FC Cincinnati, which begins its preseason training Wednesday at Wall-2-Wall Sports in Mason, has remained quiet regarding details to its application but had been scouting out sites for a soccer-specific stadium proposal as required by MLS.
President and general manager Jeff Berding remained vague when asked about stadium sites, simply saying, “We are working to fulfill all the requirements of the MLS application.”
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It’s fair to say, after putting together a thorough application in less than six weeks, FC Cincinnati is glad to be done with it as the club officially begins preparations for its second season. Here is a look at five things to know heading into preseason training:
1. Strong core returns: The club brought back 19 of the 26 players from its inaugural season, which coach John Harkes believes will be a solid foundation for a championship-contending roster.
FC Cincinnati lost leading scorer and USL MVP Sean Okoli, who signed with MLS side New York City FC after notching 16 goals last season, but returns its 10 other starters, including USL Goalkeeper of the Year Mitch Hildebrandt. Andrew Wiedeman is the top returning scorer with seven goals and four assists last year.
2. Intriguing newcomers: FC Cincinnati didn't have the depth some of the more experienced clubs had last year but there should be plenty of competition for starting roles in 2017, thanks to some intriguing offseason pickups.
The seven newcomers include two of Louisville City’s top players in midfielder Aodhan Quinn and forward Kadeem Dacres, former Montreal Impact midfielder Marco Dominguez and forward Daryl Fordyce, who was NASL side FC Edmonton’s all-time leading scorer. Also joining the club are former University of Cincinnati player and Lakota West High School graduate Matt Bahner, who comes from NASL’s Jacksonville Armada, Andy Craven, who spent last year between the Seattle Sounders and OKC Energy, and Aaron Walker, who previously played in Iceland.
3. Focus on offense: FC Cincinnati was solid in its first season, going 16-6-8 to finish third in the Eastern Conference and earn a home playoff game; however, goals were not as plentiful as Harkes and Berding would have liked.
Harkes plays an attacking style from the back line on forward, but it amounted to just 41 goals – 20 fewer than the champion New York Red Bulls II. Okoli was the lone player reaching double figures for goals, but look for more balanced scoring this year and lots more of it.
4. Same expectations: Harkes said FC Cincinnati is more comfortable heading into Year 2 than it was this time last year when the roster of players — that had been put together in less than four months — were still getting to know one another and the staff, but he won't change much about the way the club trains.
Harkes noted he can jump more quickly into certain aspects of training because there already is some chemistry and cohesiveness with so many returning players, but the routine seemed to work well last year and doesn’t need much tweaking. One minor change is the addition of former Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2 head coach Alan Koch, who steps in to replace Ryan Martin, who is now the D.C. United academy director.
5. Defending a championship: FC Cincinnati has a little more than two weeks before it heads back to Bradenton, Fla., to try to defend its IMG Suncoast Classic title from last year.
This time, it will face two USL clubs – OKC Energy and the newly added Ottawa Fury – as well as MLS side Chicago Fire between Feb. 19 and Feb. 25. All three games will be streamed live on FC Cincinnati’s Facebook page. The preseason schedule also includes games at the Sacramento Republic (March 4), University of Cincinnati (March 11) and Xavier University (March 17) before the regular season kicks off March 25 at Charleston.
The USL expanded to 30 teams this year with the addition of the Tampa Bay Rowdies and Ottawa Fury from the NASL. FC Cincinnati’s home opener will be April 15 against St. Louis.
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