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Ricardo Moreira / Getty Images The offseason is officially underway in MLS, with the trade market finally percolating and free agency opening at 1 p. m. (ET) Wednesday. All sources mentioned below requested anonymity as they were not authorized to comment publicly on the matters. Here’s the latest I’m hearing around the league: Around 10 MLS clubs have expressed interest in acquiring Real Salt Lake midfielder Emeka Eneli, multiple sources briefed on the situation tell The Athletic.   Advertisement Eneli is one of the hottest names in MLS trade circles, but RSL is not shopping him and does not want to trade him. That hasn’t stopped a bunch of teams from calling to test that resolve. Any potential deal would not be cheap. Talks for a new contract between Eneli and RSL have not progressed, the sources add, opening the door for suitors in the league. RSL signed Eneli to a new deal in 2024. Since that deal, Eneli has earned his first two caps with the U. S. national team and continues to develop as a key player for Real Salt Lake. Eneli, 26, was selected No. 25 overall in the 2023 MLS Super Draft and was an instant revelation. He has made 103 appearances for RSL, a midfielder who can keep possession and cover a lot of ground to win duels. There is interest in Europe in Eneli, too, the sources add, but just like around MLS, RSL wouldn’t let him go without a proper financial incentive. Minnesota United has agreed a deal to acquire midfielder Peter Stroud from the New York Red Bulls, multiple sources briefed on the deal tell The Athletic. The Red Bulls will receive $475, 000 of General Allocation Money (GAM), the sources add. Stroud, 23, made 83 appearances with RBNY after signing a homegrown deal. He started in the 2024 MLS Cup when the Red Bulls made an improbable run to the final, losing to the LA Galaxy. The hard-nosed Stroud starred for Duke University after returning from England, where he was in West Ham’s youth setup. He was also a longtime regular on the U. S. youth international team. Stroud will fit nicely on Minnesota’s squad, giving head coach Eric Ramsay another option in central midfield. Minnesota made it to the Western Conference semifinals this season after finishing fourth in the West and reaching the U. S. Open Cup semis. Beyond Stroud leaving, sources across MLS routinely point to one team that is open for business on the trade market: the New York Red Bulls. Advertisement Names like Daniel Edelman and Sean Nealis are among the most discussed, but the Red Bulls are looking to kickstart a roster overhaul with outbound moves. Edelman, 22, has made 118 first team appearances for the Red Bulls, including 31 this year. Nealis, 28, has spent his entire professional career with the Red Bulls. He was initially drafted in the second round of the 2019 Super Draft then progressed through the second team to become a key starter in the first team. He has made 187 RBNY appearances. Nealis is one of the better center back options who could be added on the trade market, if a deal were to happen. Both players started in the club’s 2024 MLS Cup defeat to the Galaxy. Both were important in arriving to the final. The Red Bulls, under new head of sport Julian de Guzman, are tweaking their game model and system to use the ball more than previously and play with wingers. To facilitate more additions, the New York needs departures. Goalkeeper Carlos Coronel already left the club with his contract expiring. The club can add another DP still too. RBNY is closing on a deal to sign American winger Cade Cowell from Chivas, as previously reported by The Athletic. The deal will be an initial loan with a purchase option, sources add. Between salary cap restraints on flexibility and natural roster evolution, the MLS Cup finalist Vancouver Whitecaps are a club that sources across the league routinely point to as potential trade partners. The Whitecaps feel they are in a solid spot on the salary cap front, and are not forced to do anything, but it won’t stop teams calling. Vancouver has written or verbal offers for seven players, sources briefed on the situation say. The Whitecaps insist they are not shopping any of these players and intend to bring them all back, sources say. Getting called for high performing players is normal. Two names being oft-discussed: Defender Mathias Laborda and winger Jayden Nelson. Advertisement A number of clubs are interested in acquiring those two via trade, sources say. Laborda, 26, was a crucial part of Vancouver’s season. His ability to play anywhere across the backline was vital as injuries made head coach Jesper Sørensen reshuffle the lineup plenty. Nelson, 23, would like more playing time ahead of the World Cup. He wasn’t a regular starter by the season’s end. The Whitecaps are open to moving him as they don’t want to hold him back for minutes. Two other names that come up: USMNT midfielder Sebastian Berhalter and Canadian international Ali Ahmed. Ahmed and Berhalter are both out of contract after 2026 and the club is in contract talks with both, sources say. In Berhalter’s case, a new deal is not imminent, which keeps the door open for other teams to make offers. Berhalter and Ahmed, in particular, are players the club do not want to lose, given their status as key starters. Berhalter, 24, was named to MLS Best XI this season. He had four goals and 11 assists in 29 regular season appearances, plus starred in the club’s run to the Concacaf Champions Cup final. Ahmed, 25, had eight assists in 1, 287 regular season minutes this year, with injury limiting him to that number. When fit, he is a regular starter. The Houston Dynamo is finalizing a deal to sign Brazilian winger Guilherme from Santos, sources briefed on the deal tell The Athletic. The Dynamo will pay a fee around $2 million and he hits the squad as a designated player. Guilherme, 30, played an integral role in keeping Santos in Brazil’s top flight this season. He had four goals and seven assists in league play, including five assists in his last four games to stave off relegation. In all competitions, Guilherme had 14 goals and 10 assists in around 3, 400 minutes last season. Houston is expecting to play a bit more of an attacking style this season, with Guilherme complimenting winger Lawrence Ennali, not replacing him. The club still has DP forward Ezequiel Ponce and USMNT midfielder Jack Mc Glynn as other key attacking options. Advertisement The Dynamo won’t be done with Guilerme. Sources briefed on the situation say the club is getting close on a pair of TAM-level signings as well, as the club is looking to bring in a handful of new starters this season. The future of midfielder Brooklyn Raines remains in flux, with MLS clubs calling about a potential trade, sources say. Raines is out of contract next winter. Tom Bogert is a Senior Writer for The Athletic, providing exclusive, original and unique insights on MLS and the U. S. national team. He has previously written for MLSsoccer. com, The Guardian, and more.