Photo Courtesy: Andy Mead
In our final positional preview for the 2015 MLS SuperDraft, we will examine the defenders and goalkeepers. J.R. Eskilson from TopDrawerSoccer.com capped off the series with an informative view on another strength in this year’s draft that includes a deep group of center backs.
“There are three or four good center backs and maybe a few others who could become good center backs. That’s the strong part of that group,” Eskilson said. “There are some good right backs in this class and there are some good center backs. There is decent talent among that and there are a lot of guys who have generated some buzz.”
Among the top talent in the defensive group is Ramon Martin Del Campo from UC Davis, Oumar Ballo from UMBC and Boyd Okwonwu from North Carolina.
Ballow stood out particularly to Eskilson, and not just because of his immense size.
“He’s a giant of a man. He’s good in the air. He’s good one-v-one. The question is if he will be able to play at the speed of MLS,” Eskilson said. “At UMBC is in one of the weaker conferences, so you don’t necessarily see those guys go against MLS talent. But he was able to get UMBC to College Cup and show that he was able to compete against any type of player. He was probably one of the best players in college soccer over the last year.”
On the other side of that coin is the under-sized Okwonwu, who had a standout career in the ACC as a center back despite a smaller stature.
“You could pair him with a big center back or play him at outside back. He completed a ton of passes, but you’ll have to see how he can do with one-v-one defending,” Eskilson noted.
While those prospects highlight the class of defenders, there is also a clear top goalkeeper in this year’s draft – Syracuse’s Alex Bono. The Generation adidas signing was invited to the U.S. National Team’s January camp and is the top dog in an otherwise steady group, though the rest of the class isn’t expected to be a factor in the SuperDraft until later rounds.
The 2015 MLS SuperDraft is scheduled to begin with Orlando City SC holding the first pick at 10:30 am MT on Thursday. Real Salt Lake holds the 16th pick in the first round. To watch live, click here.
