Fast-Tracked: The rise of Jonny Shore

On September 16, 2017, James Sands made his Major League Soccer debut for New York City FC. The 17-year-old midfielder, who was the club’s first Homegrown signing, came on for the final 17 minutes on Matchday 29, a 1-1 draw with Colorado Rapids, after spending the previous two games on the bench. It was the only First Team appearance he made that year. Sands went on to start three games in 2018, when he logged 223 minutes, but he didn’t become a regular in the XI until 2019, when the 19-year-old made 19 appearances for the club.

Jump to February 22, 2025, when Jonny Shore made his MLS debut for New York City. The 17-year-old midfielder, who was the club’s 12th Homegrown signing, came on at the half and helped NYCFC earn a point on the road in a 2-2 draw against Inter Miami on Matchday 1. Shore was an unused substitute the next game, but he has gone on to appear in every one of New York City’s subsequent matches.

Shore, who turned 18 last month, now has 6 starts in 9 appearances after 10 games, with a clean 600 minutes logged. That’s a staggering amount of playing time when you consider that more than two-thirds of the season remains. Joe Scally played a total of 70 minutes in his debut season, Justin Haak played just six. Shore’s avalanche of appearances are unprecedented for a Homegrown at New York City, a club that usually eases the young players they develop into the First Team.

We’re still at the front end of this season, but Shore’s total minutes in his debut year already eclipses not just those of Sands, Haak, and Scally, but other Homegrowns such as Christian McFarlane (368 minutes over 10 appearances), and Tayvon Gray (375 minutes over 18 appearances). The only one that Shore trails is Andres Jasson, who logged 676 minutes in 2021, when the 19-year-old made 20 appearances and 6 starts over the course of the 34-game season. But if Shore starts and plays most of the game this coming Sunday, he’ll overtake him with 23 games left to play in 2025.

New York City FC | Homegrown Debut Seasons

* Through 10 games

Teenage starters

Looking at the table above, it’s clear that Shore’s ascendance to First Team regular doesn’t replicate the pattern of other Homegrowns. Instead, it follows those of high-profile teenage signings made by the club over the years.

Shore’s path is less like that of Gray’s, who made his 2021 debut in Matchday 2 when he came on as a late sub but didn’t make a second appearance until Matchday 9 almost two months later, than that of Mitja Ilenič’s, who made his debut at age 18 when he went the full 90′ on Matchday 9, then made 15 appearances in the following 18 games in all competitions. Looking at the table below, you can see how NYCFC has been comfortable playing select non-Homegrown teenagers over the years.

New York City FC | Teenage Debut Seasons

* Through 10 games
† Previous First Team experience

One key distinction is that Ilenič joined New York City with previous First Team experience after making 33 appearances with NK Domžale in Slovenia’s top flight, where he played against fully-grown men in front of boisterous and sometimes hostile crowds. Shore’s entire professional career before this year consisted of 41 appearances for NYCFC II in MLS NEXT Pro, a Division III league that is two levels beneath MLS on the United States soccer pyramid.

Not to put too fine a point on it, but Ilenič’s debut was a substitute appearance late in the 2020/21 season, and he didn’t see regular playing time until the following season. Shore’s First Team debut came on the road while facing Lionel Messi and Luis Suárez in front of a sold-out Chase Stadium in what was scheduled to be the marquee matchup of the league’s opening day, and he hasn’t been dropped from the lineup card since.

Many (but not all) of the other teenagers who saw significant playing time in their debut years at New York City also arrived with First Team experience. Talles Magno (15 appearances, 5 starts, 444 minutes) had 68 appearances with Vasco da Gama in Brazil, and Agustín Ojeda (22 appearances, 11 starts, 921 minutes) had 24 appearances with Racing Club in Argentina before making their debuts with NYCFC.

The only teenagers to make the jump directly from development or collegiate teams to the New York City First Team and play 500 minutes or more in their first seasons are Jack Harrison (23 appearances, 19 starts, 1751 minutes), Angeliño (14 appearances, 10 starts, 994 minutes), Jasson, and Shore. Of those, the 17-year-old Shore was the youngest at the time of his debut. Harrison and Jasson were both 19-year-olds when they started playing for the First Team, while Angeliño was an 18-year-old.

Notably, Harrison, Angeliño, and Jasson are all currently playing for European top-flight clubs. Harrison is a starter at Everton FC on loan from Leeds United, Angeliño is a starter at AS Roma, and Jasson has 30 appearances for AaB Fodbold in the Danish Superliga since joining the club last June. It’s not bad company to keep.

