With the 2013 MLS SuperDraft set for next week, it's that time again to go over Chivas USA's previous SuperDraft selections. They have taken 21 players since 2005 - what has the track record looked like?

Alright, let's break it down. Of the 21 players drafted by Chivas USA in the SuperDraft since 2005, only two remain on the roster, although there were four to start the 2012 season. In all, 11 of the draftees saw the field for Chivas USA's first team.

This year, Chivas have the second overall pick, and perhaps a good omen is that the other time they had that pick, they landed Brad Guzan. He is the team's highest-ever draft pick, and Chivas return to that spot again this year.

Otherwise, the track record looks pretty poor. Only four (possibly five, if Gavin signs a new MLS deal) of the players Chivas has drafted still play in MLS (and one of those was 2012's selection, Townsend). Of course, one player (Guzan) plays in the English Premier League, another (Kljestan) plays in the Jupiler Pro League in Belgium, and a third (Bornstein) is on the books at a Liga MX club, if he seldom actually plays for the first team. And Estupiñan plays in Serie A in Ecuador. That means that less than half of the players Chivas USA has selected in the SuperDraft currently play first team soccer anywhere in the world. On the other hand, three of the players selected have played for their senior national team.

Of course, compared with other clubs, it isn't as though Chivas USA are complete outliers in their draft track record. Let's look at the selections of Toronto FC between 2009-12:

Ok, let's recap. Of the 13 players selected by Toronto since 2009, two are currently on the roster, much like Chivas USA (2 of 12 since 2009). Five of TFC's selections are currently in MLS, also similar to Chivas' 4-5 (depending on Gavin's situation), and seven playing first division soccer somewhere in the world (compared with Chivas' five since 2009). Overall, the prospects look pretty similar. It is worth noting that Chivas and Toronto are of course teams that have been struggling for several seasons, and for both to have similar track records isn't much of a surprise.

That said, it has to be remembered that both teams have not benefitted from draft selection in the way their league position would indicate, given that the Seattle Sounders (2009), Philadelphia Union (2010), Portland Timbers and Vancouver Whitecaps (2011), and Montreal Impact (2012) have entered the league as expansion teams and therefore had the first or second overall selection in the SuperDraft, pushing Chivas and TFC down the pecking order.

Let's take the example of RSL, a team that is now lauded as a model organization in MLS, and one that is very shrewd with financial matters, and see their SuperDraft performances since 2009:

Of the 11 players selected by RSL in the SuperDraft since 2009, three are currently with the team, one better than TFC or Chivas' number of two each (and two of RSL's three were drafted in 2012). Four are currently in MLS, with Alexandre in limbo, similar to Gavin, so RSL's numbers are again similar to Chivas and Toronto. No Real Salt Lake players currently play first division soccer in any other countries, and six never played in MLS.

The take-away point? The recent success record of all three clubs is very similar. All in all, Chivas has made some picks that haven't panned out, but so have other teams in the league, at a similar rate to the Goats, regardless of general position in the league and stability of regime.

What do you think? Leave a comment below!