Esmir & Buck headed in opposite directions

While Esmir Bajraktarevic is headed to high flying, Eredivisie leading PSV Eindhoven, Noel Buck is heading back to cellar dweller MLS side New England Revolution.

The trajectories of the 2 Revs Homegrown players have taken a dramatic turn over the past several months. Buck had several top English Premier League teams monitoring his situation as the Arlington, Mass native broke through in 2022 and 2023 under Bruce Arena.

Buck's play under Arena had him playing as a winger or as an attacking midfielder. Buck contributed several goals and assists in 2022 & 2023. Buck impressed so much so that England came calling. Buck made his first appearance with the 3 Lions U19 team in September 2023.

When Bruce Arena departed and stand in manager Clint Peay took over, Buck remained a mainstay in the squad and showed his quality even as the squad floundered closing out 2023.

In step Caleb Porter, as Clint Peay was not retained to remain as manager for the Revs. From the jump Porter rated Mark Anthony Kaye, and Ian Harkes over Buck, as Buck's playing time dwindled to begin 2024.

Despite Buck being second and third choice to Porter, Buck performed so well for England that the England Elite squad, formerly known as the U20 team called Noel in for their May international fixtures.

While Buck was flourishing with Revs, Esmir was hovering in between a bench player, a super sub, or a standout for Revs 2, who play in MLS Next Pro. One thing was for sure....Esmir's talent was evident, it was more or less him finding consistency in his MLS performances. Eredivisie side AZ Alkmaar had Esmir come in for a trial match in December 2022, in that particular match Esmir was dominant.

Re-insert Caleb Porter. Porter most definitely was beneficial for Esmir's recent rise to stardom. In 2024 Esmir received several starts and proved his ability as his MLS performances picked up. This led to Esmir making his 1 time Fifa international switch as he chose his native Bosnia and Herzegovina over the USA.

Esmir's international debut came on September 7, 2024. Esmir went on to play in 6 matches for Bosnia and Herzegovina vs several high profile countries, including Germany and Netherlands. Esmir played very well and had a dream assist to his boy hood hero Edin Dzeko.

August 31st, 2024 Southampton agreed with the Revs on a loan move for Buck. For Buck this was a no brainer as his playing time for New England was sparse and his U19 England manager Simon Rusk was the U21 manager for Southampton, which is where Buck would be playing.

While Buck played a ton for the Southampton U21's the results and performances were not enough for Southampton to fully purchase him, as Buck is set to return to the Revs to start 2024. Add Southampton's blurry Premier League future for 2025/2026 as Southampton is unsure what type of funds they will be alotted as they are odds on favorite to be relegated from the prem, so the move to return Buck was logical.

Buck returns to a Revs midfield that has recently signed Alhassan Yusuf and Jackson Yueill, to add to Matt Polster and Carles Gil. He appears to be the odd man out for 2025, and with Revs only having MLS games it is difficult for me to see where and when Buck plays. He is far too good for MLS Next Pro. Perhaps another loan is in his future.

It is extraordinary to see how these 2 players situations heading into 2025 transpire. I am hopeful Buck finds some sort of solution, he stood out under Arena and Peay. Can Porter find minutes for the Arlington baller?

Esmir, I assume will head to PSV and try finding his place. If I was a betting man, I would bet he plays some youth matches to get his feet wet, then competes for 1st team minutes heading into the 2025/2026 season.