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With less than two months to go to the start of the first ever CanPL season the league is starting to take shape. Sure, we might not have all the information that we would like, but by in large you can kind of close your eyes and see it now. Having gone through a four year journey from rumour to reality it’s more than a bit surreal. But, it’s not as surreal as the thought of Diego Forlan ending his career in Winnipeg, Manitoba. That’s not a knock on Winnipeg. It’s just not normally seen as a place where guys that played in Madrid and Milan end up. Maybe it is now though and that’s another aspect of the league, albeit not the one that most people focus on. It’s also an aspect that will divide opinion. Keeping in mind that the Forlan rumour is far from a sure thing – it’s just the first true “silly season” suggestion in the league’s history. There will be more – should fans be excited by the possibility of an aging global superstar ending his career, or should they worry about the league losing its focus and becoming more about the sizzle of marketing than the steak of development. Yes. The answer to both is yes. But, as long as the 6 Canadian starting rule is in place it doesn’t seem likely that the CanPL is going to go down the path of the Beckham-era MLS. In that case, is there really any harm in a guy like Forlan coming over? Some might suggest that he’s taking time away from a young Canadian. Maybe, but at 40 he won’t be taking that time away for long. The key would be to make sure he was coming with the understanding that his role was to be a mentor to young players as much as it would be to score goals for Valour. If he is willing to play that elder statesmen role then it might be a very good fit – particularly if he could be convinced to play a role beyond his playing years. Maybe that seems farfetched, but there’s a tournament of note happening here in 7 years. A guy like Forlan might see opportunity in associating himself with that. As stated, this is still a long shot, but the underlying value of foreign players coming in and sticking around remains an important part of the league. Those players won’t often be in Forlan’s league, but think about how much Danny Dichio has given to the Toronto soccer scene. His value to the game here goes far beyond seat cushion memories. The game has come a long way since those cushions flew, but it still has a long way to go, especially in places like Winnipeg where they are just now getting a professional team. So, if Forlan comes don’t over think it. Instead, sit back and see what happens. It is hard to argue it would be a bad thing. At worse, he comes, sells a few tickets and fades away without doing much else. At best, he helps mold a future Canadian national team striker. Either way, the league will march on. View full record

The following is a critical evaluation of each CanPL roster so far. Each player signing will be given a brief description and provided with a ranking from 1 to 5. Ultimately the ranking will be subjective, based on my understanding of the pool, conversations I’ve had with technical staff and the previous player of the player. The rankings are meant as a starting point for discussion, not an end. If you disagree, let me know in the comments. I’m open to change Winnipeg Skylar Thomas – D – Big, strong and great in the air – was a regular starter in USL – stand out at top NCAA program – 3.5/5 Stephen Hoyle – F - International – technically strong – professional attitude—has scored at similar level in past – 3.5/5 Tyson Farago – Keeper – deep roots to Winnipeg – journeyman keeper with solid leadership qualities – 2.5/5 Dylan Sacramento – MF – quick player – good offensive instincts – has been questioned on commitment in past – Stand out on TFCA L1O champion team – 1.5/5 Jordan Murrell – DF – Solid defender – regular USL starter -- won’t standout for good OR bad reasons – 2/5 Glenn Muenkat – MF – Fast and athletic – has struggled to get regular playing time at pro level – 2/5 Raphaël