Could homegrown imports like Minnesota United’s Christian Ramirez help MLS get over its reluctance to mine talent from the NASL and USL?
Every season, Major League Soccer has a crop of breakout players who are new to the league – this year we have Atlanta’s Josef Martínez (the Venezuelan who scored five goals in his first three matches – after netting just seven in three years with Turin). The best of these players often come from Europe or South America and immediately become key starters.
This year, there have been more examples of domestic players moving from the US lower divisions and succeeding in MLS than any year in recent memory. New York Red Bulls center back Aaron Long made his MLS debut in March and has started 13 matches for a potential MLS Cup contender. Meanwhile, expansion side Minnesota United has gotten crucial minutes from NASL domestic holdovers Christian Ramirez and Brent Kallman. Impressively, Ramirez has seven goals in his first 12 MLS matches, three off the Golden Boot pace.
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