Atlanta United’s Andrew Carleton and Lagos Kunga will participate in the MLS Homegrown Game on July 31 at the team’s training center in Marietta.
Carleton and Kunga are two of the 20 players who will compete against Tigres, from LIGA MX in Mexico, in the MLS All-Star week.
Carleton, 18 and a native of Powder Springs, has made four appearances for Atlanta United in MLS and seven for Atlanta United 2 in USL this season. The first Homegrown signing in Atlanta United history, this is Carleton’s second consecutive selection to the Homegrown Game.
Kunga, 19 and a native of Atlanta, has 14 appearances for ATLUTD2.
Atlanta United Academy Director Tony Annan will coach the Homegrowns. The All-Star Game will be played at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Aug. 1. The All-Stars will face Juventus.
Philadelphia leads the roster with four selections, which ties a record for the game.
The roster
Goalkeepers: JT Marcinkowski (San Jose Earthquakes), Sean Melvin (Vancouver Whitecaps FC).
Defenders: Reggie Cannon (FC Dallas), Marco Farfan (Portland Timbers), Jaylin Lindsey (Sporting Kansas City), Mark McKenzie (Philadelphia Union), Matthew Real (Philadelphia Union), James Sands (New York City FC), Auston Trusty (Philadelphia Union).
Midfielders: Efrain Alvarez (LA Galaxy), Chris Durkin (D.C. United), Anthony Fontana (Philadelphia Union), Liam Fraser (Toronto FC), Lagos Kunga (Atlanta United), Wan Kuzain (Sporting Kansas City), Cameron Lindley (Orlando City SC), Paxton Pomykal (FC Dallas), Sebastian Saucedo (Real Salt Lake).
Forwards: Andrew Carleton (Atlanta United), Ben Mines (New York Red Bulls).
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Bios (from MLS)
JT Marcinkowski
Goalkeeper
San Jose Earthquakes
Nationality: USA
Born: May 9, 1997
Marcinkowski signed a Homegrown Player contract with San Jose on December 6, 2017 following an impressive college career at Georgetown. The keeper has also represented the United States at numerous youth national team levels. He has recorded 13 shutouts in his 24 caps between the U-14 and U-18 levels and most recently competed with the U.S. U-20s at the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup and the 2017 Concacaf U-20 Championship. This is Marcinkowski’s first Homegrown Game selection.
Sean Melvin
Goalkeeper
Vancouver Whitecaps FC
Nationality: Canada
Born: July 9, 1994
Melvin is a graduate of the Whitecaps FC Residency program and had an impressive first two professional seasons in the USL with Whitecaps FC 2 before joining USL affiliate Fresno FC. In the 2017 season he made 47 saves with a 1.77 goals-against average and earned a USL Team of the Week selection twice. He signed an MLS Homegrown contract in April 2018. This is Melvin’s first Homegrown Game selection.
Reggie Cannon
Defender
FC Dallas
Nationality: USA
Born: June 11, 1998
Cannon signed as the 18th Homegrown Player for FC Dallas on December 22, 2016 following his freshman year at UCLA. On the 2018 season, Cannon has started in all 18 games played this regular season and has netted one goal. He has also played at the youth national team levels playing for the United States U-17 and U-19 teams. This is the defender’s first MLS Homegrown Game selection.
Marco Farfan
Defender
Portland Timbers
Nationality: USA
Born: November 12, 1998
Farfan became the youngest player to sign with the Timbers in club history, signing as a Homegrown Player on October 14, 2016. The 19-year-old has four starts in eight appearances for Portland this season. Although eligible to represent Mexico, Farfan has played for the United States at multiple youth levels, most recently receiving a call to play for the U-19 team at a Florida training camp last February. In the 2016 season with the USL side Timbers 2, Farfan started all 18 of his appearances before making the jump to the first team. This is Farfan’s second MLS Homegrown Game selection (2017).
