MLS: Top 5 German players in league history

SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - JULY 14: Julian Gressel #24 of Atlanta United reacts after falling to the Seattle Sounders 2-1 during their game at CenturyLink Field on July 14, 2019 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images)
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - JULY 14: Julian Gressel #24 of Atlanta United reacts after falling to the Seattle Sounders 2-1 during their game at CenturyLink Field on July 14, 2019 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images)
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SEATTLE, WASHINGTON – JULY 14: Julian Gressel #24 of Atlanta United reacts after falling to the Seattle Sounders 2-1 during their game at CenturyLink Field on July 14, 2019 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images)

There have been some amazing foreign imports in the 25-year history of MLS, but who ranks in the top five German players of all time? Here are our top five.

In total, 21 German players have graced the Major League Soccer stage.

Some have put their names in the history books in the league. Others have not. But who are the top five German exports to have graced the league with their presence?

Here is our list of the top five Germans to have featured in MLS.

SEATTLE, WASHINGTON – MARCH 01: Fabian Herbers #21 of Chicago Fire warms up before the match against the Seattle Sounders at CenturyLink Field on March 01, 2020 in Seattle, Washington. The Seattle Sounders topped the Chicago Fire, 2-1. (Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images)
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON – MARCH 01: Fabian Herbers #21 of Chicago Fire warms up before the match against the Seattle Sounders at CenturyLink Field on March 01, 2020 in Seattle, Washington. The Seattle Sounders topped the Chicago Fire, 2-1. (Photo by Alika Jenner/Getty Images)

5. Fabian Herbers

The first member on our list of the best German imports into Major League Soccer is a man into his fifth term in the league, Fabian Herbers. The attacking midfielder is one of two men on this list to have played professional football in Germany before then moving to the United States for college before graduating into the professional American system.

Herbers was drafted by the Philadelphia Union with the sixth overall pick in the 2016 MLS SuperDraft, though he spent some of the next three seasons on loan with Bethlehem Steel, including scoring their first-ever goal in 2016. He played 32 times in his first season, scoring three goals and assisting seven others, his best in terms of production so far in MLS.

After a couple more seasons in Philadelphia, where he struggled with injury, the German midfielder was traded to the Chicago Fire ahead of the 2019 campaign. Herbers featured 17 times over his first season in the Midwest, scoring three times and assisting one other.