Amidst the chill of midwinter Ohio, a noticeable personnel deficit and all the moving parts you expect in the early days of preseason in Major League Soccer, a new hope and optimism can be faintly detected within FC Cincinnati's ranks.
Thursday marked the third day of preseason practice for FC Cincinnati, which will next week embark for the first of two training sojourns in Florida. For now, the club is attempting to knock the proverbial rust off on the turf field in the back of the Mercy Health Training Complex.
With a group of about 23 players present for Thursday's training session in 24-degree cold, some of the absences were owed to the need for personnel acquisitions, first-year head coach Pat Noonan acknowledged.
"We're missing some key pieces," Noonan said. "In ways, you're playing catch-up with getting all of those messages aligned at the same time, which is OK. There will be some repetitiveness with what we're saying as we start to layer in more players but we're happy with the roster. We're looking to make a couple more additions in the coming weeks, but we're pleased with the progress."
More:MLS SuperDraft: FC Cincinnati selects Roman Celentano, Ian Murphy and Nicholas Markanich
Other players, Noonan said, are at different stages health-wise. MLS SuperDraft pick Roman Celentano was unavailable to participate due to pandemic-related health and safety protocols.
Separately, Dominique Badji and Allan Cruz were held out of practice as a precaution but were inside the training facility.
Badji later spoke to local media members.
More:FC Cincinnati buys out Kamohelo Mokotjo's contract in latest move to rebuild roster
Alvaro Barreal, who contributed six goals and scored three of his own in 2021, missed Thursday's session due to an appointment regarding his pursuit of a green card, which would free up an international roster spot for the club.
The club's ballyhooed top scorer from 2021, Brenner Souza da Silva, is also awaiting clearance to participate in practices.
The club, Noonan seemed to indicate, is unfazed by all of this and content with its position for now.
"We've got academy kids. We've got trialists," Noonan said. "There's just a lot of moving parts to make sure we get through week one with healthy bodies while also trying to get them familiar to our voices as coaches and getting some of our objectives in week one accomplished. There's just a lot of unfamiliar faces from even us as coaches, and the the returning players and the new players we've added. It's a lot of conversations that you're trying to have to get everybody on the same page early on.
"The important thing is the mentality. The soccer's not going to be perfect. That's OK but the mentality's been good and, again, these players have been receptive to some ideas to try to get them on the same page."
This week marked the beginnings of the on-field product for the 2022 campaign, which will see FC Cincinnati attempt to avoid a last-place finish for the first time in its Major League Soccer existence.
Skepticism and cynicism surrounds the club because of the three previous campaigns, which all yielded essentially the same result.
But with so much that's new in the organization, from general manager Chris Albright, to Noonan and his staff, to the few new players and the promise of more to come, there is a kind of buoyancy about the season ahead.
"From the outside when I've been watching Cincinnati play, I felt like it's kind of a sleeping giant," goalkeeper Alec Kann said of joining FCC this past offseason. "A team that invests a lot in the club and the players but hasn't quite had the product on the field yet."
Kann was brought in after five seasons with Atlanta United, where he served as both a regular starter early in the club's existence and more recently as the backup to Brad Guzan.
Kann is expected to make a strong challenge to be FC Cincinnati's regular No. 1 goalkeeper, although Albright said in a recent interview he's intentionally left himself flexibility at the goalkeeper position if reinforcements are needed.
More:Nick Hagglund signs contract to remain at FC Cincinnati
Badji came to FC Cincinnati from the Colorado Rapids, which defeated FC Cincinnati in June en route to finishing atop the Western Conference.
"I'm looking at myself more in Philly's system because that's kind of what (Noonan) wants to do. That, in addition to the attacking players that are here," Badji said. "I put those two pieces together and I can see myself a lot of chances (and) scoring goals, for sure. At the end of the day, I think that's why I'm here.
"To know that there are special players around you that can create and are special players, that's something that really excites me."
Badji noted Luciano Acosta – the first true "No. 10" Badji will have played with – as a player he "definitely looked forward to."
FCC will relocate to Clearwater, Florida, Jan. 24 through Feb. 3 and Feb. 17 through Feb.18.
The club opens preseason matches Jan. 28 against South Florida and closes out the first Clearwater trip with a final-day match against Philadelphia Union.
Cincinnati then plays St. Louis City SC, an MLS expansion team targeting a 2023 entrance to the league, on Feb. 11.
The Feb. 15 opponent is still to be determined, and FC Cincinnati finishes up its second Clearwater stint with a Feb. 18 match against Orlando City SC in Orlando.
The club will then train at the Mercy Health Training Center ahead of its 2022 regular season opener scheduled for Feb. 26 at Austin FC's Q2 Stadium.
Source link
