Welcome to the first-ever Hudson River Blue Transfer Tracker for the Cosmos, the storied club that is being revived in Patterson, NJ. (Third time's the charm!). This page will be updated with all official announcements, breaking news, and sketchy Bluesky posts.
• Cosmos add three more players, including former USL League One champion
January 16, 2025
Status: Official
The Cosmos roster keeps expanding with three more player additions. Center back Anderson Holt and forward Patrick Bohui both come with previous professional experience in the lower division of US Soccer. Meanwhile, goalkeeper Tristan Stephani joins fresh out of college.
Holt, a 21-year-old from San Diego, is a proven centerback who's spent the last three years with USL League One side Union Omaha. After joining as an academy player, Holt helped the team win both the league shield and the championship in 2024. Last season, he appeared in 20 matches across League One regular season, USL Cup, and US Open Cup play, starting 17.
Holt's academy experience includes a two-year stint with Queensboro FC, the never-launched USL Championship side. Their academy did play, however, with Holt appearing for the team multiple times. That includes helping Queensboro FC II reach the final of the USL Academy Cup tournament and appearing during the team's 2023 US Open Cup Qualifying run, where he started in a 5-0 win against Kearny Scots-American Athletic Club (yes, I was there).
Bohui, a 22-year-old from Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire, has prior professional experience both in the United States and abroad. After stints in the FC Cincinnati and Philadelphia Union academies, Bohui made his professional debut with Bethlehem Steel FC (now Philly Union II) in 2019. He scored two goals across two seasons in Chester.
The next few years included call-ups from both the United States U-16 national team in 2019 and U-20 national team in 2022, followed by a move to Europe to join the academy of Danish side Vejle Boldklub. It was back and forth from there with Bohui spending 2023 with Columbus Crew 2 in MLS NEXT Pro, scoring twice on a team that reached the league final, and heading back to Europe and spending the last two years with Portuguese side Portimonense SC. Should he make an appearance on the field, a cap with the Cosmos will mark Bohui's first time playing professional soccer with a non-reserve team.
Stephani, a 23-year-old from Norfolk, MA, is an out-of-college goalkeeper signing his first professional contract. He spent four years with Holy Cross University, starting 27 times, and earned Patriot League Academic Honor Roll recognition in each of his four seasons. This last year as a graduate student, Stephani played for Fordham University, starting 13 games. According to Cosmos head coach Davide Corti, Stephani is very good in 1-v-1 attacking situations. He also previously played for USL League Two side Ocean City Nor'easters in 2021 and was a member of the New England Revolution academy.
• Cosmos roster reaches 19 players, add young defender and an experienced attacker
January 7, 2025
Status: Official
After taking a break for the holidays, the Cosmos roster is continuing to take shape with the addition of two new players. The team's latest additions are experienced winger Christian Koffi and center back Luis Del Rio.
These moves line up with the Cosmos, specifically CEO Erik Stover, looking to spend less on roster compared to the days of NASL 2.0 in the 2010s. That said, sources and rumors have indicated the team is spending big money on key players - some of which have already been announced. No specific contract numbers have been published, the typical format for USL contracts.
Koffi, a 25-year-old from Paris, France, joins the team after spending the last two seasons in MLS NEXT Pro. That was spread across stints with Chicago Fire II and Huntsville City FC, the reserve side of Nashville SC. Last year, across 20 games, Koffi notched 11 goals and six assists, helping his team reach the Eastern Conference Semifinals (losing to eventual champions New York Red Bulls II).
Koffi developed at AS Monaco and Fiorentina, helping the latter win the prestigious Coppa Italia Primavera, Italy’s top youth knockout competition, in 2019 and 2020. Koffi made his pro debut in the fall of 2020 with Cesena FC in Italy’s Serie C. He signed with Como 1907 in early 2021, returned to France to play for SC Sètois, and then spent the 2022-23 season with CF Intercity in Spain’s third tier.
After joining Fire II in 2024, Koffi also played for the first team in the Leagues Cup games against Sporting Kansas City and CD Toluca. Given his experience and output in Huntsville last year, arguably as one of the best field players in MLSNP, it is likely Koffi is one of the players the Cosmos are spending more on.
Del Rio, an 18-year-old from Florida, is the latest young recruit to make his way to Paterson. He is the fourth teenage player to join the Cosmos roster ahead of the 2026 season.
Del Rio got on the Cosmos radar while taking part in the Miami Pro Combine last November, catching the eye of Cosmos Scout and Manager of Youth Partnerships and former USL pro Jose Angulo. Del Rio played most recently for Doral SC’s ECNL team and went to high school at the Divine Savior Academy in Doral, FL.