Jonny Shore’s debut bodes well for New York City FC

The 17-year-old Homegrown looked solid when he came on at halftime in New York City’s testy 2-2 draw with Inter Miami.

Hudson River BlueNoah Kassell-Yung

From Pilkington to Pascal

Shore’s performance in his debut on Matchday 1 was one of the highlights of the night. The 17-year-old was composed and confident, and he fit seamlessly into the First Team.

Give credit to the system at New York City, which has a clear philosophy about how the game should be played. Shore’s training as the No 6 under NYCFC II head coach Matt Pilkington prepared him to play alongside Maxi Moralez and Keaton Parks as the No 6 under New York City head coach Pascal Jansen.

It was a promising debut. But Shore “stole the show” in Matchday 3, as Mark Radigan put it in his game recap of the 2-1 win over Orlando City. “The Homegrown talent put together an impressive display, serving as an instrumental cog at the center of the pitch,” Radigan wrote. ” With two chances created and nine defensive actions, including six won ground duels, Shore was named New York City FC’s Player of the Match, a worthy honor following the first of many complete performances from the club’s next youth development success story.”

Shore’s performance that night earned him a team-high 8.3 rating from Hudson River Blue readers, who named him Player of the Match. And his play was noted by the MLS punditry, who named him to the Team of the Matchday bench.

Shore deserves credit for his abilities: He’s the one in the #32 jersey, after all. But his smooth ascendence is as much a testament to his skill as it is to the coaching of Pilkington, Jansen, and the entire New York City ethos.

Depleted squad, desperate times

But Jansen’s decision to start Shore on Matchday 3 was likely less about his quality on the field than the holes in the club’s roster.

In Matchday 2, a 1-0 loss on the road to LAFC, Janesn started center-back Strahinja Tanasijević in place of Thiago Martins, who was coming off an injury that kept him out of the season opener. He was partnered with Birk Risa, who was at fault for the game’s only goal when his scuffed clearance set up LAFC’s Ryan Hollingshead to score in the 86th minute. It was not the defense’s finest hour.

Thiago Martins was available for the Orlando game on Matchday 3, but Risa was sidelined with an injury. Tayvon Gray has filled in at center back in the past, but he was recovering after suffering an injury against LAFC in the previous game. Tanasijević was available, but he seemingly didn’t earn Jansen’s trust after starting the first two games of the season. Instead, Jansen opted to bring Haak back into the defense alongside Thiago Martins. That left a gap at the No 6. Midfielder Andrés Perea was injured, which left Shore.

Things might have been different if Jansen had a healthy squad. But the head coach made the most out of the players at his disposal, and found a defensive formation – Thiago Martins and Haak in central defense, Kevin O’Toole on the left, Ilenič or Gray on the right, Shore at the No 6 – that he used in five of the following seven games. All four of New York City’s wins this season have come while using this formation.

When Shore is in the Starting XI – and Thiago Martins is partnered with Haak in the defense – NYCFC’s record is 4W-0D-2L. When that trio doesn’t start together, the team’s record is 0W-2D-2L.

It’s clear that Jansen trusts the pairing of Haak and Thiago Martins over the other defensive combinations available to him right now. Which means more playing time for Shore.

That’s true even with the arrival of midfielder Aiden O’Neill from Standard de Liège. The 26-year-old Australian international the biggest signing New York City made this transfer window, and he’s expected to help fortify a midfield that has suffered after the loss of Santiago Rodríguez and Sands in the offseason.

It’s unclear when O’Neill will start playing. He’s match-fit after leaving his former club at the end of their season, but he’s waiting for his visa to be processed, and he’ll need some time to acclimate to his new team. But even if (when?) O’Neill becomes an everyday starter, Shore will still see more minutes, and more starts. The Homegrown has proven himself to be an asset, a player who tangibly helps the team win tough games: The stopgap No 6 is one of the best midfielders on the roster.

But his minutes will likely be better managed over the course of the season. Maybe he’ll play around 1000′, what Ojeda logged last year, or 1200′, what Ilenič logged in 2023. In other words, Shore should see the playing time that is appropriate for an 18-year-old who is one of the most exciting prospects to come out of the New York City system, and who should be protected as much as he is cultivated as he embarks on what will hopefully be a long and prosperous career.

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Hudson River BlueAndrew Leigh