Player Profile #27: Philip Lund

Breaking into lineup positions stocked with DPs, first round picks and surprise finds was always going to be hard, for Philip Lund it looks to have been a bit too hard.

#27 Philip Lund

The young Dane came in to compete for playing time along the wings and up top. The problem he had was that the competition included Martins, Johnson, Rosales, Zakuani, Evans, Martinez, Caskey and Neagle (that was just in the first half of the year). Breaking into that cast was always going to be tough. Throw in Dempsey, Burch and Moffat and it became impossible.

Offense: Pretty good dribbler of the ball. His 1,2 passing is good. Works triangles well, but is limited to shorter passes. Hard to dispossess for his size, mainly due to his good footwork. Not a danger to score. More a piano carrier in possession than a creator or scorer. Needs to place shots better.

Defense: Lund is better in systems where tracking back is a bonus rather than a requirement. Positional use is OK. He is not a tackler or ball winner. Doesn't fill space in dead ball situations, should be in wall.

Physique: A bit light for the heavy jostling of MLS. Not fast, but is slippery in traffic. Not tall, nor with a leaping ability to be a threat in the air. May not have the build to be an MLS player.

Best Case 2014: Lund is likely headed back to Denmark where he will certainly be a serviceable player in their professional ranks. He will always be a Sounder, but he is not currently on the roster.

* advanced stats will be listed for players meeting a minimum amount of minutes played. Thanks to sidereal for the assist formatting and collecting data.