• Cosmos add another two players, roster up to 17
December 23, 2025
Status: Official
Christmas came early for the Cosmos, with the team announcing two more signings: Defender Massimo Morabito and native Brooklyn midfielder Justin Milovanov join the USL League One squad that will kick off in Paterson next March.
Morabito is a 17-year-old defender who joins the Cosmos after spending time in both the Philadelphia Union and Orlando City SC academies. His time on the Union U-15s included standout performances alongside current Philly star Cavan Sullivan. The Philadelphia native most recently spent time with Pennsylvania's FC Delco Academy.
Milovanov is a 22-year-old Brooklyn native, graduate of James Madison High School in Midwood. This will be his first professional contract after college stints at the UMass Lowell before finishing his college soccer career at Marquette University this past fall. This past summer, Milovanov played with FC Tuscson in USL League Two, helping the team finish second in the Southwest Division and reaching the Western Conference Semifinals.
• Cosmos add Nestor Cabrera, Braeden Backus, Julien Lacher, and Davey Mason
December 19, 2025
Status: Official
The Cosmos added another four players after signing attacking midfielder Nestor Cabrera, winger Braeden Backus, winger Julien Lacher, and veteran left back Davey Mason. These additions bring the team's roster to 15 players.
Mason is a 27-year-old left back from Maryland with experience playing in the third division of US Soccer. His early career can be traced to the Mid-Atlantic, where he played college soccer at both Georgetown and Loyola Maryland, with amateur stints with FC Baltimore Christos, before making the jump to professional soccer with Maryland Bobcats FC in the National Independent Soccer Association. It was here between 2021 and 2022, across 33 caps, that Mason made himself one of the best defenders in the league — eventually being named to Protagonist Soccer’s Knights Who Say NISA’s 2022 Best XI (the only website that ever gave NISA the time of day). His career then included stints with USL1 side South Georgia Tormenta FC and, most recently, Texoma FC this past season.
Cabrera is a youth Guatemalan national team player from Raritan, NJ. The 22-year-old has 12 caps for Guatemala’s U-20 side, including playing in all three of the team's matches at the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup. He made his senior team debut with Guatemala last year in a friendly against El Salvador at Dignity Health Sports Park.
The Garden State native also has caps locally, playing four years at Rutgers University with the Scarlet Knights. He also appeared with amateur sides FC Motown and Jackson Lions FC in the National Premier Soccer League, while playing soccer with the ill-fated Queensboro FC and New York Red Bulls. His main feature is ball control, making him a difficult player to pick off from close range.
The 18-year-old Lacher joins the Cosmos off the heels of a two-season stint with NYCFC II in MLS NEXT Pro. Across 42 regular-season appearances, the Rumson, NJ, native scored seven goals and notched 11 assists, with his nine assists in 2025 leading the team and his six goals being the second most by a baby pigeon player. His second goal last season came in a marquee match against New York Red Bulls II at Sports Illustrated Stadium, feeding off an assist from Máximo Carrizo for the equalizer.
Nice Máximo Carrizo assist (following nice footwork from Piero Elias) on the first half goal scored by NYCFC II’s Julien Lacher
— Hudson River Blue (@hudsonriverblue.com) 2025-03-30T19:22:25.151Z
Backus is the first player to cross the line from Westchester SC to Cosmos, a notch in this budding rivalry perhaps? The 19-year-old has experience in both the FC Dallas and Detroit City FC youth systems. Cosmos Head Coach Davide Corti describes the left-footed player as quick with his feet, and has the ability to play multiple positions.
• Cosmos add Serie C veteran Davide Galazzini, midfielders Darren Sidoel and Nick Mendonca
December 17, 2025
Status: Official
The Cosmos roster is now up to 11 players after the club are bolstered the squad with players who have international and MLS NEXT Pro experience. The new faces are defender Davide Galazzini, midfielder Darren Sidoel, and midfielder Nick Mendonça.
Galazzini is an Italian right-back from Verona, who spent the majority of his career playing in the third and fourth tiers of Italy. The 25-year-old will be making his first appearance outside of his home country with the Cosmos. Prior clubs include Sona Calcio, AC Trento, Brindisi FC, SSD Albalonga, and Mantova 1911 — the latter for which he started a Coppa Italia First Round match en route to a win.
