The Transfer Window is Open, What Positions Should Sporting KC Target?

It’s Thursday, July 24th, the Major League Soccer secondary transfer window is officially open. MLS teams have until August 21st to sign players for the stretch run (or to get a head start on 2026). The sooner deals are done; the sooner players can take the field. If Sporting Kansas City were to wait until the end of the transfer window to get players in, much like they did with Joaquin Fernandez last year, they would leave very little time for any signings to make an impact.

If they didn’t arrive until August 21st, there would only be eight games to go. As it stands right now, with the upcoming break for the Leagues Cup, there are only 11 games to go in the Sporting KC season. Any moves made now are really just building towards 2026 unless Sporting KC start winning a lot of games and winning them very soon.

Transfer Window Considerations

There are a few factors to consider when it comes to how Sporting KC may go about their business during the secondary transfer window.

First off, they still don’t have a Chief Soccer Officer hired. And it’s possible they’ll forgo that position entirely and let Mike Burns, the current Sporting Director, assume those duties. Whether it’s Burns or a CSO to be named, it would be nice for the team to have a direction. Do they have a preferred formation to fit players into? A preferred style? These are things a CSO could help establish. There is nothing worse than signing players this season that the team won’t want next season.

Beyond that, who is going to be the coach? Presumably, any coach that is hired will have a plan for the players on the roster, but it’s inevitable that some players thrive under one manager and then go unused under the next.

Another consideration is the $500,000 in General Allocation Money acquired as a part of the William Agada trade. There are reports that the $500k will expire if it’s not spent. And that may not be the only GAM that Sporting KC have stashed that they need to spend. There is still a lot of transparency missing from MLS that leaves us a bit in the dark regarding these issues.

Finally, the team only has 25 players under contract, and they have five open roster spots. They also have the ability to move a few lower paid guys off the senior roster to the supplemental roster and make bigger signings.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at some ways Sporting KC can spend a little or a lot in the next month. They could choose to do multiple things with the flexibility they appear to have.

Option 1: A Starting Right Back

As my colleague Robert Rusert laid out last week, “signing a right back has to be the priority.” Is it like the old adage, when you’ve got two quarterbacks you’ve got no quarterbacks? Can we apply that to right backs? The team currently has converted forward Khiry Shelton and Real Salt Lake castoff Andrew Brody battling for right back minutes. But between injuries, neither has accumulated a ton of minutes and neither has fully taken control of the post.

Shelton has played the most with 1,045 minutes across 18 appearances (12 starts), while Brody has lagged behind with just 401 minutes across 11 appearances (five starts). Neither is the long-term answer at the position. Shelton has an option for 2026 to stay with the team, but his $775,000 in guaranteed compensation can be better spent elsewhere. Brody is out of contract after the season. Now would be a good time to bring in a starting caliber right back to start laying a foundation for 2026. Jansen Miller seems likely to keep competing for starting CB minutes, so let him get comfortable with whoever will play to his right.

Looking at the Sporting KC II roster, there isn’t anyone that stands out as ready to make the leap. This could be colored by how horrific of a season the IIs are having. They are dead last in all of MLS Next Pro with a 0-12-4 record. That leaves them with just five points (they won a shootout for one of those draws) through 16 games. That’s a whopping 35 points behind first place St. Louis City 2. Nati Clarke was once thought to be the right back of the future, but it’s hard to rate anyone on a defense that has allowed 40 goals in 16 games. Also, he’s spent a decent amount of time at center back (which is sort of shocking since he stands just 5’4), so it’s hard to evaluate him at RB. As for Leo Christiano, he has mostly played on the left side of the back line, and he recently departed the club over not getting a first team contract according to reports.

SKC academy standout Leo Christiano (‘07) left the club this week.

Club was offering a “2’s” deal w/no 1st team component (same as their other 07’s). Player willing to negotiate it, but club had one offer only.

European teams in 🇳🇱 have interest. SKC blocked trials recently. pic.twitter.com/yvUjyaHyre

— USMNTProspects (@ProspectsUsmnt) July 18, 2025

One caveat I’ll give to this search is Jake Davis. If the team doesn’t see him as a midfielder long-term, maybe they should just have him full embrace playing right back and hone his skills. With no CSO in place though, it’s hard to plan beyond 2025. My preference would still be to see Davis in the midfield, something we’ve seen very little of this season. If the team decides to start experimenting with a back three though, Davis as a right wing back could make a bunch of sense.

Option 2: Sign a Center Back

Sporting KC have conceded 42 goals so far in the 2025 season. Only four teams have given up more goals (LA Galaxy, Atlanta United, D.C. United, CF Montreal). Despite that, progress has been made at the center back position. Jansen Miller, a 2025 draft pick, has cemented himself as a regular starter (1,755 minutes, 20 appearances, 19 starts). He’s had growing pains, but he’s shown signs that he can at least compete for a starting center back spot for years to come.

Robert Voloder has made huge strides this year as well. He and Miller were a formidable pairing for a few weeks before Voloder had to have surgery for a broken clavicle. It’s possible Miller and Voloder could emerge as the center back pairing we’ve been waiting for. Miller has contract options through 2028, but Voloder is out of contract after the season. Before his breakout performances alongside Miller, he had significant struggles though, so it’s unclear if the team seems him as a long-term fit. Or if he wants to stay. Or what his salary demands are to re-sign.

Beyond Miller (who is technically on an option year), Ian James is the only other CB who is guaranteed to be here next year. He’s signed through 2027 with options through 2029. While he’s still super young at just 17, he could be a regular in the lineup in years to come.

