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A few weeks after initially declining his option, the New England Revolution have re-signed midfielder Steve Neumann to a contact. Per club and league policy, details of the contract were not disclosed.
Neumann was among those who did not have their options picked up by the Revs back on November 25th. The versatile midfielder led MLS in 2014 with 20 substitute appearances after being the 4th overall pick in that year's MLS SuperDraft. Neumann didn't see as many minutes in 2015, playing in only nine games making one start. Neumann has yet to record a goal or assist in MLS but does have one goal and one assist in four games in the US Open Cup.
Neumann was the unfortunate playing time casualty with the additions of Jermaine Jones in the middle and Juan Agudelo out wide in the past season and a half. The Revolution's midfield depth makes it hard for Neumann to get minutes in the attacking roles and out wide, with Kelyn Rowe, Diego Fagundez and Teal Bunbury also on the depth chart. Still, it was a bit of a shock to see the versatile midfielder on the declined option list and not surprising at all to see the Revs re-sign a young talented player.
We'll have to see if Neumann will also feature in a holding midfield role next year with Jones and Andy Dorman currently out of contract. Certainly Neumann has the skill set to play in the middle of the field as well as out wide, and having a player who can fill almost every central midfield and winger role in the midfield is a very nice option to have on the bench. 2016 could be a very pivotal year for Neumann, and if he still can't find minutes in MLS, perhaps a stint at Rochester could keep him sharp.
A native of New Hope, Pennsylvania, Neumann was a four-year star at Georgetown prior to being selected by the Revolution in 2014. He had 41 goals and 34 assists in 86 appearances for the Hoyas, helping lead his team to the NCAA College Cup Final in 2012 with a hat trick in the semifinals against Maryland, and earning 2013 BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year honors.