Louisville City FC has one of the deepest rosters in the USL Championship this season, but two of its most important parts have been players in Ray Serrano and Elijah Wynder who continue to show they’re likely to have bright futures at a higher level.

In this week’s Young Player Spotlight, we look at how they played key roles in a big road victory against Birmingham Legion FC as well as five other U-22 standouts who caught our eye in the past week.

Ray Serrano, Louisville City FC

The 22-year-old scored his sixth goal of the season – already an individual single-season high – and had three shots and four chances created in LouCity’s 4-1 victory against Birmingham Legion FC. Serrano doesn’t lead LouCity in goals or assists this season, but his overall impact keeps showing up in his underlying numbers, where he leads LouCity and ranks third in the Championship with a +5.81 Goals Added mark.

Elijah Wynder, Louisville City FC

Not to be outdone, the LouCity Academy product had a perfect performance on the ball in Birmingham, completing 43 of 43 passes and recording three chances created while also winning 6 of 7 ground duels and making two interceptions defensively. The 21-year-old is becoming one of the most complete midfielders in the Championship, with the trust Head Coach Danny Cruz has in him illustrated by his 16 starts in 17 appearances this season.

Abdellatif Aboukoura, Loudoun United FC

The 19-year-old attacking midfielder keeps putting in sharp displays and notched his fourth goal of the season in Loudoun’s 2-0 win against the Tampa Bay Rowdies on Saturday night. The experienced heads in United’s squad are making a difference, but Abdellatif is looking right at home among them, and had four shots and two chances created alongside his tally before coming off midway through the second half.

Nighte Pickering, Memphis 901 FC

The United States youth international has been a slight odd man out of late in Memphis but showed he still knows how to find the back of the net in putting away 901 FC’s fifth of the night against Phoenix on Friday night. Pickering’s timing to get in behind Rising’s back line was good and his touch and finish past a top goalkeeper in Rocco Ríos Novo were excellent, and this should keep his confidence up.

Shawn Smart, Las Vegas Lights FC

The 20-year-old right back put in another stellar display in the Lights’ 2-0 victory against Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC with his ability to push into attack once again in the spotlight. Smart completed 38 of 43 passes and had one shot and one chance created while winning 3 of 3 tackles and 7 of 11 ground duels as he continues to impress in his first pro season.

Ramiz Hamouda, Birmingham Legion FC

The night didn’t go the way Legion wanted, but the 16-year-old center back did well in his longest league appearance yet, appearing for the final 20 minutes against Louisville City FC. The United States youth international completed 16 of 19 passes and made two interceptions and two recoveries. It’ll probably take time, but there’s a lot of promise here.

Nate Worth, Tampa Bay Rowdies

The 17-year-old came on for the final half-hour against Loudoun United FC and put in a solid display, completing 8 of 10 passes and recording one chance created while helping Tampa Bay maintain pressure in the attacking half. Worth also won 3 of 4 duels and made one interception defensively.