Garcia – DF – tall defender – needs to work on strength – decent technically, but raw – from Impact acdemy – 1/5 Raphael Ohin – MF – International – strong on the ball – impossibly good attitude – very committed player – 2/5 Tyler Attardo – F – He’s 17! – likely a longer term project – raw rookie – 1/5 Dylan Carreiro - --MF – Creative and technically gifted – the type of player this league was made for – 3/5 Mathias Janssens – Keeper – international - only 20 – was in Belgian third tier – likely a long-term project – 1/5 Josip Golubar – MF -- international – veteran with more than 400 professional games – leader – was in Croatian second tier previously – 3/5 Martin Arguiñarena – Very experienced and technical defender – 4/5 Nestor Navia – VERY intriguing creative midfielder – 4/5 Nicolás Galvis – Colombia trained player. Interesting possibilities – 3/5 Ali Musse – Homecoming for a Foothills player – 1/5 Diego Guitiérrez – Duel national player who played pro in Chile – 3.5/5 Michael Petrasso –Former Canadian international. Stock has slipped, but still might have a lot to give – 3/5 TOTAL – 18 players (2F, 5M, 4D, 2K) – Ave ranking – 2.47 – CanPL ranking 1 Calgary Sergio Camargo – MF – Creative midfielder – TFC homegrown – been with Calgary program for while – 3/5 Nik Ledgerwood – D/MF – 34 years old – extensively experienced – Played at very high level, but can he still keep up – great leader – 3.5/5 Chris Serban – D – bit undersized – decent with ball – USL experience with Whitecaps 2 – bee in Foothills program for a while -- 2/5 Elijah Adekugbe – MF – quick holding mid –suffered major injury – Whitecaps academy – 1.5/5 Dominick Zator – D – big and good in air – limited pro experience – Been with Foothills – 1/5 Marco Carducci – Keeper – USL experienced – Was with MLS Caps – bit undersized – 2.5/5 Oliver – FW – Savvy forward with a lot of lower level experience – was a standout with Fury – 4/5 Nico Pasquotti – MF – Was with Foothills – Rookie – raw – 1/5 Dean Northover – MF – he tore up Alberta college soccer and was with Foothills – raw rookie – 1/5 Niko Giantsopoulos – Keeper—Huge – journeyman player – professional attitude – 2.5/5 Carlos Patino – MF – clever attacking mid – played in foothills system – 2/5 Jordan Brown – FW – international – maybe the most intriguing signing in the league – played in the Europa League (albeit once) – ceiling could be very high – 4/5 Julian Büscher -- MF – Former German youth international – first round SuperDraft pick – struggled to get time at DCU – good tactical awareness – 3.5/5 Nathan Mavila – Played at West Ham youth – described as a modern fullback – good degree of experience for young age – 2.5/5 Mason Trafford – Solid vet – Brings experience – 3/5 Malyk Hamilton – Exciting prospect that is returning home – 1.5/5 Jay Wheeldon – Likely to play as much as of a player-assistant manager – Tommy’s brther 2.5/5 TOTAL on Feb 15 – 17 players – Ave ranking 2.38 – CanPL ranking 2 Hamilton Kyle Bekker – MF – Technically gifted. Good on set-pieces. Previous USL all-star. MLS experience. 4/5 Chris Nanco – F – quick – bit undersized – more of a support striker in past – USL experienced – 2/5 Marcel Zajac – F – Stand out in NCAA with Akron – rookie – intriguing prospect from technical college program 1.5/5 Tristan Borges – MF – Creative midfielder – youth player in Holland – Canadian youth international – first senior pro team – 2/5 Bertrand Owundi – D – International – raw defender – struggled at MLS level – prone to errors – big and athletic – 2/5 Kwame Awuah – D – good with ball – excelled at top NCAA program – limited MLS experience – bit undersized – 2/5 Alexander Achinioti Jönsson – MF – strong and tall presence in midfield – been pro for 4 years – Swedish 2nd Div – 3/5 Giuliano Frano – MF – Plays with sandpaper – Whitecaps 2 and Sounders 2 experience – good history with Forge technical staff – 1.5/5 Dominic Samuel—D – High ceiling prospect – League1 Ontario defender of the year – Pro experienced – 2/5 Triston Henry – K—Solid at amateur level – raw pro – 1/5 