After a long and tumultuous season for the New York Red Bulls, it’s finally time to hand out grades to the players. Alongside New York Red Bulls II lead writer Anthony Paradiso, we will hand out grades to a few players and discuss how they performed this season.
Some players such as Gustav Berggren or Marcelo Morales will not be included as we didn’t see enough time out of them. With that being said, let the grading begin.
Emil Forsberg (Midfielder): A
The Red Bull captain led the club in minutes played (2,866) this past regular season and finished second on the team in goals (11) and first on the team in assists (11). The 34-year-old Swedish designated player was also clutch, memorably scoring the winning goal off a free kick in his squad’s first Leagues cup game vs Chivas de Guadalajara in July. Also, six of Forsberg’s 11 goals this season came in matches decided by one goal or less.
One area that he can try to be better at is making his teammates better. His teammate, Eric Choupo-Moting finished fifth in Major League Soccer (MLS) in goals this season, but after a fast start, young forward Mohammed Sofo finished with five goals and no assists in MLS competition in 25 matches played.
For the future of the New York Red Bulls to be bright, Forsberg has to not only produce offense but help his teammates improve their games as well.
Carlos Coronel (Goalkeeper): A+
What more can I say about the 28-year-old Paraguayan goalkeeper. On a team that conceded the ninth-most goals (47) in MLS this season, Coronel still shone brightly, earning the third-most clean sheets (10) and making the seventh-most goalkeeper saves (103) in the league this season in 31 matches played.
To put this in perspective, the Red Bulls finished 10th place in the MLS Eastern Conference and Coronel’s clean sheet total matched that of the starting goalkeeper of the team who finished first in the Western Conference, San Diego’s Carlos Dos Santos.
Rumor has it that Coronel will hit the open market in the next transfer window. If this was his final year as a Red Bull, he finished his fifth season in Harrison off with a flourish and will attract multiple offers from top clubs around the world.
Eric Choupo-Moting (Forward): A+
In his first season with Red Bull, the ex-Bayern Munich striker lived up to the hype. The 36-year-old Cameroon international scored 17 goals which was good for the fifth-most in MLS this season behind such names as Lionel Messi and Anders Dreyer. His five assists rank second on the team as well, making it 22 goal contributions in 33 matches for the 6-foot-3 Cameroonian.
Choupo-Moting wasn’t just a stat-padder either. Eight of his 17 goals in MLS competition this season came in games that were decided by one goal or less. It was a stellar first year in red and white for Choupo-Moting and even at his ripe old age, he proved he is still capable of being this team’s top goal scorer going forward.
Noah Eile (Defender): B
The 23-year-old Swede had a solid season at the center back position. He blocked 35 shots, led MLS in percentage of dribblers tackled (TKL%) with a 85.7 percent success rate, and his 88.9 passing percentage ranked in the 81st percentile among MLS center backs.
However, in matches against playoff-bound teams, Eile wasn’t as big a factor, as the Red Bulls conceded 34 of the 47 goals they conceded in 2025 to teams who made the playoffs. On set pieces, Eile wasn’t a huge factor either as he scored just one goal in 30 matches played.
However, Eile was a solid defender as evidenced by the fact that he contributed to all 10 clean sheets this season, logging 811 of a possible 900 minutes. This season was a good stepping stone for the young Swede but he can and should give the Red Bulls more next season.
Daniel Edelman (Midfielder): C-
The 22-year-old New Jersey native and Red Bulls academy product had a disappointing 2025 season. The stats tell a tale of two players; on one hand, Edelman had just one goal in 26 matches played. On the other, Edelman’s 84.9 percent passes completed per 90 minutes ranked in the 66th percentile among MLS midfielders, his 6.42 progressive passes per 90 ranked in the 82nd percentile and his 1.52 interceptions per 90 ranked in the 88th percentile.
Even though he is a defensive midfielder he still finished with a 0.01 expected assisted goals (xAG) while starting more than 75 percent of his team’s games. To put this shortcoming in perspective, his teammate, 21-year-old defender Omar Valencia played in six less matches than he did but managed five assists and a 0.09 xAG.
