Major League Soccer is announcing its 24 Under 24 list this week and per usual, it's full of some of the brightest young players the league has to offer. There is Jordan Morris of the Seattle Sounders and Orlando City's Cyle Larin, as well as FC Dallas midfielder Kellyn Acosta. (The final order will be announced on Thursday). But a perusal of the 50-player shortlist reveals some disquieting aspects as well.
Talented players such as the LA Galaxy's Jose Villarreal and the San Jose Earthquakes' Tommy Thompson are just two examples of performers who rarely see the field, reinforcing the impression that MLS is a league that doles out playing time to young players sparingly, especially on the attacking side of the ball.
"We're getting there but I think sometimes [in MLS] we're a little bit scared to play young players," said New York Red Bulls midfielder Sacha Kljestan via telephone. "I think sometimes in MLS we rely more on the veteran guys where we know what we're going to get. I think you'd be surprised if you gave some of these young guys a chance to play over a run of games where they could prove themselves."
Kljestan pointed to his time at Anderlecht when a young midfielder named Dennis Praet was coming through the club's youth system. Anderlecht started doling out playing time to Praet when he was 17, gradually increased his minutes and ultimately saw the payoff. Anderlecht recently sold Praet to Serie A side Sampdoria for €10 million.
"Praet wasn't ready right away but by the time he was 18 he pretty much was handed the keys to the attack," said Kljestan. "He's become a great player. Obviously, he's a very special talent but he also was given a lot of opportunities as a younger player."
So does the perception that MLS doesn't give young players enough of a chance match reality? The 24 Under 24 list certainly highlights those players who have made an impact and Morris is one example where patience on the part of the team paid off. But a closer inspection of the numbers reveals something of a mixed bag.
According to data provided by the Elias Sports Bureau, in the past five seasons (including 2016), the percentage of playing time doled out to players under 24 has decreased from a peak of 24 percent in 2013 to 18 percent this season. The numbers for U.S.-born players under 24 are dropping as well. In 2013, that group garnered 13.8 percent of the available minutes compared to 8.8 percent so far in 2016.
That trend is certainly not encouraging but compared to other leagues, MLS doesn't do badly. According to Opta, MLS players under the age of 24 have garnered 18.57 percent of the total available minutes so far this season. By way of comparison, in the 2015-16 season, players in the same age bracket received 16.66 percent of the minutes in the Premier League and 25.25 percent in the Bundesliga. In the Liga MX 2016 Clausura, the percentage during was 15.65.
When the age cutoff is moved down to under 22 years, the numbers aren't as favorable. In MLS, just 5.9 percent of the minutes went to players in that age bracket while the Bundesliga checks in at 11.47 percent, the Premier League at 6.8 percent and Liga MX at 6.78 percent.
The differences in the data among countries can be explained any number of ways though most point to the fact that there is more work to be done on the MLS player development front. While player development is often cyclical in nature, the emphasis on getting an education in the U.S. means that players often mature later than in other countries. The migration of U.S. youth players to Europe seems to be picking up steam again, as evidenced by Weston McKennie's signing with Bundesliga side Schalke 04. In some cases the academies are still in their infancy, and the use of reserve teams in the USL is a relatively recent development as well.
"We still have this gap out of the academy," said LA Galaxy manager Bruce Arena earlier this year. "Are they ready to play for the next team, the second team or the first team? It's not like we're carrying them all the way through. A couple of them make it. A couple of them get promoted or graduated, however you want to say it. And then others are done. It's going to take time. We don't have the resources and the time invested in the academy programs yet to really pay dividends."
MLS isn't some soccer charity designed to hand out minutes to young players, either. Playing time has to be a meritocracy otherwise a manager will lose the faith of his players in a nanosecond. And while the MLS regular season is often derided as meaningless, the playoff system means there is a distinct dividing line between what constitutes success and failure. The managerial merry-go-round might not be as chaotic as it is in other countries but there are consequences, thus the impulse to live more for the present, especially for those teams hovering around the red line.
For example, San Jose Earthquakes manager Dominic Kinnear has come under criticism for not getting more out of Thompson. Now in his third season with the club, Thompson hasn't managed to break out of his "super sub"/spot starter role and has spent considerable time with USL side the Sacramento Republic in a bid to get more minutes.
"It's all based on trying to win the game," said Kinnear about his lineup choices. "It's a crazy balance because you want to make sure you don't stunt a player's growth and that's why the USL part is pretty helpful. But on the other side of it, you always want what I feel is -- and others may feel differently -- my best team at that particular time."
Thompson, for his part, has made more of his opportunities of late, including a bright 10-minute stint last week against Colorado in which he played some dangerous passes in and around the opposition penalty area.
"For Tommy, we've got some guys playing well in those positions and he's behind some guys," said Kinnear. "I think defensively he's improved, I just think that when you look at it, you want to see him score goals, get assists and be productive. It's also about decisions in the final third. You don't want to say, 'you get as much time as possible.' There's got to be a production level as well."
Just when a player will make the most of that opportunity is difficult to predict. But with the right mixture of patience and high expectations, the next 24 Under 24 member can emerge.