There have been some wonderful players over the 25-year history of MLS, but who ranks in the top five of the current crop of wingers in the league?
Here at MLS Multiplex, we have gone over the statistics, the awards won, the games played, the goals scored and the shutouts made to work out who we think are the best five players in the seven major positions in Major League Soccer right now.
We have gone through the best players of all-time across seven different categories, and now we are taking a look at the best current players in the league, in those same seven positions. In the all-time lists, the likes of Tony Meola, Carlos Bocanegra, Preki, Chris Wondolowski and Landon Donovan all took top honours for their respective positions.
Meanwhile, in the rest of the current lists to date, three Sounds players, in Stefan Frei, Cristian Roldan and Nicolas Lodeiro have taken the top spots in their categories, with Ike Opara and Ryan Hollingshead also having earned the spoils in their areas of expertise.
In this piece, we take a look at the best wingers that are currently playing in Major League Soccer, and there could be some contention as to who makes it in, so we do specify that these players have played on the wing for their clubs in a fair amount of games over the last few years.
The likes of Valeri Qazaishvili, Alberth Elis and Cristian Pavon all miss out on a spot on our top five, but who makes it in? Well, only one member of our top five has been in the league for more than two full seasons, while a couple of wingers make it in after a great debut campaign in 2019…
5. Johnny Russell
The first man to make our list of the best wingers who currently ply their trade in the American top flight is a Scottish import who has been one of Sporting Kansas City’s key parts over the last couple of seasons, Johnny Russell.
The winger’s professional career began in his native Scotland with Dundee United, where he played over 100 league games across a six-year spell which also included loan periods with Forfar Athletic and Raith Rovers. He then spent five seasons with English Championship side Derby County before making the move to MLS.
MLS Career & Honours:
- Sporting Kansas City (2018-)
The Scottish international signed for Sporting Kansas City at the start of the 2018 season and has since gone on to become one of their key men going forward, with his performances seeing him recalled into the national side later that year.
Russell hit double digits in both goals and assists during his first season in Major League Soccer, and the Scot was the franchise’s top scorer in the league with ten goals. He added ten assists, showing his all-round abilities during his first term.
That was almost matched in 2019, as the winger bagged nine goals during the regular season, whilst also recording nine assists in 28 league appearances. Russell also set up a goal in the early part of the 2020 term, before it was suspended due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus. The Scot will look to continue his good form when the season restarts next month.