Rhode Island FC dipped into the MLS loan market today and brought in a name that the fine folks here at Tide Talk didn’t recognize and immediately Googled: Matthew Corcoran. With the season slipping away and the club noticeably light on in-season reinforcements compared to last year, Coach Khano made a surprise move by bringing in a 19-year-old central midfielder from Nashville SC. (Yes, another midfielder… Midfield FC strikes again.)
Corcoran has an impressive resume for such a young player. He represented the U.S. Under‑17 National Team at the 2023 FIFA U‑17 World Cup, starting in three of four matches, including a Round of 16 game vs. Germany, and currently features for the U.S. at the U‑20 level. He also has real USL Championship experience from his time with Birmingham Legion in 2023 and 2024, before signing with MLS side Nashville SC at the start of this year.
By all accounts in my short time researching him, the kid can really play and has the potential to change the feel of RIFC’s midfield overnight. But of course, none of that matters if he can’t help the team score goals. So we’ll have to see what kind of impact he actually makes. Read on to learn a little bit more about our latest addition to the squad.
Who is Matthew Corcoran?
Corcoran is a 19-year old, Dallas, Texas-born central midfielderer who comes to Rhode Island on loan after signing with Nashville SC in February of this year. Despite just turning 19 in February, he already owns over 50 professional appearances, most of them earned with Birmingham Legion FC in the USL Championship, and most of those occurring in 2023 when Coach Khano was in the final year as an assistant coach at Birmingham.
The baby-faced player you see above was one of the most promising midfielders in the USL Championship in 2023, playing 2,348 minutes across 32 matches and logging 1 goal and 3 assists. But his contributions went beyond the box score: he averaged 1.3 key passes per game, held an 83% pass completion rate, and consistently finished among his team’s leaders in touches and recoveries.
A hip injury sidelined him for much of 2024, which stalled his momentum and likely delayed his Nashville breakout. Even so, he earned a surprise start on opening day of the 2025 MLS season, making him the youngest starting player in Nashville SC’s history. He logged a full 90 minutes in that match, completing 87% of his passes and winning 4 duels in a 0-0 draw against New England. He’s since made a few more appearances off the bench but clearly needs minutes to keep developing. That seems to be the magic formula needed to unlock a loan to the USL from MLS. Enter: Rhode Island FC.
What Does He Bring?
Corcoran is a two-way central midfielder. By all accounts, he’s not flashy, but he’s calm under pressure, sees the field well, and isn’t afraid to mix it up defensively. He breaks lines with his passing, not his dribbling. He prefers to keep things ticking in possession and find forward outlets early, which are great traits for a team that too often struggles to build through midfield.
That said, I wouldn’t mind a midfielder who can break lines with his dribbling, someone that can pull apart defenses that are increasingly unchallenged by RIFC’s slow tempo. But if Corcoran is as composed as advertised and can break lines with his passing, that’s a huge plus for a team that lacks that specific skill set.
From a tactical standpoint, he seems tailor-made for RIFC’s double pivot in the 4-2-3-1 (or 4-3-3, however you choose to view that formation). If he’s defensively sound enough then we could even see him play a sole CDM, or perhaps he can play a CM role in a fluid midfield trio. He profiles more as a deep-lying distributor than a destroyer, so the likely fit here is alongside a ball-winner like Ybarra or even Holstad. Corcoran can sit slightly deeper, receive under pressure, and help pull opponents out of shape by switching play or slotting passes between the lines.
And unlike some of the deeper midfielders on the current roster, he doesn’t panic when pressed. That alone could unlock our ability to play more deliberately through the middle third, something that’s been badly missing all season until we saw glimpses of it from Hugo Bacharach over the past month.
Why This Matters for RIFC
Let’s be blunt: midfield has been a weakness for most of the year. The holding midfielders have lacked composure on the ball, opting for safe passing that either goes sideways or backward. Our tempo and intensity have suffered as a result, which is a big reason why this team has struggled so badly to create chances.
Corcoran gives this team a different profile. He might not dominate with physicality, but he plays with maturity, discipline, and vision. He’s not a savior, but he raises the floor and brings with him the kind of raw talent that could push teammates to higher levels, especially those fighting to keep their minutes in an already-crowded midfield.
And the ceiling? If Corcoran plays like he did in 2023, we could be looking at a quietly brilliant addition, a la Morris Duggan last year. He has the passing range and rhythm to unlock wingers and set up guys like Holstad or Maxi in dangerous spots. Ideally, he’ll stabilize possession and find advanced playmakers in threatening spaces to spring attacks.
For this loan to be considered a success, that needs to happen. Otherwise, why bring in a player with this profile instead of a more attack-minded option who can actually put the ball in the net?
How Long Will He Stay?
Rhode Island FC fans might have mixed emotions at the thought of a loan. Morris Duggan worked out great, but Jack Panayotou was recalled just as the team was started to depend on him for offense. Could this be another Jack P situation?
Well according to Ben Wright, a sports writer in Nashville who covers the team, it may very well be.
Not great, indeed…. You can check out Ben Wright’s article here for more details, but if this is going to be a short term rental, I don’t see the point. And if he is going to play in the U-20 World Cup, then I REALLY don’t see the point.
For the sake of this blog, let’s pretend like he’ll be here for the remainder of the season. Otherwise, I just wasted too much of my time writing this damn thing.
Either way, the option to be recalled at any point does indeed give me major Jack P flashbacks and it really tempers any excitement we may feel if we see him get off to a hot start in Rhode Island.
Final Thoughts
Matthew Corcoran is a smart, composed young midfielder with a real future. If Corcoran adjusts quickly, he could be exactly what this team needs to stop treating the midfield like a revolving door and start building something more stable. He’s someone that Coach Khano has worked with directly, so I have to trust that Khano knows exactly what he will be getting from this player. But there are questions that need to be asked:
Will he actually be here for long?
Is this the kind of move that tells me the front office is still paying attention?
Could this be one of a handful of moves meant to make RIFC more competitive?
Does Khano see a young MLS-caliber player as a missing link?
Or is this simply a move to show the fans that the club is still trying?
All fair questions that the Rhode Island fanbase is undoubtedly asking today.
Khano knows more about soccer than I ever will, but I’m skeptical that this move alone will fix what’s broken offensively. The issues seem to be rooted too deeply. I’d love to see the team bring in someone who can create havoc on defenses in a more direct way. Not to mention the fact that we’d all feel better knowing there is assurance that whoever comes in will be here to stay for the rest of this season.
What I do believe is this: Corcoran presence makes the team better. Whether that’s enough remains to be seen.
Let’s cross our fingers and hope for the best, because hope has run real dry lately in Rhode Island.
Be sure to tell us what you think of the signing. And as always… Up The Tide!
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