The Warren, New Jersey native is still young at 22-years-old, but there were seven other Red Bulls players younger than him who played in at least 15 matches this season. With the pressure from within the team and the reserve team mounting, Edelman has to provide more offensively going forward to hang onto his job.
Peter Stroud (Midfielder): B
The 23-year-old from Chester, New Jersey rebounded well from the displaced ankle fracture he suffered in the 2024 season. Stroud’s biggest asset was his versatility, as in 2025 he played defensive midfielder, center midfielder and right wing while contributing three assists in 27 of a possible 34 matches.
Of the 27 matches he played in, he spent 10 as a defensive midfielder, 10 as a central midfielder, one as a right wing, and in six matches he played both defensive and central midfield in the same match! Looking at the advanced stats, Stroud did well. His 84.5 percent success rate on passes completed per 90 ranked in the 63rd percentile among MLS midfielders and his 2.83 tackles per 90 ranked in the 83rd percentile.
Comparing his performance to that of other midfielders on the team, Stroud was more productive offensively than Daniel Edelman but finished with the same number of goal contributions as 20-year-old Ronald Donkor who played in seven less games than Stroud. Overall, it was a season to build upon for the young midfielder and we should expect more from the New Jersey native in 2026.
Wiki Carmona (Midfielder): D-
For the Venezuelan midfielder, despite 300 more minutes than 2024 (1,596), 2025 felt more like a regression of sorts. After posting seven goal contributions last season, the 22 year-old didn’t register a single goal this season in domestic play. His playmaking was also stifled a bit as he had just a single assist in MLS play.
For Carmona, it should have been better for him, especially when he has a talented teammate like Forsberg in the midfield. His shot selection in particular needs to improve because blasting shots from outside the 18-yard box is not smart. With eight of his 33 shots on target this season, Carmona needs to understand when it’s the right time to shoot the ball.
Now, he deserves credit for being called up to the Venezuelan National Team back in October. The young man has talent, there’s no doubt. Maybe with Schwarz parting ways, the new manager will find ways to improve Carmona’s scoring touch.
Sean Nealis (Defender): C-
The 2025 season was a mixed bag for the American defender from Massapequa, New York. During 2022, Nealis logged a career-high 2,953 minutes, but this season he logged 1,832—over 1,000 less and 400 less than he did in 2024.
One of the reasons why was Nealis failed to produce a single goal contribution all season and in aerial duels percentage, where the 6-foot-4 center back should have an advantage, he finished sixth on the team with a 56.1 percent success rate. He also was tied for the team-lead in yellow cards with Noah Eile with eight and that shows a lack of discipline when he played in 25 of a possible 34 matches.
Despite this, when looking at some advanced stats, the big center back did very well. In terms of passes completed per 90, his 88.8 percent ranked in the 80th percentile among center backs and his 1.62 interceptions per 90 ranked in the 91st percentile. Nealis is still a serviceable MLS center back but this season was a step backwards for the 28-year-old.
Mohammed Sofo (Midfielder): B
In a perfect world, Sofo is someone that could contribute heavily to his country of Ghana in the future. But, specifically looking at his first true season with New York after playing one match in 2024, there were some positives and some negatives.
Sofo had eight goals in 2025 in all competitions, which is really impressive for a young talent like him. His play in the month of May was excellent, highlighted by a two goal performance vs USL side Colorado Springs Switchbacks in the U.S. Open Cup.
Unfortunately, his positive momentum started to fade as the season progressed and that ended up affecting his play. This was noticeable when he was responsible for making an errant pass at Charlotte FC, which resulted in a goal and a defeat for the Red Bulls. Sofo will get better as he continues his ways through MLS, but we’ll have to see.
Kyle Duncan (Defender): C+
Let me praise the long-time New York defender for a second and it’s not because we share the same first name. The club has seen members of the backline like John Tolkin and Aaron Long move on from the club in past seasons. Duncan has been in Harrison for the most part since 2018 (ignore his stint with Belgium club Oostende).
Looking at some of the positives, he became the franchise’s leader in assists by a defender this season. Additionally, he was able to register three assists in MLS competition this season to help out offensively. Duncan is respected by everyone and isn’t by any means a bad defender.
