2025 New Players to Watch

Keeping up with incoming players is essential during the MLS offseason. With the addition of San Diego FC as the 30th team, the quality of talent entering MLS is increasing yearly. That means more opportunities to stack a diverse MLS Fantasy roster. New players are also often moderately-priced, allowing managers to include more expensive players in their team. Although not a complete list, the following are some new players to watch for this preseason.

Western conference

• Myrto Uzuni

Austin FC set a club-record transfer agreement for Albanian forward Myrto Uzuni. Uzuni most recently played for Spain’s second-division club Granada, where he scored an impressive 49 goals in 105 appearances. He has also played for his national team, both U-22 and senior team. With Uzuni’s previous success and Austin in a position where they will be playing with something to prove, Uzuni should be on everyone’s radar for attacking players. 

• Hirving Lozano

San Diego is starting strong with the signing of Lozano, a 29-year-old Mexican national team winger. He came over from the Dutch team PSV. For PSV, he scored 10 goals in 33 appearances, and for the Mexican national team, he scored 18 goals in 70 appearances. With Lozano’s pedigree, he could be a top attacking force in MLS and a potential must-have on your roster.

• Anders Dreyer

San Diego also signed another winger, Dreyer, who has been playing on the Dutch national team since U-17 level. Dreyer is coming over from RSC Anderlecht, a first-division club in Belgium. From 2022 to 2025, Dreyer scored 26 goals in 69 appearances for RSC Anderlecht. Dreyer signed a three-year deal with San Diego, joining two other Dutch players, Jeppe Tverskov and Marcus Ingvartsen. The Dutch trio could have built-in chemistry, specifically Dreyer and Ingvartsen, as they play on the Dutch national team together. Like Lozano, Dreyer is coming in with quality experience and many goals. I’d be surprised if both weren’t included on many fantasy rosters early in the season.

• Igor Jesus

LAFC signed Igor Jesus, a 21-year-old Brazilian defensive midfielder from Portugal’s recently promoted club, C.F. Estrela da Amadora. He has also made five appearances for the Brazilian U-23 national team. Although a young player, Jesus will bring experience from both Europe and Brazil. It’s worth watching to see how LAFC utilizes Jesus. With the loss of Eduard Atuesta, Lewis O’Brien and Matuesz Bogusz, LAFC’s midfield is in dire need of reinforcements. Although he might not earn as many fantasy points as an attacking midfielder, he should help with possession and help the LAFC defense keep clean sheets.

• Timo Baumgartl

Timo Baumgartl is a German center-back who most recently played for Schalke 04, a Bundesliga 2 team. St. Louis struggled last season, giving up 63 goals in just 34 matches. Center-back Tim Parker has since moved to New England, leaving a space in the middle of defense that City needs to fill. Baumgartl is expected to be the man that fills that void. With powerhouse goalkeeper and team captain Roman Bürki, City is in a position to have a better defense this season. I’ll be keeping an eye on Baumgartl and his minutes as a potential set-piece target and clean sheet option. 

• Manu Garcia

Sporting KC is in year one of its multi-year rebuild. With many roles needing to be filled, bringing in an experienced attacking midfielder to help the rollercoaster offense is essential. Manu Garcia, a Spaniard, comes from Greece’s Super League club Aris, where he scored nine goals in 51 appearances. Sporting KC has struggled a lot over the past two years, but has made significant roster additions since last season. With the addition of Dejan Joveljić alongside Daniel Salloi and Eric Thommy, it’s worth watching Sporting KC and possibly picking up Manu as a value midfielder. 

Eastern conference

• Miguel Almirón

A familiar face for Atlanta United, Miguel is back after he was sold to Premier League’s Newcastle United in 2019 for a record MLS transfer fee of €24,000,000. Miguel helped bring the MLS Cup to Atlanta and cemented his name as a club legend. At Newcastle, Miguel scored 23 goals in 186 appearances. The experience of playing for 6 years in the Premier League will help Miguel return Atlanta to glory. The attacking midfielder should be on everyone’s list of potential midfielders, especially for matches that favor Atlanta United. 

• Emmanuel Latte Lath

Atlanta once again broke the MLS transfer record with the signing of 26-year-old Emmanuel Latte Lath for $22 million plus add-ons. Lath, who most recently played for EFL Championship club Middlesbrough FC and scored 27 goals in 58 appearances, will come into MLS with high expectations. Atlanta has opened its wallet with one, and I’m optimistic it will pay off. With a deal of this size, expectations will be sky high for Lath. He should be worth keeping in your weekly considerations.

• Kévin Denkey

FC Cincinnati is trying to determine what went wrong during the second half of 2024. Their last DP forward ended up being a huge flop, and too much was asked of Acosta. With the big money signing of Kévin Denkey, FC Cincinnati can hopefully get back on track. Denkey, a 24-year-old forward, played for Cercle Brugge K.S.V. in Belgium’s first division, where he scored 56 goals in 134 appearances. He also plays for his national team, Togo, scoring nine goals in 38 appearances. If Denkey and Acosta can work together (assuming Acosta stays in MLS with Cincinnati), Cincinnati should again fight for the Supporter’s Shield. 

• Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting

New York Red Bulls, coming off a successful season, rebuilt their attack with Cameroon forward Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting. Choupo-Moting comes from powerhouse Bayern Munich, where he scored 19 goals in 88 appearances. Choupo-Moting brings a wealth of experience and a first-class pedigree to NYRB. It will be interesting to see how he fits into NYRB. Choupo-Moting is 35, and while he is obviously a talented player, we have seen that older players from Europe, such as LAFC’s Olivier Giroud, struggle to perform in MLS.

• Wilfried Zaha

Wilfried Zaha, who spent the majority of his career at Crystal Palace, is a 32-year-old winger from the Ivory Coast. With a pedigree and goal-scoring ability, Charlotte is hoping he’ll add to an increasingly formidable attacking force. Zaha has 100 goals and 59 assists in his 524 professional matches. This wealth of experience in the Premier Leagues will immediately demand respect in the MLS. It goes without saying that you should watch Zaha and see how he adapts to MLS. In matchups that favor Charlotte, he could definitely be on your shortlist of attacking players. 

• Kim Joon-hong

DC United recently signed 21-year-old Korean goalkeeper Kim Joon-hong. In 2024, Kim played for Gimcheon Sangmu Football Club and Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors FC. He earned an impressive 15 clean sheets between the two clubs during the 2024 season. Kim should be an immediate upgrade to DC’s defense, but they are definitely a team in the midst of a rebuild. That means he’ll face a lots of shots and have a chance to make a ton of saves. Assuming he has earned the starting job, which I expect, he could be a value pick in favorable matchups.

Contributor: CJ, @CJ on Discord