Page 77 - Soccer360 Issue 107

SULLIVAN THEMarco D’Onofrio
discusses 14-year- old rookie sensation Cavan Sullivan, the new youngest player in MLS history.
STARLET
UEFA has come a long way since Real Madrid won the very first Champions League Cup in 1955
There are few things left in sports that can truly shock fans, but Cavan Sullivan making his Philadelphia Union debut at 14 years and 293 days old did just that. Sullivan’s debut made him the youngest player to debut in the NBA, MLS, NHL, NFL, MLB, or WNBA since at least 1970. Freddy Adu had held the record for the youngest debut in MLS history at 14 years and 306 days old, a record that had been set back in 2004.
Despite his age, Sullivan knows he is exactly where is supposed to be.
“I’d say I realized I could be a pro at 10
or 11,” Sullivan said in a recent interview. “I think that’s when I posted my first highlight reel. People said stuff that I didn’t imagine, thinking that I could be where I am today. It came out true.” Sullivan hasn’t just captured the imagination of North American soccer fans either, with the Union already agreeing a reported $5m transfer deal with Manchester City for the youngster’s services. While he won’t be able to play for the Citizens until he is 18, he does hold a German passport making him eligible to play for clubs affiliated with Manchester City like Palermo in Italy or Girona in Spain at 16.
Despite being on a $500,000 yearly salary at 14, Sullivan knows he hasn’t done anything yet.
“Man City doesn’t mean anything, if I don’t do anything here,” he has said.
The club and player will be aware of Adu’s cautionary tale after he made his debut at 14, but Sullivan looks to be in a completely different situation altogether with a strong support system in place behind him already.
2024/25
KEY DATES
DECISION DAY
October 19
WILD CARD MATCHES October 23
ROUND ONE, BEST OF 3 SERIES October 26 - November 10
CONFERENCE SEMI-FINALS November 23 - November 24
CONFERENCE FINALS November 30 - December 1
MLS CUP FINAL
December 7
REGULAR
SEASON
MLS CUP
PLAYOFFS
oriented, a fierce competitor and has a deep understanding of our league and what it takes to succeed on and off the field. He will be an outstanding ambassador for the LA Galaxy, our supporters and Los Angeles.” Success wouldn’t happen immediately though, despite having Mexican superstars Javier Hernandez and Jonathan dos Santos in the squad. The team finished level on points with Real Salt Lake for the final play- off spot in 2021 but missed out due to a tiebreaker. It had not been a great start to Vanney’s time in Los Angeles and fans were starting to question the decision to appoint him as the team’s head coach.
In fact, the Galaxy would only make the play-offs once in Vanney’s first three seasons in LA. The frustration was evident following the 2023 campaign with the club going 8-14-12, which was Vanney’s worst season ever as a manager. When other clubs may have been pressed into making a change, the Galaxy still decided to stick with
their man. “This is important because we’ve got to show real progress next season,” Vanney said following the 2023 MLS campaign. “We need to put ourselves back into the discussion about being a capable championship-winning franchise.”
“There’s nothing more that hurts me
than the team losing and the team not performing. If there’s a point when I thought I wasn’t the guy, I wouldn’t be here. On
my own accord because I care about the club. It’s not a job for me, this is my life,
and I won’t stop until we get there. Unless somebody else makes that decision for me.” Vanney kept true to his words and has managed to turn the Galaxy into a championship contender once again. They find themselves competing for top spot in the Western Conference, despite decreasing their payroll. They went from the third- highest spending team in the league in 2023 to the eighth-highest spending team in 2024, proving you don’t necessarily need
DID YOU KNOW?
The postseason culminates with MLS Cup 2024 presented by Audi on Saturday, Dec. 7. Hosting rights are awarded
to the finalist with the better regular-season record.
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