Stanford's Vincent on Union's radar for MLS SuperDraft
Not surprisingly, neither sporting director Earnie Stewart nor coach Jim Curtin was willing to tip his hand when discussing the Union's plans for the Major League Soccer SuperDraft on Thursday.
Not surprisingly, neither sporting director Earnie Stewart nor coach Jim Curtin was willing to tip his hand when discussing the Union's plans for the Major League Soccer SuperDraft on Thursday.
This is the first draft for Stewart and a critical one for a team coming off a 10-17-7 season. The Union will have two of the top six picks. They will select third (their own pick) and sixth, a pick acquired in a trade with Houston.
If he is available, it would be a surprise if the Union didn't select left back Brandon Vincent of NCAA champion Stanford at No. 3. Vincent is not attending the MLS combine in Florida for a good reason. He was invited to attend the U.S. national team's training camp, which began Monday at the team's training center in Carson, Calif.
"It is not to our advantage to say right now in the rat race we have going on until after the draft and to actually comment on who we find as attractive players for the Philadelphia Union going forward," Stewart said Monday during a conference call with reporters.
Stewart was asked whether being called up to the national team could elevate Vincent's status even further, meaning could he be drafted first or second, just ahead of the Union's selection. Georgetown center back Josh Yaro and Wake Forest midfielder Jack Harrison are expected to be the first two picks. The Chicago Fire will select first, and the Colorado Rapids will pick second.
"No, that is emotion, and we try to stay as far as possible from that," Stewart said. ". . . A player gets called for the U.S. national team, and that is great for the player, but it doesn't necessarily mean we have to move on that because we have the way we look at soccer and have our demands and what we need positionally, and that won't change for us."
Stewart and Curtin confirmed that right back Keegan Rosenberry of Georgetown and forward Darius Madison of Maryland-Baltimore County will not be homegrown players. A homegrown player who is signed by an MLS team is not subject to the draft.
"Neither of them will be homegrown players," Curtin said. "It's one of those things that is disappointing, but we have to move on from."
Rosenberry spent some time with the Philadelphia Union Academy and has trained with the Union in the past. It would not be out of the question if the Union selected him with the No. 6 pick or attempted to acquire another first-round pick to draft him.
Madison, who began his career at Virginia, is a product of La Salle High.