Jonathan Grant – D—Tall and athletic outside back – has struggled to get a chance since leaving Sigma – 2/5 Elimane Oumar Cisse – a fascinating signing and potentially game changing – established international – if adjusts he could be a star – He could also be a bust…thought really goes both ways 3/5 Quillan Roberts – Needs to play. A mystery until we see it – 2.5/5 Daniel Krutzen, -- Came from the youth ranks at Genk. Promising, but unknown – 2/5 Monti Mohsen – Mostly a rookie – Cup of coffee at USL – 1/5 Kadell Thomas – Long timestandout for Sigma in L1O – still a rookie – 1.5/5 David Choiniere – High ceiling midfielder – chose CPL over USL – 2.5/5 Emery Welshman – Homecoming for the hold up forward. Can he score? – 3.5/5 TOTAL on March 19 -- Ave ranking 2.16 – CanPL ranking 3 Pacific Kadin Chung – D – Outside back – considered one of best prospects – Was in Caps plans, but decided to try Europe – 2.5/5 Marcus Haber –FW – Arguably the highest profile signing in league – full Canadian international – when on he can be very effective – some question about consistency – 4.5/5 Alessandro Hojabpour – MF – good attacking instincts – some pro experience – 2/5 Matthew Baldisimo – MF – Caps academy product – good amount of USL experience 1.5/5 Terran Campbell – Raw striker – limited pro experience – 1/5 Noah Verhoeven – MF – good attacking instincts – another young, Caps academy player – some pro experience – 1.5/5 Mark Village – Keeper – very little experience for a player his age, even at keeper -- 1.5/5 Ben Fisk – MF -- Solid, professionally winger – good leadership qualities -- adaptable – 3/5 Jose Hernandez – FW – raw rookie – 1/5 Victor Blasco – MF – Said to be a sleeper signing by some – technically skilled – 3/5 Marcel de Jong – D – Very experienced full-back – full Canadian international – should link well with Haber – 4/5 *** OUT FOR SEASON *** 0/5 Nolan Wirth – k – Strong keeper with local ties – badly needs to play regularly at pro level – 1.5/5 Issey Nakajima-Farran – Journeyman vet that has played at a good level. Still has legs? 3.5/5 Hendrik Starostzik – Was at the B2 level, but struggled to find time. Big body. Might fit style – 2.5/5 Lukas MacNaughton – Another big body. First pro chance – 2/5 TOTAL—15 players (2F, 4M, 2D, 2K) – Ave rating: 2.1– CanPL rank: 4 Edmonton Randy Edwini-Bonsu – FW – Solid hold up forward with lots of experience – professional attitude – 3/5 Allan Zebie – DF – Experienced defender familiar with FCE – does what’s on the box – 3/5 Ajay Khabra – MF – untested midfielder – good attacking instincts – played in FCE system -- 1/5 Bruno Zebie – FW – Been in FCE system long time – one appearance in NASL – 1/5 Ajeej Sarkaria – FW – The all-time Canada West scoring leader – untested at pro – 1.5/5 Son Yongchan -- MF – “The best player at the open trials” – played lower Asian leags – mystery – 2/5 Connor James – Keeper – was arguably the best keeper in USports last year – untested as pro – 2/5 Dylon Powley – Keeper – a long and winding road career path – excelled with Foothills – untested at pro level – 2/5 Oumar Diouck – FW – Hold up striker with a good amount of experience—not the best finisher – played in Belgium 2nd – 2.5/5 Ramόn Soria – DF – international - Maybe the most technically skilled defender in league – strong leadership skills – 4.5/5 Kareem Moses – international - DF – very experienced outside back – previously with FCE – 4/5 Edem Mortotsi – MF – Great connection with FCE technical staff – a lot of dedication to club – solid – 2.5/5 Tomi Ameobi – international - F - Veteran and FCE legend. -- Could be better finisher – can’t question desire – 3.5/5 Marcus Velado-Tsegaye – MF – Young andraw. Quick on transition – 1/5 Prince Amanda – MF – May be able to transition to outside back – good on the dribble—raw 1/5 David Doe – FW – Has scored at will at amateur level – great work rate – young, but already experienced – 2/5 James Marcelin – Mid – Solid journeyman – pro – has excelled at similar level – 3/5 Jeannot Esua – D – Athletic and attack minded fullback – fairly