A product of the AFC Ajax academy system, Sidoel is a Dutch holding midfielder with multiple caps on various Netherlands youth national teams. His career highlights include helping Ajax II win the second division of Dutch football in 2017-18, before leaving for then-English Championship side Reading FC in mid-2018, where he spent time with the club's Under-23s. The 27-year-old's career has included stops in Belgium, Bulgaria, Spain, India, and Denmark. Most recently, he was in Iceland with second-division side Grindavík.
Mendonça is a 24-year-old Miami native who spent most of his youth career in Brazil. He had stints in the academies of both Flamengo and Vasco da Gama, which led to multiple USYNT camp callups. The technical holding midfielder spent time with three different MLS NEXT Pro teams, starting with MNUFC2 in 2023 before joining North Texas SC in 2024, helping the team win the MLSNP Cup that season. Last year, he played with independent MLSNP side Chattanooga FC, with 27 appearances across all competitions. As of now, he is the second-most experienced player on the Cosmos behind Sebastián Guenzatti.
Chattanooga FC | Nick Mendonça
• Cosmos add Derrek Chan, Marcelo Lage, Ajmeer Spengler
December 12, 2025
Status: Official
The Cosmos added another three players after signing goalkeeper Derrek Chan, defender Marcelo Lage, and midfielder Ajmeer Spengler. That brings the club's roster total to eight.
Chan spent time with New York Red Bulls II, Charlotte Independence in USL League One, and Real Monarchs of MLS NEXT Pro. The 27-year-old California native stands 6' 3", and played at UC Davis before going pro.
Lage played college soccer at George Washington University, then joined Las Vegas Lights in the USL Championship in 2023 (25 appearances, four goals), then Spokane Velocity of USL League One in 2024. The 25-year-old joined Richmond Kickers of USL-1 in 2025.
Spengler is a 25-year-old playmaker who signed with South Georgia Tormenta FC in 2024 (31 appearances, two goals, six assists), then joined expansion side Texoma FC (29 appearances, nine goals, four assists).
Michael Battista
• Cosmos add four players
December 3, 2025
Status: Official
Four more names are heading to Paterson next season, with the group including both locals and international players.
- Josué Manzano (Midfielder) - Former Ecuador youth national team player who played in Orlando City SC’s academy. The 20-year-old hails from Guayaquil, Ecuador, and spent time with second division side Club Atlético JBG.
- Davide Materazzi (Defender) - A native of Milan, Italy, who played for multiple Italian pro team academies before coming stateside for college. The 24-year-old played four seasons with Virginia side Lionsbridge FC in USL League Two, and helped the team reach the 2023 National Final (where they lost to Ballard FC). Son of Marco Materazzi, the Italian defender whose accomplishments include winning the 2006 FIFA World Cup.
- Tino Puentes (Midfielder) - Multi-sport athlete at NCAA Division III Drew University in Madison, NJ. The Garwood, NJ, native played three seasons with Morris Elite SC in USL League Two, which is one of the Cosmos' official affiliate programs for youth development. The 23-year-old is known as a jack-of-all-trades who can play multiple positions.
- Nicholas Zielonka (Forward) - Wallington, NJ native with a large local footprint. These last four summers have seen him play for the Hudson Valley Hammers in USL League Two (31 goals). Appeared for the New York Pancyprian-Freedoms in 2025, including starting in the 2025 US Open Cup First Round upset over FC Cincinnati 2. The 23-year-old remained on the team through the 2025 National Amateur Cup and American Premier Soccer League season. Before that, he played three seasons for the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and one for the University of Kentucky.
• Cosmos sign Sebastián Guenzatti
November 21, 2025
Status: Official
The first Cosmos signing is a familiar face: Uruguayan forward Sebastián Guenzatti is back in green, after signing a multi-year contract.
Guenzatti is a Cosmos original from the days of the North American Soccer League. After moving to the US and working his way through the Cosmos academy, he spent four seasons with the team between 2013 and 2016, helping the Cosmos win three NASL SoccerBowl titles. He also started in both of the Cosmos' upset wins over New York City FC in the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup in 2015 and 2016.
Since leaving New York, Guenzatti became a regular in the USL. He played over 100 matches with the Tampa Bay Rowdies, helping the team win the Eastern Conference in 2020 and the shield in 2021. That was followed up with stints with the Indy Eleven and Detroit City FC. Now 34, Guenzatti will be an easy fan favorite to draw fans back while also helping to train younger players.
• Cosmos name Davide Corti head coach
September 4, 2025
Status: Official
The 53-year-old will help build a USL League One squad from scratch after joining from stints at AC Milan Women and UC Sampdoria Women in Serie A Femminile.
Read more here.
Michael Battista
