The Seattle Sounders are well-known for having one of the most robust homegrown talent pipelines in Major League Soccer, in large part thanks to the work being done at the Tacoma Defiance, where academy graduates are allowed to cut their teeth in a lower-stakes professional environment. The “next man up” ethos that has ensured first-team opportunities for plenty of up-and-coming youngsters at the Defiance is one that the club takes great pride in. GM Craig Waibel and head coach Brian Schmetzer espouse ideas of local pride, academy-driven success, and belief in a shared identity that permeates throughout the club.
To say that this strategy has been successful is an understatement. In recent years, many of the club’s top players and prospects have come through this pipeline, from Obed Vargas, who joined the academy at 14 and played 28 games for the Defiance, to Snyder Brunell, who joined the Sounders academy from Crossfire Premier in 2021.
Tacoma Defiance, however, cannot be composed solely of academy kids; in fact, some of the team’s best products in recent years, such as Osaze De Rosario, Paul Rothrock, and current forward Mark Bronnik, have been acquired from other Next Pro, USL, or Canadian Premier League sides.
The difficulty with signing players from other Next Pro sides is that many have already committed to first-team contracts with their respective MLS clubs. This makes realistic talent identification harder, but not impossible, and Defiance’s proximity to the first team is likely enticing to prospects elsewhere that may not see such opportunity at their current club. While the Sounders still need to target high-end MLS-ready contributors, here are three available youngsters from Next Pro who show first-team-caliber potential that the Sounders and Defiance could target this summer:
Kevin Gbamble
The Columbus Crew 2 forward has nine goals and eight assists in just 15 starts, placing him near the top of the league in terms of final product. At the Next Pro level, there’s often a need to take some of these scoring figures with a grain of salt, but Gbamble is the real deal. He has scored about as many goals as you would expect based on his shot selection, which is exceptional. Despite playing a grand majority of his minutes on the wing, the Ivorian’s expected goals (xG) per shot of 0.16 lies between that of an average MLS striker (0.19) and that of an MLS winger (0.13), indicating that he knows how to find good locations, a trait that matters far more than taking a high quantity of shots.
Gbamble is also efficient on the ball — he ranks highly in both progressive carries and take-on win %, and his dribbling goals added (g+) per 96 minutes of 0.09 is higher than any player with more than 200 minutes for the Defiance or Sounders this season. His profile is reminiscent of Rothrock, but better; Gbamble is the type of player to come off the wing and be a direct goal threat, receiving the ball in dangerous areas and converting that into high-quality chances. While his off-ball abilities could use some refinement, he’s active in the final third and has shown a willingness to get involved defensively.
At 19, Gbamble has plenty of room to grow and is already logging 0.88 non-penalty xG plus xA per 96 minutes with over 1,500 minutes played. It could be difficult to pry away such a talented player from the Crew, but his profile could certainly be of use in Seattle as the team begs for a change of pace in attack. The major complicating factor would be Gbamble’s nationality, as he would require an international slot if signed directly to the Sounders. However, the Sounders recently gained an international slot from the loan of Yu Tsukanome, and if they are unable to fill that slot with a higher-profile player, Gbamble could be worth the investment.
Damian Nigg
Nigg, 21, was signed to Chicago Fire II from Switzerland's Grasshopper just over a year ago and has since become a mainstay in Fire II’s starting lineup. In Zurich, Nigg was frequently deployed on the wing, but since moving to the United States he has also played a more defensive role as one of Fire II’s wingbacks. While it’s clear that fullback isn’t Nigg’s primary position, he’s adapted to it well, putting in solid defensive numbers while also providing the team with exceptional progression in wide areas and creative production they otherwise wouldn’t get from a run-of-the-mill defender.
With a good mix of passing and carrying quality, and an ability to play on both sides of the field, Nigg could be a useful asset to the Sounders as a backup to either Alex Roldan or Nouhou. If Brian Schmetzer returns to a three-at-the-back formation, Nigg would be well suited for such a tactical setup as a wingback. And while there may be some concerns of playing such an attacking-minded player at fullback, Nigg’s interrupting g+ of 0.00 is average among players at the same position and surpasses Alex Roldan’s value of -0.02. The Swiss defender also doesn’t turn the ball over as much as one would expect given his attacking tendencies, which bodes well for his transition to first-team soccer.
The Fire have a fairly full roster at the moment, whereas the Sounders have more flexibility to add new players. Like Gbamble, Nigg would occupy an international roster slot if signed. Given his age and profile, an initial move to Tacoma Defiance would likely be acceptable for the time being and could offer more opportunity for a pathway to the first-team than Nigg’s current club.
Daniel D’Ippolito
A 21-year-old Fordham graduate now playing at Next Pro side Connecticut United FC, Daniel D’Ippolito has four goals and six assists through just eight starts and 17 appearances. Rather than being a traditional No. 9, D’Ippolito fulfills more of the creative responsibilities, as well, with 0.30 xA per 96 and a knack for playing progressive passes.
Given his positional flexibility, D’Ippolito would offer something markedly different to Mark Bronnik and Osaze De Rosario, who are both more traditional poachers. That being said, his production in front of goal remains high — D’Ippolito averages 0.69 non-penalty xG per 96 and over 48% of his shots come from progressive passes, the most valuable form of shot creation.
D’Ippolito has always been as much of a goal-scorer as he is a creator; in his senior year of high school, D’Ippolito was named the Gatorade New York Boys Soccer Player of the Year after scoring 36 goals and assisting 38 on his way to a state championship. At Fordham, D’Ippolito continued that trend with 25 goals and 19 assists through 69 appearances. His versatility is something that the Sounders and Defiance could surely use, and at just 21, D’Ippolito could grow into an even more mature two-way forward.
Given his playing time at Connecticut United, D’Ippolito likely wouldn’t slot into first-team right off the bat, but Defiance could use another productive attacker and his status as a U.S. citizen would mean that the Sounders wouldn’t need to use an international slot on him if he were to sign a first-team contract. His low playing time could be of benefit to the Defiance, as well. D’Ippolito has been splitting minutes with Barnabas Tanyi and Laurie Goddard at Connecticut United, and an offer to be a guaranteed starter alongside Bronnik could be of interest. Additionally, given that his club is independent of any MLS team, he is less likely to sign with a competitor in the near future and thus could be available in the offseason.
