10 potential breakout players for the 2018 MLS season

4. Gyasi Zardes, Columbus Crew

We all know the plights of Gyasi Zardes. He’s played 10,000 career MLS minutes, all with the LA Galaxy, and accumulated 38 caps with the United States, but he can accurately be described as much-maligned. For reasons that vary from fair to irrational, he’s widely ridiculed by the American soccer crowd, whether for his off-and-on first touch, questionable finishing or lack of creativity on the ball.

His dreadful 2017, in which he scored just two goals and eventually saw time at right-back, only increased the Gyasi hate. Most seem to forget his 16-goal, 2014 MLS Cup-winning season, or the fact that analytics show him to be an at-worst average MLS striker. Zardes will get a much-needed fresh start in Columbus after he was traded along with allocation money for Ola Kamara.

The Crew have gained a reputation for creating shots for their strikers. Ola and Kei Kamara are exceptions in their own ways — Ola is naturally conservative in his shot selection, and Kei is a target in the box, meaning he attempts more headers and cross scraps closer to the goal — but they both took high-percentage shots in their time with the Crew. Zardes figures to do the same.

Some may not consider him a “breakout player,” but in a better situation, tailored to scoring goals, Gyasi will gain confidence and get himself back into the ranks of above-average MLS strikers.