FC Cincinnati officially added depth to its back line by signing Avionne Flanagan to a contract.
FC Cincinnati confirmed Wednesday the one-year deal for Flanagan, formerly of South Florida men's soccer and the No. 29 overall selection in the 2021 SuperDraft by FCC. The deal includes three separate one-year options and could keep Flanagan in Orange and Blue for up to four years.
Flanagan, who played left back in college, spent the first month-plus of the preseason on trial with FC Cincinnati prior to Wednesday's announcement.
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“Avionne has earned a contract with FC Cincinnati based on what he has shown throughout the preseason,” FC Cincinnati general manager Gerard Nijkamp said in a team news release. “He is a young player with potential and we believe he has adapted well to the professional environment, both on and off the pitch.”
Flanagan's been moved around along the backline between the left-back and left-center back positions during preseason under head coach Jaap Stam but it's expected he'll focus on the left-back position going forward.
While Flanagan was drafted with the thought that he could serve as a secondary option to projected starter Ronald Matarrita, other players entered the competition to serve as backup options to Matarrita.
Stam said veteran defender Saad-Abdul Salaam and second-year FCC defender Zico Bailey also played at left back this preseason while Matarrita was away on Costa Rica national team duty.
Regardless of which position Flanagan takes up on the left side of FC Cincinnati's defense, his presence could be needed.
FC Cincinnati's depth is being tested in certain spots along the back line with Maikel van der Werff still seeking full health less than two weeks out from the start of the regular season.
Cincinnati officially confirmed this week the addition of 21-year-old center back Gustavo Vallecilla, but he'll be working to get on the same page with his teammates for the foreseeable future considering his relatively late arrival during preseason.
Nick Hagglund, who has some versatility, and Tom Pettersson remain healthy, experienced options at center back for the time being but they'll need backups until van der Werff is fully healthy and Vallecilla get caught up.
FCC has nine defenders currently on its roster. Joseph-Claude Gyau is one of those players and his move into the right back position seems to have freed up Salaam and Bailey to compete for time both at right back and elsewhere.
Salaam and Bailey played mostly at right back in 2020.
Regarding the entire FCC team, the club doesn't have to be compliant with MLS roster rules until April 16 so some moves in the coming days and weeks are likely.
Cincinnati opens the 2021 regular season April 17 at Nashville SC.
The Enquirer will update this report.
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