raw – 1.5/5 Philippe Lincourt-Joseph – M – solid player, if not spectacular – was in Impact system for good amount of time – 2/5 Mele Temguia – D – Another Impact academy product. Dropped off map a couple years ago. Last chance? – 1/5 Mélé Temguia – Academy grad. Rookie – 1/5 Philippe Lincourt-Joseph – Academy grad. Rookie 1/5 TOTAL 22 players -- Ave rating – 2.09– CanPL rank 5 York 9 Kyle Porter – MF – Journeyman pro – bounced around – struggled to break into MLS level but was solid for FCE in NASL – 3.5 Simon Adjei – FW – International – Huge body – poacher – with service could be very dangerous – probably would create much on own – 3.5/5 Austin Ricci – FW – Stand out locally, but mostly untested professionally – solid for mid-major NCAA – 1/5 Steven Furlano – DF – no nonsense defender – some USL experience – 1.5/5 Roger Thompson – DF – strong, professional defender – lots of experience in tier two leagues – 2.5/5 Joseph Di Chiara – MF – Brave player – attack minded-- played in Eastern Europe – ripped up L1O – this is first time he’s in key spot on a team – could be a sleeper star in league – 3/5 Manuel Aparicio – MF – Creative and technical midfielder that never got a real chance at TFC – make or break time – 3/5 Cyrus Rollocks – FW – One of L1O’s best players while with TFC3 -- Big body – Potential – 1.5/5 Wataru Murofushi – MF – technical and quick attack minded mid – scored a lot in Philippians league – mystery 2.5/5 Munir Saleh – MF – Technical midfielder that played at a high NCAA level – Played on KW United – 2/5 Matt Silva – Keeper – journeyman pro with lots of experience at lower European levels -- 2.5/5 Michael Cox – FW – Big body forward. Solid player at USL level – 3/5 Daniel Gogarty – D – Good with ball – standout at Canadian University – raw 1/5 Justin Springer – D – Standard defender – raw – 1/5 Morey Doner – D – fast, outside back – great story, but no pro experience – 1/5 Emilio Estevez – MF – Star at Canadian college. Raw rookie – 1/5 Luca Gasparotto – D – Once a darling of Canadian soccer – fell off radar while struggling for time in Scotland – last chance? Ceiling is high if finds form again – 2.5/5 Diyaeddine Abzi – Fast outside back – first pro experience – 1/5 Ryan Telfer – Loan player from TFC. Club still has hope, but he needs to show – 2.5/5 TOTAL – 19 players (4F, 5M, 1K, 7D) – Ave ranking 2.07 – CanPL rank: 6 Halifax Zachary Sukunda – DF – good attacking instinct – crosses well – played in Australian 2nd tier – journeyman – 2.5/5 Akeem Garcia – F – international - quick – bit undersized – T&T youth international – 2.5/5 Andre Rampersad – international - MF – raw midfielder – “a wildcard” – 2/5 Elton John – MF – journeyman – good veteran experience – strong and fast – plays a mean piano – 2/5 Jan-Michael Williams – Keeper – vastly experienced and good leader – played mostly in T&T – 4/5 Chakib Hocine – DF – what-you-see-is-what-you-get-defender – will play safe, with limited mistakes – some question about ball skills – 1.5/5 Elliot Simmons – MF – good prospect, if raw – passes well – limited experience – 1/5 Vincent Lamy – F – No pro experience, but a very intriguing attacking prospect – tore up US development league last year – can he make jump to pro? 1.5/5 Scott Firth – MF – Long-term prospect – local product – 1/5 Ndzemdzela Langwa – D – Fast and attack minded – Limited experience – his nickname is Zoom, so that’s fun – 1.5/5 Chrisnovic N’sa – D – young, raw defender from Impact academy – 1/5 Alex De Carolis – D – Journeyman outside back – solid pro – 2/5 Christian Oxner –K – Usports keeper – local to Halifax – raw – 1/5 Kodai Iida –MF- small, but “slippery” was a stand out at open trials – a 24 year old rookie -- dedicated -- 1.5/5 Kouamé Ouattara – MF – Very strong – a CanPL “Yaya Toure? – pretty raw – 1.5/5 Juan Diego Gutierrez –M—Creative – journeyman – lots of pro experience – 2.5/5 Luis Alberto Perea F – Scored at similar level – experienced – age a question – 3.5/5 TOTAL – 17 players (3F, 6MF, 5D, 2K) – Ave ranking – 1.73 – CanPL ranking – 7 View full record