Photo courtesy Cristina Fink
Welcome! This roughly once-a-month column will take a look at some prominent and lesser-known former Union players, as well as other Philadelphia-area natives now playing their soccer outside the US. There will be some mainstays and plenty of other talent mixed in. Enjoy!
Brenden Aaronson
Leeds United – 25 years old – Attacking Mid – Union 2019-2021 – Medford, NJ
Brendan Aaronson, spelled with an “e”, not an “a”, is still only 25 years old, something a lot of people tend to forget. Maybe that’s because, since coming up with the Union in 2019, he’s played seven – now almost eight – full seasons of professional soccer, most of which in Europe. He even featured at the 2022 World Cup at the age of 22, where he made four of his 25 total caps in that calendar year (Aaronson has 56 total caps to date).
Now at Leeds United, whom he helped earn promotion back to the Premier League last season, Aaronson has been a key part of the squad in all areas of attack. Through 28 games, only six of which have seen him start on the bench, the so-called “Medford Messi” has scored four times and assisted thrice. Three of his goals came early in 2026, with a goal against Manchester United and a pair in the game against Newcastle United right after. Usually an attacking midfielder, Aaronson has played in the center of the pitch as high as a striker and as deep as a central midfielder, as well as out wide on both wings.
While not an overly plentiful creator, Aaronson’s per-90-minute stats do bring some excitement. He’s tallying 0.38 big chances created to go with 0.14 assists, 0.72 shots on target and 1.97 fouls won. Medford Messi’s doing it on the defensive side, too, winning six duels and racking up nearly five full defensive recoveries. Although not a lock for the 2026 World Cup roster, Aaronson’s doing all he can at the world’s highest level to make sure he’s in Mauricio Pochettino’s plans.
Auston Trusty
Celtic FC – 27 years old – Center Back – Union 2016-2019 – Media, PA
One of two Americans at Celtic (Cameron Carter-Vickers, another center-back, is the other), Auston Trusty has been very consistent at the back for the Scottish giants since arriving last year. Originally from the Main Line area, Trusty played full seasons for the Union in 2018 and 2019 before moving to Colorado. He’s bounced around clubs in the UK since leaving MLS, but has made himself a strong candidate for a backup defensive option at this year’s World Cup.
Trusty, now 27 years old, has 32 appearances in all competitions this season, in which he’s performed to a strong 7.0 FotMob rating while scoring twice (both coming in Europa League play) and helping Celtic to second place in the league and the knockouts of the Europa League. This past weekend, he played all 120 minutes and converted a penalty against Old Firm rivals Rangers, boosting his side to the win before things turned violent on the pitch.
Good on both sides of the ball, Trusty has used his playmaking abilities well this year, completing 78.2 passes a game at a 92.8% clip. He barely gets dribbled past (0.23 times per game) and wins nearly 70% of his aerial duels. Despite not winning a large number of tackles or making many interceptions, his side is definitely better with him on the pitch. Celtic are having a subpar season by their standards, but that is hardly his fault.
Mark McKenzie
Toulouse FC – 27 years old – Center Back – Union 2018-2021 – The Bronx, NY
The other center-back in this edition, Mark McKenzie, is having a strong season for mid-table Toulouse of France’s Ligue 1. By doing so, McKenzie has emerged as a near-lock for a spot in Pochettino’s starting defensive trio. Originally from New York, McKenzie played three solid seasons at Subaru Park before getting a move to Belgian side Genk. Four extremely good seasons at Genk earned him a move to France last season, where he has now played nearly 60 times.
McKenzie has started 20 of the 22 games he’s played in this season, amassing over 1800 minutes in the process, and only four times has he played less than the full 90 minutes. He played the whole match in the USA’s wins over Australia and Uruguay, and has helped keep three clean sheets for his club in 2026.
Despite not taking a penalty, McKenzie played all 90 minutes in his side’s 2-2(4-3) win over Marseille in the French Cup quarter-final recently, earning a 7.0 FotMob rating due to his strong ground duel stats and defensive stability (eight clearances, seven recoveries). He’s able to do it on the offensive side in terms of creating chances, displayed in his pair of assists this year, but has not yet bagged his own goal. McKenzie is also the club’s long throw taker, which has garnered him nicknames about being the “American Quarterback” in France.