The only other two center backs on the roster, Joaquin Fernandez and Dany Rosero, are unlikely to be back next year. Fernandez is out of contract and makes more than $1 million per season. He’s proven inconsistent and hasn’t stayed healthy. After a strong start, Rosero has been injured off and on for most of the last year and has an option for 2026 the team can easily decline.

All of that to say, the team needs to add someone at center back. Whether it’s a long-term starter or someone to compete for minutes, there is clearly room to improve the center back depth chart. Then again, they can hold off on this move until the offseason and give those critical CB minutes to Miller, Voloder and James to see how big of a need CB really is going into 2026.

Option 3: Just Purchase Santi

Striker Santi Munoz arrived this season and cleared the way for the team to trade the aforementioned Agada. When the 22-year-old was signed, it felt like a low-risk move. He’s still young but hadn’t accomplished much in his career. In his time with Santos Laguna (Liga MX), he had 79 appearances and just six goals. Since arriving, he’s only played 304 minutes across 10 appearances (two starts) but has already scored three times and added an assist. And that doesn’t include the play he made last weekend against New York City FC that doesn’t go down as an assist but led directly to Daniel Salloi’s game tying goal.

He’s with Sporting KC on loan through the 2025 season and has a purchase option to stay around after that. As of right now, we have no clue what that purchase option is. If it’s a reasonable number that doesn’t make Munoz a Designated Player, applying the $500,000 towards his fee seems like a no-brainer. He’s been productive and has shown the ability to play CF, as a second striker and even a little bit on the wing or as a pseudo attacking midfielder. That diversity will fit well with whoever the coach is in 2026.

His $335k salary is reasonable this year. A purchase would likely necessitate negotiating a new deal, but moderate increases in future years for a young attacking talent is more than reasonable.

Option 4: Help in the Midfield

There is one lock down starter in the midfield: Manu Garcia. Outside of that, who lines up with him is in flux. Jacob Bartlett has played the next most minutes (1,507 — 5th on the team) in the middle of the park, but he’s 19 and still finding his way. In all honesty, as the Home and Away guys have postulated, he may be the answer at center back before he’s the answer at defensive midfielder.

Jake Davis has a mere five starts in the middle of the park. Davis entered the season as the likely starter at the box-to-box midfielder spot and instead has been needed at right back, been injured, or been suspended too often. Zorhan Bassong has been a pleasant surprise but is not an everyday starter on a team that wants to make the playoffs. Nemanja Radoja has finally returned from injury and was used out of position again. His salary of $1.39 million should ensure his 2026 option is declined and he’s gone.

Manu needs pieces around him that allow him to be closer to the goal. Which brings us to option number five.

Option 5: Swing for the Fences

The above four moves could theoretically all be done, or some combination therein. One move that seems less likely is signing another Designated Player. That’s something Sporting KC can afford to do within their current roster construction and salary outlay. This is where the lack of a CSO and permanent head coach is likely a barrier. Does the team add another midfielder to start next to Manu for years to come? How about a superstar winger? Not knowing what formation or style the team wants to play could inhibit such a move.

I personally don’t see the team making this kind of move, but the right player signed here could propel this team to success this season, let alone in years to come. Burns has nailed the Dejan Joveljic and Garcia signings and he’s seemingly earned the trust to try to knock a third DP signing out of the park.

Option 6: U22 Initiative

Another tool in the toolbelt of Mike Burns is the U22 Initiative signing. The team can sign one or two players under this roster mechanism to fit many of the above needs. There is an argument to be made these spots shouldn’t be used on defenders, then again, the best two U22 signings the team has made are Logan Ndenbe (LB) and Robert Voloder (CB). The only attacker, Marinos Tzionis, is gone and Burns said before the season they wanted to add an attacker with their third spot. That could still happen this season. If they only add one player, they can still decide to sign a third DP and leave that avenue open.

None of the U22 players who the club signed have showed up and been day one starters, so that will likely be the case here. But giving them the tail end of the season and a full offseason to get integrated seems like a good move.

Option 7: Trade that GAM

There is nothing stopping Sporting KC from trading some of their GAM they have on hand or acquired in the Agada trade to a team trying to wiggle in under the salary budget. As other teams make moves in the summer window, they may need to make a corresponding move to clear salary space. Sporting KC could take back salary and acquire a player that fits one of the team’s many needs. A team like Inter Miami has somehow squeezed Argentine international Rodrigo De Paul into their budget via loan for the rest of the season despite a rumored $15 million transfer fee.

Perhaps Sporting KC can trade for talented 22-year-old Federico Redondo who is on a U-22 contract. He would fill a need for SKC, and he may not have a path to many minutes with Rodrigo arriving. That’s probably a bit of wishful thinking since Redondo hits the cap at a greatly reduced number despite his $837,000 salary and had a hefty transfer fee paid by Miami to give him up for a little GAM.

Beyond Miami, there are plenty of teams making moves that will need to clear salary. That’s essentially how Sporting KC landed Joveljic earlier this season. There is no reason that can’t happen again, even if it’s not a DP level player in return.

Whatever move(s) Sporting KC decide to make, it seems they will be at least semi-active in this window. They have money that they need to spend or trade. Only time will tell how quickly these moves happen or how impactful they will be.

What moves do you think Sporting Kansas City should make? Take a look at their roster construction and contract options, along with their wage bill, and let us know in the comments below.