Real Salt Lake Makes Six Selections In 2024 MLS SuperDraft
Dec 19, 2023, 4:06 PM | Updated: Dec 20, 2023, 1:44 pm
SALT LAKE CITY – Real Salt Lake had two picks in all three rounds of the 2024 MLS SuperDraft to add six new young players to the roster.
With its first pick, RSL selected Marshall University midfielder Matthew Bell.
With the 16th pick of the @MLS #SuperDraft by @adidasfootball we have selected Matthew Bell from @HerdMSoccer.
Welcome to the Beehive State, Matthew! pic.twitter.com/M64OC80pP6
— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) December 19, 2023
First-Round Picks
In Bell’s first and only year with the Herd, he started in all 19 games and scored 10 goals.
He was named to the 2022 First-Team All-Sun Belt Conference team and was the 2022 Sun Belt Men’s Soccer Freshman of the Year.
Two picks later, RSL selected Portland defender Kevin Bonilla.
With the 18th pick of the @MLS #SuperDraft by@adidasfootball we have selected Kevin Bonilla from @PortlandMSOC.
Welcome to the 801, Kevin! pic.twitter.com/b70HXzaOjc
— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) December 19, 2023
Bonilla played in three seasons for the Pilots and posted 3 goals and 17 assists.
In 2022, Bonilla led the Pilots to 10 shutouts, the most for Portland since 1990.
Real Salt Lake bolstered two positions that the club already has talent in with their first-round picks.
Diego Luna, Pablo Ruiz, and Emeka Eneli are all midfielders who got consistent play time for RSL last year. Justen Glad and Brayan Vera hold down two of the defender spots.
Second-Round Picks
In the second round, RSL brought in two players who may already have some chemistry on the pitch.
With the 37th-overall pick, Real selected Louisville forward Damien Barker John.
With the 37th overall pick of the @MLS #SuperDraft by @adidasfootball we have selected Damien Barker John from @LouisvilleMSOC.
Welcome to Utah, Damien! pic.twitter.com/LEaDhcWpZx
— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) December 19, 2023
Last season, John played in all 21 games for the Cardinals and scored a team-high nine goals.
He was named to the 2023 United Soccer Coaches All-South Region Third Team and the 2023 All-ACC Second Team.
Ten picks later, Real looked to Louisville University again to select defender Josh Jones.
With the 47th overall pick of the @MLS #SuperDraft by@adidasfootball we have selected Josh Jones from @LouisvilleMSOC.
Welcome to Beehive State, Josh! pic.twitter.com/9dLAOFwnax
— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) December 19, 2023
Jones was a captain for the Cardinals in 2023 and was named to the 2023 All-ACC Third Team.
Real Salt Lake’s second-round selections played together at Louisville for two years.
Third-Round Picks
RSL must have seen some shortcomings on the defensive end in 2023 because they picked up two more defenders in the third and final round of the SuperDraft.
With the 76th overall pick, they drafted Georgetown’s Maximus Jennings.
With the 76th overall pick of the @MLS #SuperDraft by @adidasfootball we have selected Maximus Jennings from @GUHoyasMSoccer.
Welcome to the 801, Maximus! pic.twitter.com/5qbCUMScmD
— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) December 20, 2023
After being named the Hoya’s Most Improved Player in 2022, Jennings scored five goals and led Georgetown to eight shutouts.
With their final pick, RSL selected Duke’s Ruben Mesalles.
With the 84th overall pick of the @MLS #SuperDraft by @adidasfootball we have selected Ruben Mesalles from @DukeMSOC.
Welcome to Utah, Ruben! pic.twitter.com/1wfv3tT3lu
— Real Salt Lake (@realsaltlake) December 20, 2023
Mesalles came in and was immediately an impact player for the Blue Devils as a freshman in 2021.
In three years of collegiate soccer, Mesalles played over 4000 minutes and posted seven goals and 14 assists.
How To Watch Real Salt Lake
All Major League Soccer games are broadcasted on Apple TV with MLS Season Pass.
All Real Salt Lake English-language radio coverage for the 2024 season and beyond will be carried on various KSL radio signals. KSL Sports Zone (97.5 FM/1280 AM) and KSL Newsradio (102.7 FM / 1160 AM) are both stations under the Bonneville International umbrella.
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Chandler Holt is a co-host for the Jazz Notes podcast and a Digital Sports Producer for sports.ksl.com, specializing in all things basketball and football. Follow Chandler on Twitter @ChandlerHoltKSL or on Threads @chandlerho1t.