Playing in the right-sided center-back role of a 3-4-3 formation, McKenzie is primed and ready to step up big this summer.
Kai Wagner
Birmingham City FC – 29 years old – Left Back – Union 2019-2026 – Geislingen, Germany
Left-back Kai Wagner departed the shores of the Delaware in January with Birmingham, England, as his destination. Since joining Birmingham City in the EFL Championship, England’s second-tier, Wagner has been just as impressive as the Union faithful know him to be. He’s played 13 times for the currently mid-table club, and has assisted and scored once each while earning a strong 7.32 rating.
In his first 10 games for the club, they were unbeaten as Wagner helped keep three clean sheets. Not only has he been lights out defensively, though. The German is still just as good in attack, something that helped him earn a reputation as one of Major League Soccer’s finest attacking backs. Per 90 minutes, which Wagner has played nearly 13 of, he’s completed 35.75 passes, played 3.03 accurate long balls, created 1.90 chances and touched the ball 81.75 times. Really strong numbers for a guy who, aside from Philadelephians and MLS fanatics, was slightly questioned when moving abroad.
Despite three losses on the bounce, which have helped keep the Blues eight points out of a playoff spot, it’s safe to say that Wagner was able to make the jump successfully. Still only 29 years old, he could definitely be a big part in helping his new club return to the Premier League for the first time since they were relegated in 2012.
Julian Carranza
Club Nexaca – 25 years old – Striker – Union 2021-2024 – Oncativo, Argentina
Julian Carranza came to Philly on loan from Inter Miami in 2021 and, after impressing, earned a permanent move north. In two and a half seasons after, the Argentine scored 43 times in 95 games while adding 13 assists. Insanely strong numbers, which helped him get a move to Dutch giants Feyenoord, where he scored five times in 30 appearances in his only season. After flopping on loan to Leicester City in England, Mexican side Nexaca came in for him.
His stats since the move, in only six games played, feature a trio of goals and a red card in four starts. Having played only 308 minutes, Carranza’s per-90 stats look very strong. He’s at 0.88 goals, 8.77 duels won and 4.09 fouls won, all numbers that light up the board. After being dealt a red card in a 1-0 loss to Atlas last month, Carranza scored in both a 4-1 win over Atletico de San Luis and a 2-1 win over FC Juarez.
Although he’s yet to play a full 90 minutes for the club that paid $4 million to bring him back across the pond, Carranza hasn’t looked bad. He’s still only 25 years old, and despite his club’s mediocrity this campaign, has shown flashes of being able to elevate his side to a very high level. With his only two caps coming for Argentina’s U17 side nearly a decade ago, it’s unlikely he can break into the World Cup camp this summer. La Abiceleste, though, has an aging squad, which could see the door open for an in-form striker who’s hopefully playing at the highest level.
Derrick Jones
Most Recently Columbus Crew – 29 years old – Midfielder – Union 2016-2019 – Bantama, Ghana
You might have seen Derrick Jones’ name in the news recently, and not for good reason. Jones, along with former teammate Yow Yeboah, have been banned for life by MLS for gambling on games. The pair, who played together for Columbus Crew, were placed on leave last October while the league conducted its investigation. Suspicious betting habits flagged this scheme, including one such incident when Jones commits a foul in a specific moment in order to cash a bet placed on that exact incident occurring.
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Jones, originally from Ghana, moved to Philadelphia at 14 years old. He became Bethlehem Steel’s first-ever signing in late 2015, and six-months later, he signed the Union’s fourth-ever Homegrown Player contract. The midfielder never scored in 27 appearances for the MLS side, but bagged 10 in over 50 games for Bethlehem. After being traded to Nashville in 2019, he bounced around the league, making stops in Houston, Charlotte, and Columbus. Jones made appearances at the 2017 U-20 World Cup, but never made a senior appearance for either Ghana or the US.
MLS players now undergo gambling restriction training, after which the players are required to sign an agreement to certify they have completed the course. The Jones-Yeboah bet is not the first instance of MLS taking action against a player caught gambling. Sporting KC’s Felipe Hernandez was placed on leave in 2021 and had his contract terminated in 2024 for a similar issue.
Jones is exactly the reason why I hate all of the gambling advertisements on TV. Every time I see one I become more convinced that games are likely to be fixed either by players or officials betting. Gambling on sports should be made harder, not easier.