US/SC – MLS Under 21 Player Impact Rankings

The 2024 MLS regular season is in the books and there have been some really strong seasons by young American. There are a few players that have made a case that they are ready for a new challenge in their career, specifically the four players at the top of the list: Jack McGlynn, Diego Luna, Quinn Sullivan and Brian Gutierrez. They really separated themselves from the pack midway through the season and were in a league of their own from there on out.

The 2003 class dominated the rankings, taking six of the top ten spots. The 2003 class ages out next year and the 2004s will lead the way. The 2004, 2005 and 2006 are weaker domestic classes, so the impact coming from players on this list may take a dip in the next couple of years.

1. CM, Jack McGlynn, Philadelphia Union (2003)

McGlynn takes home the top spot for the 2024 season. He didn't score the most goals or deliver the most assists, but he had the highest G+ grade of anyone in this category and more consistently impacted his team in a positive. His passing ability is his greatest weapon and the data supports that claim. I believe that now is the time for McGlynn to test himself in a tougher league.

2. WING/AM, Diego Luna, Real Salt Lake (2003)

No player in this category had more goal contributions this season than Diego Luna with 16. That was also good for tied for 31st overall in all of MLS and tied for the fourth most for all Americans in MLS. It was an impressive year from an attacking output perspective. Similar to McGlynn, Luna appears ready for a new challenge.

3. CM, Quinn Sullivan, Philadelphia Union (2004)

Sullivan is the highest ranked player that is eligible for this list next season. Sullivan finally got the opportunity to be an every day starter in his best position, in midfield. The result, by far the most impactful season of his career. He was still asked to play multiple positions, including striker, but he was at his best when he was playing in the midfield. There is likely to be a big shakeup with the Philadelphia Union roster this offseason and it will be interesting to see if Sullivan is brought back for another year or if he is another player that could be on the move to Europe.

4. AM/WING, Brian Gutiérrez, Chicago Fire (2003)

Gutiérrez had a solid season and improved his attacking output from last season. The departure of Xherdan Shaqiri paved the way for him to have a more prominent play making role for the Fire. It will be interesting to see what the new lead man in the front office, Gregg Berhalter, has planned for him. Will he make Guti the center piece of the attack? Or is it time to cash in on a transfer and see if Guti can perform at a higher level of competition?

5. CB, Fernando Alvarez, CF Montreal (2003)

Alvarez was one of the more pleasant surprises of this season. He ends the season as the highest impact center-back. He solidified himself as a starter for Montreal and looks like a solid starting level player in MLS for the future.

6. DM, Daniel Edelman, New York Red Bulls (2003)

Edelman was a workhorse this year. He led all field players in this category in minutes. His G+ suggests that he had a lot of areas to improve to be considered an above average midfielder in MLS. He will likely never be a midfielder that contributes a lot to the attack, but he has to improve in possession and ball progression.

7. GK, Chris Brady, Chicago Fire (2004)

Going into this season, I thought Brady had a strong chance to contend for the top spot on this list. Unfortunately, it was not the season Brady hoped for. To be fair, Chicago's defense was amongst the worst in MLS. They gave up the sixth most post-shot expected goals, so Brady was facing a lot of heat throughout the season. Even still, he did not put up the shot stopping numbers you would have expected and his G+ grade suffered. Brady has one more year on this list and I hope to see a return to being the elite shot stopper I believe he can be.

8. AM, Caden Clark, CF Montreal (2003)

Clark's season was a tale of two parts. He started the year with Minnesota United after a failed attempt in Germany. He was asked to play in more wide areas in Minnesota and he failed to contribute a goal or an assist in 23 matches. His expected goals and assists were at 0.16 per 90 minutes.

Then he moved to Montreal where they played him in his preferred central attacking position. In just nine games he scored four goals and added two assists. His expected goals and assists per 90 jumped up to 0.51. Clark ages out of this category next season, but it will be interesting to see if he continues to shine in Montreal's system.

