2025 Position Group Preview - Midfielders
(image via Aldo Canale)
The Major League Soccer season is fast approaching. The Houston Dynamo will get their 2025 campaign underway on February 22. After two straight playoff appearances, the Dynamo have gone through some changes this offseason. Leading up to the first match against FC Dallas we’ll be breaking down each position group, the players within the group, and some expectations for them. We continue today with the midfielders.
Artur
2024 stats (MLS play): 36 appearances, 1 assist
Projected 2025 role: Starting defensive midfielder
This is the simplest name in the entire Dynamo squad to project in 2025. Barring injury, Artur should be the undisputed starter in midfield for the Dynamo whenever he is available. He has been the rock in this impressive midfielder for two whole seasons now and has a great track record of availability. Artur is also a likely candidate to receive the captain’s armband in 2025.
Jack McGlynn
2024 stats (MLS play): 30 appearances (with Philadelphia), 4 goals, 5 assists
Projected 2025 role: Starting midfielder
We all asked for someone to come in for Hector Herrera this offseason and we got just that and more with the arrival of Jack McGlynn. Despite Jack’s age, he was one of the best midfielders in MLS in 2024 even while playing for a poor Philadelphia Union team. He should slot right in where Hector played for the last two seasons and play a similar role where he dictates the play from midfield. He also provides an excellent left foot to be used on set pieces. We all saw the free kick he scored against Houston a few years back.
Brooklyn Raines
2024 stats (MLS play): 17 appearances
Projected 2025 role: Rotation/backup midfielder
Brooklyn had to have been salivating seeing the departure of both Coco Carrasquilla and Hector Herrera this offseason as he fits into a similar mold as those two players. We expected him to a have a huge role as a starter this year before Jack McGlynn was signed later in the offseason. Despite McGlynn’s presence, Brooklyn should still be one of the first options off the bench either as an 8 in midfield or playing the wide midfield role that Coco Carrasquilla occupied last year. Who knows, maybe he can even push Sebastian Kowalczyk and Erik Dueñas to start in that role.
Sebastian Rodriguez
2024 stats (MLS play): 0 Appearances
Projected 2025 role: Dynamo 2 key player
Sebastian Rodriguez is entering his first season as an official MLS player. Don’t expect him to play much of a role in MLS, however. At 17 years of age, he still has a long way to go before he becomes a real impact player with the first team. He now also has McGlynn, Raines, and Dueñas all ahead of him in the depth chart in that 8 position. He will be one of the first names on the team sheet for the Dynamo 2 team and it will be very exciting to see what steps he takes in 2025 to develop as a player.
Junior Urso
2024 stats (MLS play): 23 appearances (with Charlotte), 1 goal
Projected 2025 role: Backup defensive midfielder
Junior Urso is a new signing that brings loads of experience to the midfield in a position that desperately needs a backup. Houston had Luis Caicedo do a great job in that role in 2023, but could not figure out how to replace him in 2024. Junior should step in nicely as that backup, as he has five seasons of MLS experience. He was a high level starter with Orlando in his first spell and then was a valuable depth piece for Charlotte this past season. Expect him to put in a shift whenever he is asked to, but don’t expect him to be a game changer at this point in his long career.
Jefferson Valverde
2024 stats (MLS play): 1 appearance
Projected 2025 role: On loan with Orense SC
Jefferson Valverde was sent to Ecuador on a season long loan following an incredibly disappointing 2024 season. He only managed to make one MLS appearance off the bench while being sentenced to playing with the second team when he was supposed to be the backup to Artur. Junior Urso has now came in to claim that spot making Valverde surplus to requirements. Valverde’s contract runs out at the end of 2025 with a potential option year. Unless he shows something really special out on loan to make Pat exercise that option, don’t expect to ever see Valverde ever in a Dynamo shirt again.
