Soccer <\/p>\n
At long last, the Primary Transfer Window is closed! That means MLS teams are done adding new pieces until the Secondary Transfer Window opens on July 24. There are a couple of exceptions to that:<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
Those are obviously not the big swings, though. The big swings have already been taken, or the pieces have been arranged in a way for further big swings to be taken during the summer. So what you see now is more or less the group your team will battle with for the next 15-ish games.<\/p>\n
What we\u2019ve got below are some grades with an overview. If you want a comprehensive list of transactions, here you go:<\/p>\n
Bookmark that page. It\u2019s very useful.<\/p>\n
In we go:<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
Emmanuel Latte Lath<\/a> has been very good \u2013 maybe not league record-signing good, but still.<\/p>\n Miguel Almir\u00f3n<\/a> has mostly been anonymous and has negative chemistry with holdover Alexey Miranchuk<\/a>. The Mateusz Klich<\/a> move makes sense \u2013 any team in the league would\u2019ve taken him on a $300k salary hit \u2013 but he doesn\u2019t add what they need in midfield (and so far, neither has anyone else).<\/p>\n I also think it\u2019s pretty clear they needed to add at least one starting-caliber center back. Honestly\u2026 maybe two. Maybe that\u2019s why they traded winger Xande Silva<\/a> at the deadline.<\/p>\n Best move:<\/strong> The Latte Lath signing. He\u2019s going to be very good for a long time.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Wilfried Zaha<\/a> hasn\u2019t exactly taken the league by storm, but he clearly fits the game model and has gas in the tank. Over the course of this season and potentially next, he makes this team better.<\/p>\n Their best work, though, was bringing Pep Biel<\/a> back on a non-DP loan through July, which kept a DP slot open for a big potential move. Turns out Biel is now playing so well that the move is probably just keeping him around, but it\u2019s good Charlotte<\/a> have the flexibility (and three more months of data ahead) to see.<\/p>\n Adding Souleyman Doumbia<\/a>, who gives them a very different tactical look at left back, was good stuff.<\/p>\n Best move:<\/strong> Getting Biel back while keeping that DP slot open (for now).<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Jonathan Bamba<\/a> hasn\u2019t found his goalscoring boots yet, but he\u2019s been electric. He and fellow winger Philip Zinckernagel<\/a>, another winter arrival, have been a huge part of Chicago<\/a> looking like an Audi MLS Cup Playoffs team for the first time since I was a very young child (and a huge part of Hugo Cuypers<\/a> starting to justify the eight-figure outlay from ahead of the 2024 season).<\/p>\n The backline isn\u2019t entirely fixed, but Jack Elliott<\/a>\u2019s been as advertised, while a bunch of the new kids \u2013 especially in midfield \u2013 have developed quickly into valuable players.<\/p>\n About the only box they didn\u2019t check this winter was failing to add an MVP-caliber player. But guess what? Like Charlotte, they kept a DP slot open to use this summer, and boy would Kevin De Bruyne be a nice fit<\/a>.<\/p>\n Just a really impressive first window from new head coach\/CSO Gregg Berhalter.<\/p>\n Best move:<\/strong> My nature is to put Elliott here because I\u2019m just like that, but Bamba\u2019s the type of playmaking winger who makes everyone better, and they got him on a bargain at reportedly $3.5 million. What a steal.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n K\u00e9vin Denkey<\/a> and Evander<\/a> have both been very good thus far, and you\u2019re going to win a lot of games when you hit on your two DPs. Even some that you maybe haven\u2019t deserved to.<\/p>\n When you hit on your backup center backs, and you upgrade your d-mid depth, and you upgrade at wingback as well\u2026 man there\u2019s a lot to like here. I just wish they\u2019d found a way to use one of their open U22 slots to bring in a Pavel Bucha<\/a> understudy (I know I\u2019ve written that a thousand times already in 2025, I\u2019m sorry).<\/p>\n Best move:<\/strong> Denkey is so much more than just a goal-scorer. It would not shock me if he wins a Landon Donovan MLS MVP award at some point in the future \u2013 he seems to have that kind of all-around talent.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n It is such a flex to sell Cucho Hern\u00e1ndez<\/a> and trade Christian Ram\u00edrez<\/a>, and then wait months before deciding to replace just one of them. It\u2019s the kind of thing you can do when your head coach is the best this league\u2019s ever seen at maximizing talent out of previously under-utilized attacking players.<\/p>\n I think the D\u00e1niel Gazdag<\/a> move will work perfectly, even though he\u2019ll have nightmares about this past weekend\u2019s outing. And Aliyu Ibrahim<\/a> is the exact type of talent that Wilfried Nancy has molded in the past.