The Fire’s first preseason game of 2018 on Saturday afternoon against the University of South Florida won’t be an indication one way or another of how the team will perform this season.
It may not even provide an accurate preview of what the starting 11 will look like if no additions are made between now and the regular-season opener on March 10.
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With only 21 players under contract in camp and plenty of youthful competition for remaining roster spots, the first preseason game is likely to feature a mix of trialists and draft picks sprinkled among a few potential starters.
With a more complete roster last February, coach Veljko Paunovic opted to start 2017’s preseason against Florida Gulf Coast University with this 11 — Bava; Okwuono, Kappelhof, Meira, Vincent; Bronico, Juninho; Goossens, Solignac, Accam; Nikolic.
Bastian Schweinsteiger had yet to arrive, Dax McCarty was with the national team recovering from his trade away from New York, and Matt Polster and Michael de Leeuw were held out of the first warm-up game. The 1-0 win over FGCU didn’t provide any big revelations although Nemanja Nikolic did find the scoresheet in his first competitive match for the Fire. The lone scoring play was coincidentally created by David Accam getting behind the defense.
This year’s practice opener shouldn’t be much different, but given the circ*mstances of the current roster, there could be some indication of how Paunovic plans to juggle the roster in order to conform to a new style of play without the temptation of trying to hit Accam over the top to break down defenses. Playing the ball out of the back on the ground has been something the Fire have tried to do since Paunovic came on board but they haven’t always had the personnel to accomplish it. Last year’s team improved drastically in terms of possession and accuracy, largely due to the combination of Schweinsteiger and McCarty in the middle but opposing teams latched on to a formula for slowing them down in mid-summer and they never really found an answer.
The current version of the Fire doesn’t appear to have a solution to teams cramming the middle of the field and forcing them to break them down in the final third either. First-round draft choice Jon Bakero was impressive during the first week of camp by most accounts and he seems to be the most likely choice at the moment to get an opportunity as a “playmaker” behind Nikolic. Second-year midfielder Daniel Johnson will get a chance to play on the left side but despite showing some skill with the ball at his feet, there is some concern that he has yet to fully grasp the concepts that Paunovic is trying to implement. Luis Solignac is a solid squad player but is more of a striker playing outside than anything else.
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The numbers that Accam posted last season will be hard to duplicate but the work and cohesion that de Leeuw provided on both ends of the pitch will be equally difficult to replace until he either returns or general manager Nelson Rodriguez fills in the roster with some of the international targets that he mentioned two weeks ago. Mo Adams should also get a good chance to show he can pick up midfield minutes given the status of the roster.
Perhaps more interesting than who plays will be how they play. The addition of Grant Lillard as the most significant reinforcement to the backline and little help on the outside in midfield after Accam’s departure could signal a move to a 3-5-2.
The trade for Rafael Ramos from Orlando City in exchange for Cam Lindley could also be a precursor to getting him on the field in some manner in combination with Matt Polster and Brandon Vincent. Given that the Fire had very little width last year, and even less so this season playing out of the back with more wing players could be an early way to challenge teams that will try to clog the middle against them. Polster and Vincent have both shown they can be dangerous from the outside and pushing them higher may provide more chances in the absence of an actual playmaker.
Johan Kappelhof has shown that he is mobile enough to cover ground on the outside and has played right back at various points throughout his career. Lillard showed mobility in college but the pace and awareness needed at the next level is dramatically different.
Finding combinations that work and getting players back to fitness is more important than results in any preseason. The Fire’s roster holes dictate that Rodriguez and Paunovic aren’t done adding to the side. The first match of preseason against a college team that fell to the New York Red Bulls by a combined score of 7-0 over three 30-minute periods won’t provide many personnel answers but there could be some clues as to whether or not Paunovic plans to play to his current strengths or if he plans to form his preseason lineups with future moves in mind.
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The current camp roster:
GK: Cleveland, Howard, Sanchez
DEF: Campbell, Corrales, Dean, Kappelhof, Lillard, Moreira, Polster, Ramos, Vincent
MID: Adams, Angeles, Bronico, Casas, Conner, Johnson, McCarty, Mihailovic, Schweinsteiger
FWD: Bakero, Campos, Collier, de Leeuw, Gatt, Nikolic, Solignac
(Top photo: Kim Klement/USA TODAY Sports)
