MLS transfer outlook: What all 29 teams need to do when the window opens in July

The summer transfer window in MLS opens on July 5, and clubs around the league are busy with additions and plans to improve their squads. Here’s the latest I’m hearing/seeing around the world of MLS heading into the summer transfer window.

All needs are realistic. Sure, every team would love to add a DP winger or an elite center back… but not all have the roster space (or spending capabilities) to do so.

Needs: DP attacker, keep Thiago Almada, convince Miles Robinson to stay

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Atlanta did a lot of really good work in the winter and has the chance to build this summer, but will walk a tightrope of incomings/departures.

With Luiz Araujo off to Flamengo, Atlanta has a DP spot open. Another DP, Thiago Almada’s future lies in Europe sooner rather than later, so will Atlanta target that spot centrally, either as a No. 10 or a deeper midfield option as team president and CEO Garth Lagerwey has generally preferred in his career? During his time at the Seattle Sounders, Lagerwey has typically used the summer window to make key DP signings (Nico Lodeiro, Raul Ruidiaz).

Atlanta will hope to keep Almada until the end of the season. The 21-year-old World Cup winner is ready for Europe, so we’ll see what happens this summer, but he’s integral to their current relevancy.

Star center back Miles Robinson is out of contract at the end of the season and the closer he gets to the end of his deal, the more likely it looks he’ll be leaving. Clubs in Germany and England are interested in the 24-year-old and he can sign a pre-contract agreement starting July 1 to leave in the winter.

GO DEEPER

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