assists in three seasons with the club. He’s excelled under Jim Curtin and was used very often in the 2015 season. The arrival of Keegan Rosenberry and Taylor Washington will pressure Fabinho for the starting job in 2016.
Brian Carroll is a midfielder who has spent many years in the league. He has played for D.C United and Columbus Crew, where he won an MLS Cup with each club in 2004 and 2008 respectively. He’s been with the team since 2010. He’s appeared for the club 139 times with 133 of those games in the starting 11. He’s scored four times and assisted three times in his five seasons with the Union. He brings experience and leadership back to the club as he was the captain for a few seasons before the arrival of Maurice Edu.
Warren Creavalle is a versatile player who can play midfield and full back. Before joining the Union mid season in 2015, he played for Houston Dynamo and Toronto FC. He’s only made four appearances for the team.
The Union’s youth academy has produced seven USMNT youth call ups. Yousef Samuels and Abu Winter were called up to the U-20 team. Auston Trusty made the U-19 team and Anthony Fontana, Mark McKenzie and Matthew Real made the U-18 team. Rayshaun McGann made the U-17 team. The future is looking bright for the Union’s academy system.
Main Photo: Elsa, Getty Images
