MLS SuperDraft 2022: LA Galaxy takes Farai Mutatu in first-round pick in heartwarming moment

The MLS SuperDraft 2022 kicked off and the LA Galaxy selected Farai Mutatu in the first round where there was a touching moment for the Michigan State player. 

It was a touching moment because it was the player's parents, whom he hadn't seen since 2014, who let him know that the LA Galaxy picked him.

The Los Angeles team entered the 2022 MLS SuperDraft with four draft picks, and they selected him with their first pick, the No. 21 overall pick in the first round.

Thus, and with a scene that moved more than one of the spectators at the event, the player will leave Michigan State to join Major League Soccer with one of the strongest teams in the tournament.His pick was the moment of the SuperDraft 2022.

For Mutatu, it was a double surprise he experienced today

And his words could not hide how excited he was after receiving the news.

"It was a complete surprise," said Mutatu, who until today played at Michigan State. "I had no idea they were going to do it. It was unbelievable. Afterward, I talked to my mom and was shocked that I could use Zoom."

The player's story is one of overcoming that could even look good on the big screen, as it's not every day that a player who gives up everything to follow his dream can be reunited with his family, albeit virtually. 

Mutatu and his family came to the United States in 2006 from Zimbabwe to Haslett, Michigan. But due to force majeure, his parents had to return in 2014 to their homeland.

Mutatu's versatility is what has set him apart from his other teammates at Michigan State. 

Mutatu, who had only been to California once in his 2019 vacation, will now be at the Galaxy's opening training camp later this week. 

How does the MLS SuperDraft work and why is it so important?

The way this process works is not as complex as you might think. There are 3 rounds in which MLS clubs can make one selection per round. This year the first pick goes to Charlotte FC as an expansion team.

This is followed by the selection of teams that did not qualify for the Playoffs in 2021, with the goal being that these squads can have talent to help them with the teams that were better positioned in the last tournament. 

The remaining positions are filled in descending order by the teams that scored the fewest points last season, down to the most successful clubs.

The SuperDraft has always been a bridge between U.S. college soccer players and the professional world. 

At one time it was the single most important way to recruit talent for Major League Soccer, however since each team in the league has its own academies and tournaments such as MLS NEXT and MLS NEXT Pro, young talent has more ways to get into the pros. 

However, there are teams that can move up or down positions in the SuperDraft due to negotiations that clubs can make with each other.

As an example of this is the negotiation that FC Dallas and Toronto FC made yesterday in which in exchange for the Cowboys getting a first round pick (3rd overall) from the Red Bulls, they agreed to buy a player from them and paid them with $50k in GAM.