Boys in Blue add new homegrown players, draft selections, and academy director

By Noah Zimmerman

noah@queensledger.com

New York City FC midfielder Andres Perea is returning to the club on a three-season deal running though the transitional 2027 season and until the end of the 2027-28 campaign. There is a club option to retain Perea for the 2028-29 season. 

After joining the team on loan from the Philadelphia Union in 2023 and later re-signing in NYC, the American-born Colombian had a breakout season in 2025, providing an immense defensive presence in the middle of the park and contributing on the offensive end a number of times. That season was cut short in the playoffs when Perea fell after an aerial challenge, breaking his leg in Game 3 of the opening round. 

After receiving surgery, the club made sure to take care of their midfield man. Although they declined Perea’s club option for 2026, NYC remained in negotiations with him to ink a longer term deal.

“I’m really excited to sign a new contract with New York City and continue this journey with Los Celestes,” said Perea after penning his new deal. “I’ve felt so much love from the City, my teammates, the entire staff, and the fans, making me truly happy here.”

Perea wasn’t the only player up for a new contract this offseason, nor the only defensive player to break out this season. Homegrown center back Justin Haak may have seen his final minutes of MLS action against Miami in the Eastern Conference Final, and he’ll be an extremely difficult piece to replace.

Haak was the third homegrown player to join the senior team as an academy graduate and first to sign from the 5 boroughs, playing on the club’s first ever U-14 academy team back in 2015. He made his senior debut in 2019 after inking his first professional contract.

After a few shaky seasons and a pair of loan spells with USL side Hartford Athletic, Haak began to settle in with the club before stepping into a vital role this past year. Paired at CB with Thiago Martins and backed by Goalkeeper of the Year nominee Matt Freese, Haak was central in the team’s terrific defensive record, tied for the 6th least goals conceded in the league.

Unfortunately it appears that contract talks have broken down, making a reunion unlikely. Haak has attracted decent interest from Europe, as well as other MLS clubs. It would be disappointing for NYC to lose out on Haak to another club in the league, but it appears their valuation of the Brooklyn native isn’t in line with him or his potential suitors.

Regardless of Haak’s future with the club, NYC has other homegrown talents waiting in the ranks. This past week they announced the signing of Duke defender Kamran Acito and Wake Forest midfielder Cooper Flax, both on multi-year deals.

The club also made four MLS Superdraft selections in midfielders Ransford Gyan (pick #27, Clemson), Kevin Pierre (#57, Georgia Southern), and Joey Mueller (#71, UCF), as well as defender Luca Nikolai (#87, UNC). 2025 draftees Nico Cavallo and Max Murray, both defenders, are also likely to feature in the near future, progressing well in their first year with NYC.

To help oversee the club’s academy and youth structure, NYC also announced the appointment of Robin Nicholls as Academy Director. Nicholls spent a few years with English club Sunderland AFC, some formative years for the club as they mounted a return to the Premier League after a troublesome 8-season absence.

“New York itself is not only a fantastic city, but the background of the people who live there, the different socioeconomic backgrounds, means the potential for talent is exceptional, one of the best and most diverse talent pools in the world, in my opinion,” said Nicholls about his new home. “I wanted to tap into that and really help develop that level of talent to hopefully go on and play at the highest level one day. The Club is headed in the right direction, and with the opening of Etihad Park, it’s an exciting time to be a part of.”