Earlier this week I began to look at who the Portland Timbers are likely to protect in the upcoming MLS Expansion Draft. The first piece in this three part series, which you can find here, took a look at which defenders were worth protecting. This week I’ll take a look at the midfield, and in the next edition forwards.
If you missed the first piece, be sure to check it out, and here’s a quick refresher on the basics of the Expansion Draft:
- Teams may protect 11 players from their Senior and Supplemental roster combined.
- Generation Adidas players who have not graduated at the end of 2014 are not available, nor are Homegrown players on the Supplemental roster.
- Designated Players with no-trade clauses must be protected and count as one of the 11 protected players.
Previously, I picked out three defenders the Timbers are likely to protect in the Expansion Draft. Read the article to find out which ones.
Here’s what you can expect the Timbers to do with the midfield:
Timbers Midfield: Who to Protect?
Diego Valeri – He’s a designated player, the best player on the team, and one of the league’s top players. In 2013 Valeri scored 10 goals and had 13 assists, which he followed up in 2014 with 11 goals and 14 assists. He absolutely will be protected.
Will Johnson – Portland’s Captain and the beating heart of the midfield will miss the first part of the 2015 season as he recovers from a broken leg, but he is an essential part to this team. Johnson will be protected.
Diego Chara – Johnson’s midfield partner is one of the Timbers most important players and will be even more important in 2015 as both Valeri and Johnson will miss the beginning of the season with injuries. No doubt, Chara will be protected.
Ben Zemanski – Here is where the Portland front office has a tough call to make. With only eleven players able to be protected, Portland will have to leave an important player unprotected. Zemanski stepped in for Johnson when the captain broke his leg late in the season and the team didn’t miss a beat. He’s the perfect replacement for either Chara or Johnson in the holding midfield role and he’s very familiar with Caleb Porter’s system, having played for Porter in college as well. Zemanski will probably be unprotected, and if so, is one of the most likely Timbers to be selected due in the Expansion Draft. The idea of losing Zemanski, especially with Johnson out to start 2015, is what makes the risk of not protecting Liam Ridgewell (which you can read about here) intriguing, as it would allow the Timbers to protect Zemanski. Don’t count on it, but don’t be shocked if it happens either.
Rodney Wallace – The Costa Rican winger just won MLS Comeback Player of the Year and was essential down the stretch, once he really got healthy. Expect Portland to protect Wallace, and expect big things in 2015.
Darlington Nagbe – While 2014 was a bit of a down year in terms of goals for Nagbe, his role was slightly different than in 2013 as he focused more on creating for others. It showed, as his assists increased from four in 2013 to seven in 2014. He’s still a rising star and will certainly be protected.
Kalif Alhassan – Alhassan had a very poor 2014 season. After making 15 starts and 30 appearances in 2013, Alhassan made only 5 starts and 15 appearances in 2014. He seemed to play his way out of more chances, making only 5 appearances in the second half of the season. Kalif will be unprotected, and don’t be surprised if he’s not a Timber in 2015. In fact, the Timbers might be hoping that NYCFC or OCSC believe his relative youth makes him an enticing prospect.
Michael Nanchoff – Nanchoff started only one game in MLS this season and made just three appearances. He showed well in CCL appearances and seems like a decent player for depth, and he’ll be unprotected but will probably go undrafted.
With just the forwards remaining, that’s eight players I’m predicting Portland will protect between defense and midfield. Be on the lookout for the final piece in this series later this week, where I’ll look at which forwards Portland is likely to protect and take a more in depth look at the spots where Portland has tough decisions to make.
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