19. Liam Ridgewell – Portland Timbers – $1.25 million
A face that fans of English football will recognize, Ridgewell was regular in the English Premier League with Aston Villa, Birmingham City and then West Brom before deciding to take the trip across the pond to sign for the Timbers in 2014. He made an instant impact at centre back and was made captain by head coach Caleb Porter for the 2015 season in which Portland won the MLS Cup and qualified for the CONCACAF Champions League. It was quite a shock for me to see the 2011 English League Cup winner make this list. However, Ridgewell has been outstanding since joining Timbers and $26,000 a week in wages looks pretty cheap compared against the success for Portland last season.
18. Pedro Morales – Vancouver Whitecaps – $1.258 million
Morales has been a very important player for the Whitecaps since he joined the Canadian club from Spanish side Malaga in 2014. In his debut season in the MLS the former Chile international notched up 10 goals and a dozen assists and was awarded with the MLS Newcomer of the Year Award. Last season was not as successful for Morales, as a mid season injury interrupted his good form at the start of the season and he struggled to regain that consistency, eventually losing his place in the side towards the end of the season. Despite another injury this season, Morales has already managed 5 goals and 2 assists in his 9 appearances so far.
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