Jaylin Lindsey
Defender
Sporting Kansas City
Nationality: USA
Born: March 27, 2000
Lindsey signed his Homegrown contract at the age of 17 in September 2017, becoming the third youngest signing in Sporting Kansas City history. For the 2018 season, the 18-year-old has made four starts in five games played. Prior to being signed, Lindsey has made more than 30 combined appearances for Sporting KC U-16s and U-18s and has regularly played for the United States U-17 Men’s National Team from 2016-2017, making more than 25 appearances. Lindsey earns his first Homegrown Game selection.
Mark McKenzie
Defender
Philadelphia Union
Nationality: USA
Born: February 25, 1999
McKenzie was signed as a Homegrown Player on January 18, 2018 after one season with Wake Forest. He has made 11 regular appearances and 10 starts at centerback so far in the 2018 season with Philadelphia. The defender was named to MLS Team of the Week for two weeks (Week 13, 19). He recently was called up for the United States Youth National Team Summit in Florida where he played with the United States Under-20 National Team and his first call-up as a professional player at the U.S. U-20 training camp in Spain. This marks McKenzie’s first Homegrown Game selection.
Matthew Real
Defender
Philadelphia Union
Nationality: USA
Born: July 10, 1999
The 18-year-old has made three regular season starts in his first few months for the Philadelphia Union after signing as a Homegrown Player in January of this year. In 2017, Real signed with Bethlehem Steel FC where he began his first professional career and started in all 17 appearances. He has made numerous national team appearances for the U.S. U-18s and now U-20s where he most recently was called up ahead of the domestic training camp in Florida in May. This is Real’s first MLS Homegrown Game selection.
James Sands
Defender
New York City FC
Nationality: USA
Born: July 6, 2000
The first Homegrown Player signing in New York City FC history, Sands has regularly made appearances for the United States U-17 National Team. He anchored the U-17 team’s defense and took the team to the quarterfinals of the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup. Sands helped NYCFC win the 2018 U.S. Soccer Development Academy U-19 championship. This is Sands’ first MLS Homegrown Game selection.
Auston Trusty
Defender
Philadelphia Union
Nationality: USA
Born: August 12, 1998
Signed as the fifth Homegrown Player in Union history in August 2016, Trusty is the first player to have graduated from Philadelphia’s academy. The defender has made 18 regular season appearances this season, starting all 18, and is the only field player on the team to play every minute of every match. Trusty has represented the United States at the youth international level including appearances at the 2015 U-17 World Cup in Chile and the 2017 U-20 World Cup in Korea Republic. Trusty was also part of the U.S. squad that captured its first Concacaf U-20 Championship title in 2017. This is his second MLS Homegrown game selection (2017).
Efrain Alvarez
Midfielder
LA Galaxy
Nationality: USA
Born: June 19, 2002
The 16-year-old signed as a Homegrown Player on March 4, 2018 becoming the seventh-youngest player to sign in MLS. Alvarez was a leader for the LA Galaxy Academy where he brought the U-17/18s to the USSDA Championships in 2017 scoring in the quarterfinal, semifinal, and championship matches. He has also had international experience playing for the U.S. Soccer Youth National Team and Mexican National Team level. This season playing with LA Galaxy II, Alvarez has eight goals scored in seven USL matches. This is Alvarez’s first Homegrown Game selection.
Chris Durkin
Midfielder
D.C. United
Nationality: USA
Born: February 8, 2002
Durkin was signed as a Homegrown Player in June 2016 and he was the youngest homegrown signed in D.C. United history. He has international experience in which he started in all five matches at the FIFA U-17 World Cup for the Under-17 U.S. Men’s National Team. For the 2018 season, Durkin has played in 13 regular reason matches and has started in nine of those games for D.C United. This is his first MLS Homegrown Game selection.
Anthony Fontana
Midfielder
Philadelphia Union
Nationality: USA
Born: October 14, 1999
A Union Academy graduate, Fontana signed on July 17, 2017, has made five appearances in the 2018 regular season with the Union. Fontana has international experience playing for the U.S. U-18s and recently received his first call-up at the Under-20 level by the United States for the U.S. Soccer Men’s YNT Summit Camp in Florida. This is his first Homegrown Game selection.
