MLS: Six Project-40 players assigned to teams

Six players from MLS’ Project-40 program have been assigned to specific teams, MLS deputy commissioner Sunil Gulati announced June 5.

Player	Position	MLS team
Ubusuku Abukusumo	D	Columbus Crew
Brian Dunseth	D	New England Revolution
Eric Quill	F	Tampa Bay Mutiny
Joseph DiGiamarino	MF	Colorado Rapids
Nino Da Silva	MF	Kansas City Wizards
Jose Botello	F	Los Angeles Galaxy

Botello, who has been playing with the A-League’s Orange County Zodiac, is the only new signee of this group. He played for a year at East Los Angeles College in 1995 and participated in the original MLS combine in 1996. He will begin training with the Galaxy immediately while playing games for Orange County. The other five players had previously signed with MLS. Dunseth and DiGiamarino are on the U-20 national team roster for the World Championship in Malaysia. Quill and Abukusumo have been in the U-20 pool, while Da Silva was the 1996 national high school player of the year. The six players join Carlos Parra (MetroStars) and Juan Sastoque (Dallas) as Project-40 players who will train and compete with MLS teams on a daily basis. D.C. United and San Jose have not received a player yet, but they will be assigned one in the near future. In addition, defender Tim Sahaydak, who earlier signed with Project-40, is recovering from knee surgery and will be assigned at a later date. Project-40 signees will compete for playing time with members of the MLS team’s active roster. (Project-40 players are considered the 21st player on the roster.) However, Project-40 players will also play regularly for A-League and USISL teams affiliated with their parent MLS club. The eventual goal of Project-40 is to provide each player with the opportunity to participate in 40-60 games a year at various professional levels, allowing the player to develop at a faster pace between the ages of 18 and 22. Project-40 signess earn the minimum MLS salary and are awarded a five-year academic package covering tuition, which is made possible by the U.S. Soccer Foundation. No MLS team will receive a second Project-40 player until all 10 teams have received at least one developmental player.