MLS Next Playoffs: U15 and U16 Standouts

<strong>FRISCO</strong>, Texas - Day 1 of the MLS NEXT Playoffs in Frisco, Texas, was an extreme scorcher. The heat was intense all day, but the lads who participated today did not let it upset or impact them. I witnessed some excellent goalkeeping, defense, and goal-scoring performances. From the fortunate guys who played in the 9 am time slots through the later games tonight, the standard today was one of the best I have ever seen. I have been attending this tournament for a couple seasons now. Now to the real reason you are here. Here’s my rundown of a couple of players who stood out to me from today’s games where the U15 and U16 age brackets were in the spotlight. Austin Montoya, Barca Residency Academy U15 Position: Goalkeeper #68 I was very impressed with this goalkeeper today. Reasons why: He has good height and body size. He is a very good talker, even when his team was up and somewhat dominant in the game, he was still organizing and talking. When he did have to make any save, he was technically quite good and covered his angles very well, was up quick, and re-started the game quite effectively. Very comfortable on the ball, great from the ground and out of hand, mainly played from the ground. Has a great spring for high balls and took up very good starting positions at all times on his defense and when his team played was on offense, he was not afraid to take his positioning higher up in his half. It will be worth keeping an eye on this goalkeeper going forward. Nayan Das, FC Boston Bolts U16 Position: Center Back #4 This Center Back oozes class is what I can add here. He played way above his age and is very assured on the ball, strong on both left and right. Das has great positioning and is not afraid to go into midfield and play and start attacks. Das is quick in mind as well as body and strong in the tackle too when he needed to win the ball. Has the great physical size to add to his speed also. Another to keep an eye on going forward. Nakai Antoine, BW Gotschee U16 Position: Left Side Forward #16 Nakai plays fast and direct. He is very confident on the ball and able to play with both feet. He has very clever movement and drifts wide to create more space for himself and his teammates. He is well-sized and strong on-ball, not knocked off the ball easily. He possesses a great shot and good eye for goal too. Liam Mackenzie, BW Gotschee U16 Position: Left Sided Midfield Liam is quite an accomplished player and is tidy on the ball and off the ball also. Very disciplined in his positioning defensively. Liam is very comfortable on the ball. He links play very well from defense to offense. Has great size and is quick of mind and speed as well as having a great eye for goal and passing. Seems he could play as a 10, 8, or a 6. Jayden Ramos, Real JFC U15 Position: Forward Jayden possesses a "never say die" attitude. From the moment game started to end, he kept running and closing down the opposition defenders and did not give them an inch. He possesses a very good shot. He has very good hold-up abilities and is quick with the ball and also without the ball too. He has clever movement also and had defense on the move at all times. He is quite adept at using both feet as well as having very good dribbling abilities too.