On Thursday, Major League Soccer will hold the first two rounds of the 2015 MLS SuperDraft at the Philadelphia Convention. Real Salt Lake holds the 16th overall pick in the first round, but none in the second round. That pick, 37th overall, was traded to Toronto FC on January 30, 2013, in a trade that was consummated on the night before the 2013 MLS SuperDraft in Indianapolis, Indiana. In exchange for the club’s second round pick this year, Toronto sent Salt Lake Joao Plata in a late-night swap that was vividly recalled in a Salt Lake Tribune story following the 2013 season.
With Toronto FC, Plata had three goals and five assists in 36 matches, showing plenty of promise at just 20 years old. Then-GM Garth Lagerwey was understandably excited about acquiring the young forward, particularly after parting ways with key players Jamison Olave, Fabian Espindola and Will Johnson the previous month.
In the two seasons since arriving at Rio Tinto Stadium, Plata has 17 goals and 14 assists in 56 matches, winning RSL’s Golden Boot in 2014 with 13 goals. So when other teams are making their second round selections, bringing in young players in hopes of landing a diamond in the rough or a player with the potential to develop into a consistent contributor, Real Salt Lake will know that they already used their pick on a 22-year-old player who has already established himself as a star in Major League Soccer.
He is Plata.
