MLS coaches and general managers will be looking at more than 200 players at its inaugural Player Combine Jan. 5-15 at UC Irvine in Irvine, Calif.
They will be on hand to evaluate talent for the league’s player draft, tentatively set for Feb. 6-7 in New York.
Players will be split into two groups, taking part in games and drills Jan. 5-10 and 10-15. They will stay at the Holiday Inn in Irvine and practice at Crawford Athletics Complex, located at Mesa & Bridge Roads on the campus of UC Irvine.
Among the players expected to attend the trials are 1995 USISL MVP Giovanni Savarese, Mexican league veteran Martin Vasquez and a host of NPSL players, including Canadian stars Hector Marinaro and Dominic Mobilio.
The NPSL has permitted more than 50 players to take part in the combine since no games are scheduled Jan. 8-11. Eighteen players under contract to MLS are playing indoors this winter in the NPSL.
As part of a reciprocal arrangement, several NPSL players will be loaned to MLS clubs this summer. NPSL clubs also have agreements with A-League and USISL clubs.