Toronto FC will be selecting 9th overall next week at the 2016 MLS SuperDraft on January 14th. It’s the Reds’ only pick in the first round.
This time last year Toronto FC had three picks in the first round alone. The club went on to draft goalkeeper Alex Bono (6th), defender Clément Simonin (9th) and centre back Skylar Thomas (11th).
Thomas and Bono, teammates at Syracuse University, shared different experiences in the weeks leading up to the draft.
Bono was signed as a Generation adidas player and was with the U.S. National Team during draft week, participating in interviews over the phone or on video calls with several clubs before the draft.
“It’s an interesting few days. Teams start to interview players to see who they would like to have on their teams. The process itself is a lot of fun to go through,” said Bono.
“They don’t ask you anything that you think they’ll ask you. It’s all about personality traits, your upbringing and decisions you have made. It’s much more of a personality test. I think that’s something that people don’t know looking in from the outside is that it’s a huge part of why teams draft certain players.”
Thomas, on the other hand, partook in the 2015 adidas MLS Player Combine, the last opportunity for College athletes to improve their draft stock ahead of draft day.
“The first day they do physical testing. 30 metre dash, 5-10-5 invert, and then they assemble you in four teams and play three games in six days,” said Thomas of the combine.
“It’s a good experience but it’s really difficult obviously in the Florida heat and coming off a College season and having 6 days to play 3 games. It’s a fun time though, especially meeting all the guys,” he added.
Bono was originally an invitee to the 2015 adidas MLS Player Combine but an invitation to the U.S. Men’s Soccer National Team training camp a week before the draft meant that the eventual 6th overall pick would be learning his fate while with the U.S. National Team.
“I had a little bit of an idea [that Toronto FC was the team I was going to]. I talked to Michael [Bradley] at camp and he had said that the team had a lot of interest in me and that they were looking to draft me as well.”
“I was sitting in the locker room and as soon as I saw New York take Khiry Shelton I figured it was TFC but I wasn’t sure. I went out to the field and Jurgen [Klinsmann] brought the team in for a huddle and he announced it. It was quite an experience; I’ll never forget it.”
Alex Bono receives the news that Toronto FC has drafted him
Tim Bezbatchenko Gives Bono the Good News
Needless to say, it was a period of nervousness for both players, wondering which club they would end up at, and for Thomas, if he would even be drafted in the early rounds.
“For me I wasn’t too sure. I was kind of second guessing myself before driving down to Philadelphia with me family,” he said.
“Nobody wants to be the guy that goes to the draft and doesn’t get drafted. The night before I didn’t get much sleep.”
To the surprise of many, most of these players are truly unaware of which team they will be drafted by until their name is called up.
“I feel like a lot of the players don’t know what’s going to happen and what’s going on behind the scenes between the coaching staffs and agents,” said Thomas.
“You might find out a minute before you are drafted but I don’t think anybody really knows unless you’re on the coaching staff of the team who is picking. Really I had no idea where I was going but I had a feeling and kind of hoped that I would end up in Toronto but you really have no clue until it actually happens.”