<\/p>\n But I still wish they\u2019d done more to reinforce that attack.<\/p>\n Best move:<\/strong> Could they have gotten more for Cucho by selling him elsewhere? Maybe. But man, I love that they did right by the player in selling him to Real Betis, a move that gives him the best shot at making Colombia\u2019s roster for next year\u2019s World Cup.<\/p>\n We all know that sports is a business. It\u2019s nice when it turns out teams respect the human element as well. I hope the Crew<\/a> get paid back in karma (and that my B- grade above eventually looks dumb as hell).<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n They cleared out a DP (Klich) without opening a DP slot, signed a bunch of attackers without addressing the need for chance creation, and added a bunch of defenders without really appearing to upgrade the defense.<\/p>\n Last summer\u2019s big signing, Boris Enow<\/a>, has lost his starting job. This winter\u2019s big signing, U22 goalkeeper Kim Joon-Hong<\/a>, has also lost his starting job. There seems to be a disconnect.<\/p>\n Best move:<\/strong> I love the Fidel Barajas<\/a> acquisition and hope he gets on the field for more than the occasional five-minute cameo soon, because he might solve part of the chance-creation issues. And look, if he\u2019s on the right wing, and newly returned Kristian Fletcher<\/a> is on the left wing, with Christian Benteke<\/a> in the middle, that trio causes danger.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n They did really well getting Faf\u00e0 Picault<\/a> in free agency, got a bunch of young, high-upside guys from South America on loan and on the relative cheap, and addressed their biggest need (center back) by bringing in Maxi Falc\u00f3n<\/a>.<\/p>\n Miami<\/a> have the deepest roster I\u2019ve ever seen in MLS even after trading Robert Taylor<\/a> and reportedly moving on from Julian Gressel<\/a> this week. The since-departed Chris Henderson deserves a ton of credit for that, obviously. But just as obviously, whoever\u2019s making the decisions over the past six months has been smart about leveraging Miami\u2019s position as a destination, as well as using the lure of playing alongside the GOAT to add pieces other teams just don\u2019t have access to.<\/p>\n Add in the fact that Javier Mascherano is just as confident playing the homegrowns as Tata Martino was, and this whole thing looks sustainable.<\/p>\n Best move:<\/strong> I straight-up think Telasco Segovia<\/a> is better than Diego G\u00f3mez<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n They\u2019re going to do their thing, trying to find and maximize cast-offs while developing their own academy kids and, to a lesser extent, SuperDraft picks.<\/p>\n Say what you will about the tenets of this approach, but at least it’s an ethos. But if you don’t develop guys like you\u2019d want, or the game model changes, or you sell one too many load-bearing pieces, or you\u2019re hit with injuries, then the bottom can drop out quickly.<\/p>\n As indeed has happened for Montr\u00e9al<\/a> early this year.<\/p>\n Best move:<\/strong> It might not work out, but the theory behind taking a flier on Giacomo Vrioni<\/a> during the last year of his DP deal \u2013 with the Revs<\/a> picking up part of the tab \u2013 was good. Part of Montr\u00e9al\u2019s plan has to be finding DPs from around the league that aren\u2019t working out and getting them in on a cut-rate, exactly as they did here.<\/p>\n Alexey Miranchuk in the summer, maybe?<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n They used this winter to try and adjust the tactical blueprint away from absorb-and-counter into something much, much more free-flowing and ball-dominant. There have been some bumps in the road, of course, but it\u2019s mostly worked. B.J. Callaghan has done a very good job.<\/p>\n So, too, did general manager Mike Jacobs this winter. He brought in a couple of midfield table-setters who could both keep the ball and move it to high-value spots, while also adding a couple of dynamic wide players (one fullback, one midfielder).<\/p>\n They did not, however, add another goalscorer. Which they badly need.<\/p>\n Best move:<\/strong> I really like what I\u2019ve seen from Edvard Tagseth<\/a> thus far. Can\u2019t believe they got him on a free.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Nobody outside of San Diego<\/a> had a busier winter than the Revs, who\u2019ve torn down damn near the whole thing over the past couple of windows. Only two starters remain from this time last year, with three newcomers added over the course of last season, and six \u2013 six!! \u2013 added this winter.<\/p>\n That is so much work, and while I will continue to have my doubts, there\u2019s no denying this team appears to have hit on something over the past couple of weeks with the shift to a 3-4-1-2.