MLS free agency opened for business on Wednesday, giving qualifying players the chance to bounce back into the league with a new club.
Per league rules, a player must be 24 years old and have at least five seasons in MLS. This means not every out-of-contract player qualifies.
However, there is still plenty of talent available and there’s no doubt clubs will be lining up to bolster their rosters at a discounted rate
Here, we rank the top 10 MLS free agents this winter.
Pedro Santos really has been the man for all occasions since joining the Columbus Crew from Braga in 2017.
The former Portugal youth international started out as a creative wide player who could also operate through the middle. More recently, he’s transitioned into a very effective full-back, offering far more defensively than many may have expected.
At 34, he’s not getting any younger, but Santos is extremely experienced, helped the Crew win MLS Cup in 2020, and could still offer good depth at the very least to a number of MLS teams.
Ronald Matarrita was on a big deal with FC Cincinnati, who clearly felt they could find similar quality on a lower wage elsewhere.
That said, the Costa Rica international, who is headed to the World Cup, is a very effective attacking full-back who shone for NYCFC before joining Cincinnati.
Injuries hindered him somewhat at TQL Stadium, but Matarrita would still be a great pick-up for many teams.
Gyasi Zardes felt exactly like the striker the Colorado Rapids had been craving for so long. The move is yet to fully work out, with just nine goals scored in 26 appearances across all competitions. Should the Rapids wish to sign him to a new deal, they’ll have to cough up some more General Allocation Money (GAM) to the Columbus Crew.
Still, that’s not an awful rate. And it doesn’t change the fact that Zardes is still a two-time MLS Cup champion, scorer of almost 100 regular-season goals, and a 68-time United States international.
At 31 years old, Zardes still has plenty of time to shine and will be highly coveted this winter.
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