9. LB, Caleb Wiley, Atlanta United (2004)

Wiley had a solid, but not outstanding season before he got his big move to Chelsea. He wasn't asked to be as involved in the attack as he had in prior years, but he was doing a solid job defensively and contributing in possession when asked.

10. CM, Owen Wolff, Austin FC (2004)

Once again, Wolff was used as both a box to box midfielder and a winger this season — this was not to his advantage. He is very clearly a center-mid. He is best at progressing the ball through the midfield, not attacking from wide areas. I'd like to see Wolff get 2,000 minutes as an eight next year. If he does, I think he will show his qualities and have a solid season.

11. CB, Jalen Neal, LA Galaxy (2003)

Neal was expected to have a breakout year in his second season as a starter, but injuries delayed the start of the season and he lost his starting spot to summer transfer, Carlos Garcés. Neal's future with LA Galaxy, a club he has been with since he was a child, is in question. He performed adequately for a young center-back and deserves to be starting somewhere, but I am not sure it's going to be with LA Galaxy.

12. LB/CB, Devin Padelford, Minnesota United (2003)

Padelford finally got an opportunity to play this year, primarily serving as a left sided center-back in a back three formation. He wasn't super effective, but he showed that he can be a serviceable utility player in MLS.

13. CB, Noah Cobb, Atlanta United (2005)

Cobb was asked to come in and start a stretch of games due to some injuries and while I don't know that he was ready to be a MLS starter this year, he held his own and showed he could be a solid MLS starter in the future.

14. CM, Niko Tsakiris, San Jose Earthquakes (2005)

Tsakiris is a top 20 2005 prospect and a top 50 overall prospect. For the second year in a row, Tsakiris started off the season injured and that could have been a big reason for his slow start. I expected a more impactful year, but San Jose was dreadful and he was used in a role that doesn't suit his abilities. He was asked to do a lot of progression through the midfield rather than progressions from the midfield to the final third. Tsakiris should be a nailed on starter for San Jose next year and hopefully he will have a better environment for development.

15. CM, Benjamin Cremaschi, Inter Miami (2005)

Cremaschi is another top 20 2005 from the 2005 class and a top 50 United States eligible prospect. He is lower on this list than many expected him to be this year. A big reason for that is that he was injured for the first part of the season and the other consideration is the depth that Inter Miami has in midfield. Cremaschi was still very productive in just over 1,000 minutes, scoring four goals and adding an assist. Inter Miami's midfield is likely to thin out next year and Cremaschi could be in line for a true breakout season.

16. CF, Jacob Murrell, DC United (2004)

Murrell did not get a ton of opportunity, but he was very effective with the time that he received. He had an impressive G+ score and expected goals and assists per 90, showing that he provided danger consistently. He sits behind the golden boot winner, so more minutes may be hard to come by next year.

17. CF, Darren Yapi, Colorado Rapids (2004)

Yapi built some nice momentum towards the end of the year. The book on Yapi has been that he is a very talented player, but has not been productive enough in terms of goal contributions as a striker. He started to change that narrative in the second half of the season. If he can start adding goals and more starting opportunities to his game, he could be a top five player on this list next season.

18. LB/CB, Noah Allen, Inter Miami (2004)

Allen was a rotational player for Inter Miami this year, playing as both a center-back and a left-back. His flexibility and defensive solidity was critical to Inter Miami because they played a lot of games and dealt with a lot of injuries.

19. AM, Gerardo Valenzuela, FC Cincinnati (2004)

Valenzuela was a surprise player on this list. He earned close to 1,000 league minutes this year and became a reliable attacking piece for FC Cincinnati. He will have another year as a U21 player in MLS to try and build on his first full season with the first team.

20. GK, Gavin Beavers, Real Salt Lake (2005)

Beavers is the top rated keeper from the 2005 class. This season he earned eleven starts, an increase from the seven starts he earned last year. His performance were up and down, but many felt that he outplayed the veteran starter, Zac McMath, and should have been given a chance to take over the job permanently. Is next year the year Beavers gets the job full time?

MLS U21 Impact Rankings