24 Under 24: #7 Andrew Wenger, Montreal Impact
7. Andrew WengerPos: F | Montreal Impact | Age: 21 The player who came into the league as Mr. Versatility without a definitive position has been assigned one in MLS. Andrew Wenger is a forward on the Montreal Impact. Now all he needs to do is to figure out how to get more playing time. The No. 1 overall draft pick in 2012 opted to finish his schooling at Duke which made him a part-time player through May. And while Wenger was playing catch-up and also battling a hamstring injury, designated player Marco Di Vaio arrived and has held on to the forward spot in the Impact’s 4-2-3-1. That starting lineup will prove a tough nut to crack for the highly regarded Hermann Trophy winner. What the TDs and coaches like: “He’s a gifted player, a gifted athlete … There’s no doubt he’s got a tremendous football brain and is a great talent … He went to a good school and wanted to graduate, so he lost a lot of time at the start of the season … It took him a while to adjust … I like him. He's polished and he can play almost any position on the field ... Definitely think he's got a bright future, but I can't tell you where he's going to end up playing in the long run … He can play multiple positions and he competes … At some point, he's going to have to start playing regularly … I think he just needs to get out there and get playing time. He’s got four goals and only four starts, so that’s pretty good.” Where TDs and coaches want improvement: “He’s made a steady start to his career in MLS. For me, it’s only his second year as a forward so he just needs to keep learning that position … He just needs to get himself into the side regularly and find that consistency … In college he was such a good athlete he was able to overrun people, whereas in MLS there’s a lot of good athletes so I think he’s had to refine his game a little bit … His movement is probably a little bit neater and he’s learning more about the position, whereas before I think it was just natural with his power, his pace and his finishing … He probably lacks enough games at the moment. That'll probably be the biggest thing for him." Opta Says: Of players younger than 24 with at least 150 minutes played in MLS this year, Wenger has the highest goals-per-90 rate (0.66).
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| Tale of the Tape |
| Last Year in 24U24: N/A |
| Fan Ranking: #12 |
| Castrol Index (as of 9/14/12): #262 |
| 2012 Stats |
| Matches played: 18 |
| Matches started: 4 |
| Goals: 4 |
| Assists: 0 |
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