This season, fans could notice some frustration in Duncan with some of the mistakes him and the backline made. While the amount of yellow cards he was given went from four to three, what occurred vs Real Salt Lake is still controversial for many. Duncan was handed a red card after violently taking down RSL’s Diego Luna.
It was a bad moment for Duncan even though New York won that match. Overall, an interesting season for the long-time Red Bull.
Alexander Hack (Defender): C-
On a personal note, I had a chance to interview Hack back in February during Red Bulls Media Day. Genuinely a respectful and friendly guy who was excited for the opportunity to play in MLS. Having played under Schwarz when he coached 1.FSV Mainz 05, Hack should have been a fit in the system again.
Hack had his moments this season, including scoring a goal vs Lionel Messi and Inter Miami CF at Sports Illustrated Stadium this July. That goal was his first of his MLS career. He was even named to the MLS Team of the Matchday for Matchday 17 when he earned his first MLS assist vs Atlanta United FC.
However, there was a lot of inconsistency in his playing time this season. He would go from starting to being brought on as a sub in some contests. Whether it was bad play from Hack or Schwarz trying to use different tactics, it did not make the German defender’s transition to the league easy.
It didn’t help either that he had eight yellow cards on the season in all competitions.
Raheem Edwards (Defender): D+
In his first season with the club, a lot of people disliked the play of Edwards on the backline. Eight yellow cards, one red card, bad plays off the ball, some would say he wasn’t great this year for New York. The eye test can say a lot about a player and I wasn’t impressed by Edwards.
On the human side though, maybe fans could have treated him better. Edwards was allegedly verbally abused following the Red Bulls’ loss at home vs New York City FC back in September. You have to feel bad for the defender, regardless of his performance this season.
Omar Valencia (Defender): B
Only 21 years old, Valencia was solid to start the 2025 campaign. The Panamanian was a consistent starter for the better half of two months. With five assists in MLS competition and some good plays from him, 2025 looked to be nice for him.
There were some unfortunate moments for him throughout the season though. Versus Orlando City SC on April 12, Valencia was fined by the league’s Disciplinary Committee for violating the simulation-embellishment policy. His season was also affected, especially after the All-Star break, when he basically disappeared from the lineup, only appearing in three matches after July 23.
Reports said he suffered an illness during the summer stretch. A shoulder injury was also a factor for him missing games in the second half of the season.
Dylan Nealis (Defender): B-
It was a weird season for the defender out of Massapequa, New York. For Dylan, he missed a large portion of the season thanks in large part to a hamstring injury suffered against D.C. United on April 19. The injury appeared to affect his numbers in some categories this season.
After posting three assists in domestic play last season, Nealis had a goose-egg in that department in the 2025 regular season. Granted, he did have a mini scoring-touch in 2025 between regular season play and Leagues Cup action.
In the Leagues Cup vs FC Juárez, Nealis scored off a Marcelo Morales free-kick to give the Red Bulls a 1-0 lead. Arguably though, his first MLS goal vs the Philadelphia Union on August 16 was more important as that ended a long losing streak to Philadelphia.
Tim Parker (Defender): B
The backline deserved a lot of criticism throughout the season and rightfully so. Yet, the veteran Parker showed why he is still up there among defenders in MLS. Yes, his return to New York wasn’t what he expected, but he was still determined in the 13 matches he played in domestic action.
His intermediate pass completion at 93.7 was great in league play and he was able to score a goal vs CF Montréal. Realistically, he could have been used more and that was noticeable heading down the stretch of the season.
One stat that was interesting – and yes he only played 13 MLS matches but still – was his aerial duels win percentage. The past two seasons, Parker was top 10 in MLS in percentage of aerial duels won. This season, he was not over 70% but rather at 58.3%.
Julian Hall (Forward): B-
Hall won’t turn 18 until March 24th of next year. There is so much of his career to go that fans can’t be disappointed with him. He’s young and he’s going to make mistakes.
2025, even for how disappointing it was for New York, allowed them to see the potential Hall has moving forward. The youngster scored against strong teams like NYCFC and C.F. Monterrey. He became the third youngest player in franchise history to start their first MLS match at 16 years old vs Atlanta in March.
Hall has an entire offseason to prepare and improve for 2026. He’s still a kid and honestly, he did well for what it’s worth. Getting eight starts isn’t bad either.
