Zico Bailey's self-assessment of his arrival to FC Cincinnati might be a bit harsh. He certainly didn't kid himself about the initial impressions and expectations for him, both within and outside the club, after his trade to Cincinnati in December 2019.
"No one really knew me in 2019. I was kind of just like this random kid that FC Cincinnati picked up from the (Los Angeles) Galaxy," Bailey said. "I didn’t have too much expectation. It was just like, ‘if this guy’s good, then we look like geniuses.’
At the time of the trade, Bailey was 19 and unheralded in MLS. He had five appearances for Galaxy II in the second division USL Championship that year after spending parts of 2019 at top-flight Swedish side Kalmar FF and Austria's FC Helsingør.
In 2020, appearances were sparse for Bailey at FCC. It was enough for him to simply be included in the club's MLS Is Back Tournament traveling party where, as Bailey said at the time, "I feel like I'm really a pro."
More:Zico Bailey relishing in the MLS Is Back experience: 'I feel like I'm really a pro'
Nearly two years on from the trade to FC Cincinnati, which was completed during the first offseason for now-former general manager Gerard Nijkamp, current FCC GM Chris Albright moved to bring Bailey back.
Bailey's time with Cincinnati was officially extended in mid-November when the club exercised an option year in the defender's contract. The formal announcement of the move arrived Wednesday, along with other offseason roster decisions by the club.
More:FC Cincinnati declines contract options for nine including Nick Hagglund, Przemyslaw Tytoń
While FC Cincinnati stated in a news release at the time it remained in negotiations with other players, Bailey was the only one to have an option year exercised.
"It was a little anxious just because I didn’t really know how Chris (Albright) operates. He’s so new to the club and stuff like that, but I felt pretty confident that I gave a good final impression in that last game (against Atlanta United)," Bailey said. "It was a little bit of anxiety but it wasn’t too much. I know some of the other guys, they didn’t hear about it until the last day (to pick up options), so I can only imagine how that was. So for me, it was nothing crazy.”
Bailey said Albright's instructions to him for the coming 2022 season sounded familiar on several levels.
They included the need to bulk up physically, and to be prepared to be held accountable for results.
"I think he just said what other people think as well. I’m young. I need experience. They want me to get more physical. They want me to gain weight the same way they did last year," Bailey said. "Obviously, some of it is like a broken record at this point: ‘We need to do better as a team. We’re need to hold guys accountable. We’re need to work harder.’ All that stuff, so it wasn’t anything that shocked me.
"It’s just how it goes at this level. We need results, and that’s what (Albright) wants to bring and he has that much experience and he’s been in a club with the Union that has had success. He knows what it takes and what we all need to bring.”
In earning another year at FCC, Bailey overcame June surgery and went on to start eight of FCC's final 10 matches. That stretch ultimately won Albright over, but Bailey wasn't informed of the decision to retain him for two weeks following the conclusion of the season.
According to Bailey, the most important moment during the crucial stretch in which he proved himself to the club's management was his Decision Day goal against Atlanta United.
"If I’m honest, I think that for everyone on the team, not just the guys that had options, when we’re not winning games, regardless of how everyone plays, we look bad," Bailey said. "I think the goal, I think it did a lot in terms of his decision. If my goal was on the first match day versus the last, I think I’d prefer the last because it’s fresh in his mind.
"Leading into the offseason, I was feeling like I did everything I could. I had no regrets about how I played, how I performed, how much effort I put into each game. It’s up in the air at that point. Someone else controls my future at the end of the day."
Bailey's wait to learn his status with the club wasn't altogether unexpected. Albright was expected to take his time in rendering contract decisions as the club continued its search for a permanent head coach.
Bailey occupied himself during the wait by practicing golf and playing the FIFA '22 video game.
"I’ll play (FIFA) online and I’ll play as Cincinnati and start myself, and the whole time I’m just using myself down the right side. I’m not even really playing as I would normally playing," Bailey said. "I’m just trying to use my guy to score all the goals. So, it’s pretty cool but I think the next step is I need to get a better rating because I think it’s like a 59 or something like that.
"I think my rating should be at least 65 or higher. My guy can’t even complete a 20-yard pass. It’s crazy. My guy doesn’t really look like me as well."
Better ratings in the video game world can come via real-life, on-field performance in 2022, and FC Cincinnati has afforded Bailey that opportunity.
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