🖐️ underrated MLS transfers so far this winter window | OneFootball

This MLS transfer window has been a doozy, with the league-record fee being broken on multiple occasions, plus a number of teams flexing their financial muscle to rebuild their squads ahead of the new season.

Putting the big-money deals to the side for the time being however, let's take a look at a few of the most underrated transfers of the winter so far.

Kevin Kelsy — Portland Timbers

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The Shakhtar Donetsk striker has found a new home in MLS after a short stint with FC Cincinnati, and Portland seems to be a perfect landing spot for him.

Kelsy showed flashes of brilliance for Cincinnati, scoring six goals in 25 matches for the Eastern Conference club, but he joins a Portland attacking force primed and ready for forward competition.

The trio of Evander, Jonathan Rodríguez, and Felipe Mora combined for 45 goals between them in the 2024 season, and fresh blood in the form of 20-year-old Kelsy is the perfect dose of competition for their veteran attacking stars.

Depth has long been an issue for the Timbers, but having a burgeoning star ready to come off the bench or slide into the starting rotation gives Phil Neville a new set of options up front.

Chidozie Awaziem — Colorado Rapids

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The Rapids have become the kings of making shrewd moves within MLS, rarely loosening the purse-strings for players from foreign leagues, and they've done well once again to wrap up the signing of Awaziem this winter.

The 28-year-old is a fully-fledged Nigeria international and has experience at a handful of top-tier leagues in Europe.

The Rapids were in need of a defensive overhaul after an impressive 2024 campaign under Chris Armas, qualifying the the playoffs and playing some attractive stuff in the process.

With Cincinnati finding themselves with too many senior center-backs on their hands heading into 2025, Colorado did well to pounce and bring the Nigerian (and his Cincinnati teammate Ian Murphy) in for just $1m in allocation money.

Jeremy Ebobisse — LAFC

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It's not often the free-agent signing of an in-prime striker goes under the radar, but with the star-studded transfers of this winter Jeremy Ebobisse's move to LAFC turned out to do just that.

The former San Jose Earthquake forward has bagged 60 goals in his MLS career, plus a healthy 18 assists. His best campaign came in 2022 when he averaged a goal every 180 minutes for San Jose, but those numbers must come with the asterisk that the Earthquakes were categorically woeful throughout the majority of his three-season stint there.

His move to LAFC has the hallmarks of a perfect transfer, particularly now that Mateusz Bogusz has departed for Mexico.

If Ebobisse can rediscover his shooting boots in an LAFC team where he will be surrounded by much better talent, there is no reason to say he can't compete with Olivier Giroud for the starting spot.

Raheem Edwards — New York Red Bulls

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It was always going to be tough to replace the departing John Tolkin this winter for the New York Red Bulls, but they have potentially struck gold with the free signing of Raheem Edwards.

Edwards has shown the ability to be comfortable inverting into midfield from full-back, playing in a back-five as a wing-back, or playing the natural role of an end-to-end left-back in a classic back-four.

In a Red Bull system that prides itself of innovative tactics and versatility throughout it's squad, the signing of the former LA Galaxy and CF Montréal man may have been a truly shrewd one considering their potential budget restrictions.

Eryk Williamson — Charlotte FC

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Williamson is one of American soccer's more frustrating stories. The midfielder showed bags of potential after breaking onto the scene with the Timbers during the 2020 campaign, but after suffering consecutive major knee injuries his rise to prominence was thoroughly derailed.

Despite the setbacks, Williamson has found his way back onto the pitch year after year and showed signs of being a truly elegant midfielder when he could stay fit for extended periods of time.

With a new lease on life in Charlotte and platform to rack up more minutes, Williamson should be chomping at the bit to show why he was in serious consideration for a USMNT call-up before his injury issues.

📸 Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images