It’s me, the matchmaker.
That’s what the transfer window is all about, right? It’s just a giant soccer version of Tinder, where front-office members, agents and players looking for love take turns swiping on each other until they find a match. You have to make a good first impression, you have to meet the family, and, eventually, you might end up signing up for a long-term commitment on the dotted line.
There’s no doubt about it: MLS clubs are ready to put themselves out there in the transfer market this summer. But what do they need the most?
Well, today I’m diving into five transfers I most want to see happen this summer. I’m not talking about names – that’s above my pay grade. Rather, I’m talking about profiles.
Let’s match up five MLS teams with the kind of player they need to help strengthen ahead of the playoff push. Atlanta United needing a No. 10 and a No. 9 would’ve been on this list… and then they signed Alexey Miranchuk (surely the striker is next).
Stepping away from the Five Stripes, here are five of the moves that should happen this summer.
Need: Striker
If you peek at some of the advanced metrics, you’ll see LAFC have the best expected goal differential per 90 minutes in MLS, according to FBref. You’ll then see the Columbus Crew have the next best xGD per 90. Makes sense, right? Those two are giants in their respective conferences. After LAFC and Columbus, you don’t see Inter Miami or FC Cincinnati or the LA Galaxy or Real Salt Lake sitting in third in the xGD race.
No, you see the New York Red Bulls.
The Red Bulls are an excellent team this year and have largely taken Sandro Schwarz’s tactical changes in stride. They are, yet again, one of the best defensive units in MLS. According to FBref, they allow just 1.06 non-penalty xG per 90, which is less than all but two other teams in MLS – LAFC and FC Cincinnati, who both allow 1.04.
Despite shifting his team to be more controlled in possession, it’s the defending that sets Schwarz’s Red Bulls apart.
Now, just because the defending shines doesn’t mean Schwarz should give up on improving his team’s work in possession. A couple of the Swedes they signed over the offseason in Emil Forsberg and Noah Eile both shine on the ball. What if those players had another forward to feed? And what if that forward created more space for Lewis Morgan to continue his career year? With a DP spot open, RBNY would benefit from a reliable line-leader who would let Forsberg, Morgan, and Dante Vanzeir work underneath.
The Red Bulls have a legitimate chance to win a trophy this year. Their chances improve dramatically with a big-time No. 9.
Need: Attacking midfielder
To carry on the theme of a team with an excellent defensive setup that puts together less-than-inspired attacking play, let’s talk Charlotte FC.
Between Dean Smith’s compact 4-4-2 defensive shape and otherworldly shot-stopping from Kristijan Kahlina, who has saved more goals than expected than any other goalkeeper in MLS this year, Charlotte have become a real problem for teams in the East. They don’t tend to bow out of games easily – even when the outfield players falter, Kahlina’s outstretched palms help them stay afloat.
Charlotte have been quietly excellent against the ball this year, but loudly poor with it.
They’re 26th in MLS in goals per 90, 23rd in non-penalty goals per 90, and 22nd in non-penalty xG per 90, all according to FBref. If one thing is clear about Sir Minty’s boys, it's that they need more juice in the attack. Young DP Liel Abada was a nice addition in the winter, but more help is required to turn this team into a true threat. Smith has been public with his desire to sign a No. 9, but the much bigger need is for the club to sign a player who will find that No. 9 in the box.
Between Karol Swiderski (who’s at his best playing as a true No. 9, in my humble opinion) and breakout striker Patrick Agyemang, they have options up top. What they don’t have is a playmaking attacking midfielder.
Until there’s a creator, there won’t be a hyper-threatening scorer.
Need: Striker
It took a while for him to really start revving the engine, but Austin FC sporting director Rodolfo Borrell has made some major improvements to his squad during this transfer window.
They’ve already strengthened at two spots along the backline and added DP winger Osman Bukari. But with the potential to open another DP spot by converting Alex Ring to a non-DP slot via allocation money, there’s room for even more top-end talent to join the party in Texas.
Now, Austin should be tempted by shifting Sebastián Driussi into the halfspaces and signing a pure No. 10. Driussi, lest we forget, is more scorer than creator. He’s in just the 22nd percentile among his positional peers in expected assisted goals this season, according to FBref. Looking past the Argentine, Austin doesn’t have an elite playmaker anywhere else in the squad.
But if Bukari is going to help carry the chance-creating load from the wing, and if Driussi can find a little more room in his passing game with better talent around him, a No. 9 could be the final piece of Austin FC’s attacking puzzle. Diego Rubio and Gyasi Zardes simply don’t combine to form an elite striker depth chart. Finding a high-quality, flexible No. 9 who presents a real goal threat inside the box and can also link play between the lines would be a massive boost.
I guess what I’m saying is go find another Chicho Arango. Easy, right?
…right?
Need: Attacking help
With Xherdan Shaqiri needing an exit and Gastón Giménez theoretically able to be moved off his DP tag, the Fire could make some serious moves in this summer window.
If the right dominoes fall, there should be tons of top-end flexibility in Chicago. Even more than that, there should be tons of tactical flexibility, giving the front office plenty of options in the transfer market. Frank Klopas has used a 4-2-3-1 and a 3-5-2 this year, playing both with and without a true No. 10. Missing a classic playmaking midfielder in the squad, it would be easy for the Fire to seek out a player in that profile to feed Hugo Cuypers.
However, they could also look for another striker to help bring Cuypers into the game should Klopas want to stick with that two-forward front. Chicago could even hunt for a winger and pivot to more of a Columbus Crew-esque 3-4-3 setup. Now, if you force me to choose, I would lean towards looking for a No. 10 and another forward to help Klopas play with something more akin to FC Cincinnati’s 3-4-1-2 structure.
There are options on options for the Chicago Fire in this window.
Need: Attacking help
Not unlike the Fire, the Vancouver Whitecaps could benefit from a player in any number of attacking positions in this summer transfer window. With Brian White (one of the best non-DP attackers in the entire league) and Ryan Gauld forming the foundation of an incredibly versatile frontline, there are all sorts of ways to round out a Big Three in Vancouver.
With Gauld’s positional versatility, Vanni Sartini could play him and White together as a front two with an incoming No. 10 threading through balls from the tip of midfield. Or, Gauld could shift just to the side of White and play opposite something closer to a true winger. Or, to toss out even one more option, Gauld could play underneath White and another forward, forming the top of what would likely be a 3-4-1-2 shape from Sartini.
I’d lean towards one of the first two choices because they leave Gauld with room to roam as part playmaker, part goal threat. Regardless of the specifics, it’s clear Vancouver need just a little more juice in the attack to keep up with the best in the West. It was clear last year, too.
Fafà Picault is having a career year with eight goals so far in 2024. But imagine how scary the 'Caps would be with another top-end starter and Picault fully embracing a super-sub role?
