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MLS New England Revolution

Revs select three players in 2006 MLS SuperDraft

January 20, 2006 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
New England Revolution News Release


Philadelphia - The New England Revolution selected midfielder Leandro de Oliveira in the first round of the 2006 MLS SuperDraft at the Pennsylvania Convention Center today. The Revs also selected forward Willie Sims (Cal State University, Northridge) and Kyle Brown (University of Tulsa) and acquired an allocation from the Columbus Crew in exchange for two draft picks.

De Oliveira, a naturally left-footed midfielder comes, from Bryan, Texas after being born in Sao Paolo, Brazil. He had a standout college career at University of Alabama-Birmingham. De Oliveira was second team NSCAA All-America in 2003 and was first team All-Conference USA in 2003 and 2004. He attended Allen Academy in Texas for high school and started college at University of Connecticut before transferring to UAB in 2002 and playing three seasons there.

"He's a very talented attacking player, " said Revolution head coach Steve Nicol. "He's going to put pressure on players who are starters now to keep their positions. He's exactly what we wanted."

"New England is a great team," said de Oliveira. "I'm going to a good club. I'm really happy to be part of such a team and I'm looking forward to starting playing and joining a good group of guys."

In the second round (23rd overall) the Revolution chose forward Willie Sims out of Cal State University, Northridge. Born in Guatemala City, Guatemala, Sims hails from Los Angeles and was an NSCAA/adidas first team All-America selection after a standout college career.

In the third round (35th overall), New England selected Kyle Brown, a forward from University of Tulsa. A four-time first team All-Missouri Valley Conference selection, Brown also was named All-Midwest for the 2003 and 2005 seasons.

The Revolution also today acquired an allocation from the Columbus Crew in exchange for the 2nd round pick (13th overall) in 2006 and a 3rd round pick in the 2007 draft. Both selections traded to Columbus today had previously been acquired by New England through trades with Chivas USA.

The Revolution has had great success in the MLS draft in recent years. Head coach Steve Nicol's previous two first round picks, Michael Parkhurst (2005) and Clint Dempsey (2004) went on to be MLS Gatorade Rookies of the Year. The Revs' two top choices before that, Pat Noonan (2003) and Taylor Twellman (2002), both went on to win league scoring titles and earn MLS All-Star status.

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