Position: Left-Winger
Age: 21
Key Stat: 3.14 shot-creating per actions per 90 minutes — the fifth-most by any NYCFC player last season.
The story of Malachi Jones is unique. Born in Freetown, Sierra Leone, Jones was adopted alongside seven siblings and raised in Tennessee.
After an impressive high school campaign, Jones played collegiate soccer at Liscomb University, where he had 12 goals and 15 assists in 35 appearances. New York City FC selected him with the 8th overall pick in the 2024 MLS SuperDraft, and a little more than one month later, Jones signed a contract with the First Team.
What went right in 2024
It didn’t take long for Jones to make an impact.
Jones played the full 90 minutes in NYCFC II’s season-opener, a 3-2 defeat to Inter Miami II. Jones would go on to make his First Team debut just five days later, when he came off the bench to play 23 minutes in a 1-0 road loss to FC Cincinnati on March 23, 2024.
Jones continued to play limited minutes as a substitute, but he showed intensity and brought energy every minute he was on the pitch. It was obvious that Jones had potential and that it was only a matter of time before he broke through and became a starter.
Former head coach Nick Cushing handed Jones his first MLS start against Toronto FC on May 11, 2024, in a heavily-rotated lineup. Cushing’s decision paid off almost instantly, as Jones scored his first MLS goal right before halftime. NYCFC went on to grind out a 3-2 win, their first road victory of 2024.
WHAT A WAY TO SCORE YOUR FIRST @MLS GOAL 🫶 pic.twitter.com/HMloK6mJCJ
— New York City FC (@newyorkcityfc) May 12, 2024
A regular in the lineup
From there, Jones solidified himself in the lineup. He made his second MLS start against the Red Bulls on May 18, 2024, at Citi Field. Jones assisted New York City’s opening goal — a nice run in behind on the left wing followed by a pass played into Hannes Wolf, who patiently aimed his shot past Red Bulls goalkeeper Carlos Coronel.
Hannes Wolf and @newyorkcityfc strike first in the Hudson River Derby!
📺 #MLSSeasonPass: https://t.co/oVb9PWMBng // #RivalryWeek by @continentaltire pic.twitter.com/EmBsUI6b8l
— Major League Soccer (@MLS) May 18, 2024
Jones’s fourth career start did not go as planned. In the 18th minute of the game against Orlando City on June 28, 2024, Jones and the Orlando City goalkeeper came together, and both suffered broken legs. Jones limped off the field, but he went on to undergo surgery to repair a broken tibia and tibia in his right leg.
Jones’ rookie season was ended short after breaking through to the First Team less than three months into the season. He averaged 3.14 shot-creating actions per 90 minutes, the fifth-best on the team, and averaged 0.55 goal-creating actions per 90 minutes, behind only Maxi Moralez and Santiago Rodríguez.
What to expect in 2025
Jones’ road to recovery seems to be going well. In a recent video posted to Instagram by NYCFC, Jones participated in training. It looks like he is almost back to full fitness and could return sooner rather than later.
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Pascal Jansen will likely ease him back into the lineup. Jones will need to fight for minutes, with Agustín Ojeda, Julián Fernández, and Wolf all poised to break out this year.
It’s hard to predict who Jansen will prefer to play on the wings, but if Jones brings the same energy, passion, and intensity he brought in his first season with New York City, we will see him creating and scoring goals again before too long. Jones has a bright future ahead of him.
I was at the game where he suffered that terrible injury. What a moment it will be when he returns to the pitch in front of the home fans.