VANCOUVER, British Columbia — One hundred and eighty-seven days since being drafted first overall by San Diego FC, Manu Duah made his Major League Soccer debut, coming off the bench in San Diego's 5-3 win over the Vancouver Whitecaps. The 32nd UC Santa Barbara Men's Soccer player drafted to MLS, Duah is in the first year of a guaranteed three-year contract with San Diego, who took the lead of the Western Conference with Wednesday night's victory.
 
Duah took the pitch in the 89^th minute and immediately watched San Diego score their fifth goal of the evening, then got to play six minutes of stoppage time to help secure the result, the team's 11^th win in their first 19 MLS games. The runout was his first in MLS but not his first action for the club; Duah featured in San Diego's Jun. 7 friendly against Club América, kick-starting the move which ended in San Diego's second goal of a 3-0 victory. As a team, San Diego has the second-best record in all of MLS and the best in the Western Conference, as they look to becoming the ninth expansion team in the league's history to make the playoffs in their first season and potentially join the Chicago Fire as the only expansion teams to win the league on their first go.
 
A native of Kumasi, Ghana and a graduate of Dunn School in Los Olivos and Santa Barbara Soccer Club, Duah became the first Gaucho in any sport to be drafted first overall when San Diego FC selected him in December, making him also the first draft pick in the franchise's history. In his single season with UC Santa Barbara, Duah played 14 games in Blue and Gold, with the Gauchos going 8-3-3 in those matches, keeping six clean sheets. He provided one assist but mostly wowed scouts and fans alike with his defensive midfield play, drawing comparisons to legendary former Barcelona and current Inter Miami midfielder Sergio Busquets.
 
Duah is not the only former Gaucho in San Diego, as 2012 Big West Freshman of the Year Emmanuel Boateng is also on the team. Boateng has made six appearances in San Diego's inaugural season, including playing the final 20 minutes of Wednesday night's win.