Top forwards from California’s 2026 class

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With goal-scoring ability, with creativity, speed and physical ability, these six forwards from California's class of 2026 are very special players. At the high school level, they stepped in and played key roles for varsity teams despite being sophomore, and as club players they continue to make an impact. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":174406,"_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Nathan Almanza","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2026","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"null","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"103","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Orange Lutheran","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"Slammers FC","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"[caption id=u0022attachment_174406u0022 align=u0022alignnoneu0022 width=u0022300u0022]u003cimg class=u0022size-medium wp-image-174406u0022 src=u0022https://prepsoccer.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2024/05/Nathan-Almanza-crop-821x539-1715982843.jpg?w=300u0022 alt=u0022u0022 width=u0022300u0022 height=u0022197u0022 /u003e Photo: Orange Lutheran[/caption]rnrnAlmanza is a big part of the future at Orange Lutheran and is a key player for Slammers FC. Almanza is growing into a leadership role and with key players graduating, he will be important from that standpoint as well as impacting the game on the pitch from a physical standpoint. He has versatility, so that will allow for him to impact the game in a variety of ways. He's very athletic so being able to play multiple roles and impact from a distribution, scoring or defensive standpoint will not be a problem.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_1_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_1_player_details_player_name":"Nicholas Garzino","_player_evaluations_1_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_1_player_details_graduating_class":"2026","_player_evaluations_1_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_1_player_details_height":"null","_player_evaluations_1_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_1_player_details_position":"103","_player_evaluations_1_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_1_player_details_school":"Mountain View","_player_evaluations_1_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_1_player_details_club_team":"MVLA","_player_evaluations_1_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_1_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_1_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"Garzino lead the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League in goals as a sophomore at Mountain View this past high school season and plays elite level club footy at MVLA. He uses both feet very well and can play any forward position, displaying a lot of technical skill and versatility. He is a very fast player, but doesn't just rely on speed as he is also very physical. Garzino knows how to finish, flashing the skills it takes to be a goal scorer.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_2_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_2_player_details_player_name":"Jake Goetting","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_2_player_details_graduating_class":"2026","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_2_player_details_height":"null","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_2_player_details_position":"103","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_2_player_details_school":"Berkeley","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_2_player_details_club_team":"Eastshore Alliance FC","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_2_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_2_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"The first thing you will notice about Goetting is his size. He is a very big forward, who is strong and powerful. But he doesn't just use his physicality in order to score as he is incredibly talented. He is very exact with the ball at his feet as he offers no wasted movement, changes direction quickly and can create a shot for himself from anywhere. What really stands out, however, is his combination play. He's very advanced in terms of how he holds up the ball, lays it off and then continues on his run. And he is so quick and agile that he gets in behind doing this so often.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_player":["83017"],"_player_evaluations_3_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_3_player_featured_image":174385,"_player_evaluations_3_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"Jones can juke defenders with his ability to stop and start, as he offers quick, agile movements that opponents have trouble reacting to. He can use both feet equally, making it hard for a defense to guess which way he's going to go. He has a very strong left foot and a powerful shot, but also plays with some grace and touch. 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