<\/p>\n Best move:<\/strong> They had so much flexibility in part because they sold Esmir Bajraktarevi\u0107 to PSV Eindhoven for reportedly up to $6 million, which\u2026 I mean, that\u2019s pretty incredible to me. I still don\u2019t really get it.<\/p>\n But $3 million of that converts to GAM, and when you have that much GAM, you can do a lot of roster surgery.<\/p>\n On the flip side, if you told me 18 months ago that the Revs were only going to get $600k and add-ons for Noel Buck<\/a>, I\u2019d have laughed in your face.<\/p>\n Win some, lose some.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n There were a lot of raised eyebrows at the addition of veteran Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting<\/a> on a DP deal, and so far those eyebrows have mostly stayed raised. He\u2019s made his PKs and poached a couple of goals, but he\u2019s mostly a stationary, non-dynamic presence in and around the area, and he\u2019s not adding much against the ball, either.<\/p>\n We haven\u2019t seen much of Wiktor Bogacz<\/a> yet. Maybe someday we\u2019ll look back on this winter as the one in which the Red Bulls<\/a> finally found their BWP replacement. But today\u2019s not that day.<\/p>\n Best move:<\/strong> Getting $800k GAM for Andr\u00e9s Reyes<\/a> was a job very well done.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n NYCFC<\/a>\u2019s big move was bringing Pascal Jansen in as head coach to be something of a U22 whisperer. So far\u2026 not great.<\/p>\n I understand the decision to stand pat, given Jansen\u2019s reputation and past success in youth development. And look, some of that is there to see \u2013 Jonathan Shore<\/a>\u2019s been really good, Nico Cavallo<\/a> looks like a steal, and a few other academy kids have gotten onto the field.<\/p>\n But it looks like the front office might have missed on Juli\u00e1n Fern\u00e1ndez<\/a> and Agust\u00edn Ojeda<\/a>, and if that\u2019s the case, then they missed when they didn\u2019t do anything to replace those guys this winter.<\/p>\n Anyway, with James Sands<\/a> loaned out and then injured, and Shore really more of an 8 than a 6, they needed to get a d-mid. Australian international Aiden O\u2019Neill is reportedly on the way from Standard Liege, and that should help.<\/p>\n Best move:<\/strong> Getting reportedly $17 million for Santiago Rodr\u00edguez<\/a>? That\u2019s incredible work, even if it hasn\u2019t amounted to much in terms of improving the team.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n I frankly think they upgraded when they brought in Marco Pa\u0161ali\u0107<\/a> to replace Facu Torres. They also did very good work in adding central midfield depth \u2013 Joran Gerbet<\/a> and Colin Guske<\/a> \u2013 via the SuperDraft and from MLS NEXT Pro, respectively. This is a front office that kicks over stones and finds value, and front offices committed to doing that tend to build teams that make the playoffs every year.<\/p>\n My one knock is that they didn\u2019t add a big, new center-back signing. But Oscar Pareja\u2019s making due anyway, isn\u2019t he?<\/p>\n Best move:<\/strong> Getting reportedly up to $14 million for Torres was brilliant, but Eduard Atuesta<\/a> for free? That makes me weep tears of joy on behalf of Cats fans.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n A huge part of me really admires sporting director Ernst Tanner\u2019s approach to roster building, and his unshakeable belief that 1) the talent they\u2019re producing from within, and 2) the talent he finds on the cheap from overlooked or under-scouted places will be enough to propel this team to title contention. And look, the Union<\/a> have been playing very good ball so far in 2025.<\/p>\n But it\u2019s tough to argue that this group\u2019s in a better position to actually win silverware than they were last year, or the year before that, or the year before that, etc. etc. etc.<\/p>\n Best move:<\/strong> I don\u2019t think Jack McGlynn<\/a> was ever really going to fit this game model, so getting up to $3.4 million and a sell-on fee from a team where he\u2019s playing every single minute in a featured role was really shrewdly done. It\u2019s money in the bank, sends all the right signals to the next crop of homegrowns (i.e., we will find the right fit for you even if it\u2019s not with us), and opens up playing time for guys who fit.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n The Reds<\/a> appear to be in a holding pattern, with Lorenzo Insigne<\/a>\u2019s deal looming before they can do anything substantial. So yes, I\u2019m grading them on a curve.<\/p>\n And so I think they did a little bit better than I expected, bringing in several useful-looking players on loan, and promoting a few others from the academy (please let that pipeline be opened). It\u2019s not much, but it was a step forward.<\/p>\n Best move:<\/strong> Offloading Prince Owusu<\/a> got TFC a handful of GAM, opening up senior and international roster slots.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n