Liam Fraser
Midfielder
Toronto FC
Nationality: Canada
Born: February 13, 1998
After playing two seasons for Toronto FC II, Fraser signed with Toronto’s MLS side earlier this year. In his inaugural season with Toronto FC, Fraser has made five regular season starts in seven games. In his three seasons in the USL, the 20-year-old made 52 appearances and scored two goals. He was named captain of the Toronto FC III team for the Viareggio Cup in 2017. This is Fraser’s first Homegrown game selection.
Lagos Kunga
Midfielder
Atlanta United
Nationality: USA/Angola
Born: October 20, 1998
The 19-year-old signed his Homegrown Player contract on June 17, 2017. He spent the 2017 season with Atlanta United U-18s where he scored 10 goals and made 21 appearances for the team. Kunga was called up to play in the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup in South Korea with the United States National Team, making four appearances and scoring one goal in the tournament. This is Kunga’s first Homegrown Game selection.
Wan Kuzain
Midfielder
Sporting Kansas City
Nationality: USA
Born: September 14, 1998
Kuzain is a product of the Sporting Kansas City Academy and is the ninth Homegrown Player in club history. He is the first Sporting Kansas City Homegrown player to go from the Sporting KC Academy to USL side Swope Park Rangers to the MLS senior team. In the 2018 MLS regular season, Kuzain has started three of six appearances and has netted a goal. He represented the U.S. Under- 17 National Team in 2015. Kuzain has earned his first Homegrown Game selection.
Cameron Lindley
Midfielder
Orlando City SC
Nationality: USA
Born: July 18, 1997
Lindley had an impressive college career at the North Carolina where he started in every game of the first two seasons he played and was named the 2017 Atlanta Coast Conference Midfielder of the Year. Before attending UNC, Lindley won a national championship with the Chicago Fire U-18 Academy team. He has played for the United States at different youth national team levels, including the U-20 National Team training camp in 2016. This is Lindley’s first Homegrown Game selection.
Paxton Pomykal
Midfielder
FC Dallas
Nationality: USA
Born: December 17, 1999
The 17-year-old was signed to a Homegrown Player contract by FC Dallas in September 2016, the 15th Homegrown Player in club history. Pomykal has played in three regular season games in the 2018 season. Most recently, Pomykal has represented the United States at the Under-18 level, scoring a goal to help the club win the 2016 Vaclav Jezek Tournament Championship in August. This is Pomykal’s second MLS Homegrown game selection (2017).
Sebastian Saucedo
Midfielder
Real Salt Lake
Nationality: USA
Born: January 22, 1997
The 21-year-old signed as a Homegrown Player on July 24, 2014. Saucedo played one season on loan with Liga MX side Veracruz before rejoining Real Salt Lake in 2017, where he appeared in 20 regular season MLS games. This season, Saucedo has registered career highs with two goals and three assists over eight starts. This is Saucedo’s first MLS Homegrown Game selection.
Andrew Carleton
Forward
Atlanta United
Nationality: USA
Born: June 22, 2000
The first Homegrown Player signing in Atlanta United history, Carleton has starred for the United States at multiple levels of the youth national team, most recently helping the U.S. to a second-place finish in the 2017 Concacaf U-17 Championship and a quarterfinals appearance at the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup. Carleton scored two goals in the Concacaf U-17 Championship, including the United States’ only goal in the title game. The 18-year-old has four MLS regular season appearances for Atlanta this season and has recorded one assist. This is Carleton’s second MLS Homegrown Game selection (2017).
Ben Mines
Forward
New York Red Bulls
Nationality: USA
Born: May 13, 2000
Mines signed a Homegrown Player contract with the Red Bulls on Jan. 8, 2018 after playing with U-18 and U-16 teams for the club. While playing for the U-18 team, Mines won the Golden Boot at the 2017 Generation Adidas Cup. The forward also played in the USL with NYRB II before being signed to the MLS team. In the 2018 season, he scored his first career MLS goal in his first career game and start. This is his first MLS Homegrown Game selection.
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