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Three questions for FC Cincinnati heading into their inaugural season

FC Cincinnati is the new kid on the block, joining Major League Soccer for the first-time ever. However, the opening weeks will not be kind.
FC Cincinnati

Cincinnati, Ohio (February 25, 2019) — The new kids are in town and ready to get rolling this week.

FC Cincinnati will kick off their first-ever season in Major League Soccer on Saturday. The schedule did not give FC Cincinnati and easy welcome into the league. FC Cincinnati’s first contest is against the Seattle Sounders FC, a 10-time consecutive playoff team.

Three questions for FC Cincinnati heading into their inaugural season

Cincinnati just finished a hefty preseason on Saturday, with a 3-0 loss to in-state rival, the Columbus Crew SC. However, other preseason contests included matches against the Colorado Rapids, D.C. United and the Montreal Impact.

FC Cincinnati is coached by Alan Koch, who managed the USL side from 2017-18. Koch, a native of South Africa, won the USL Coach of the Year honors last season. Now, this year, he’ll be joining the MLS head coaching ranks, going against tougher opponents and looking to earn some stripes.

In preparation for the first MLS season, FC Cincinnati picked up players like Darren Mattocks, Fanendo Adi, Allan Cruz, Greg Garza, Kekuta Manneh, Nick Hagglund and Kendall Waston.

Here are three questions poised for the “new kids” of the MLS for 2019.

How will Przemysław Tytoń perform in MLS?

Przemysław Tytoń is the undisputed starter in goal for FC Cincinnati.

Instead of looking for a young goalkeeper, FC Cincinnati decided to grab a veteran on the market. Tytoń is 32-years-old and most recently featured for Deportivo La Coruña in Spain. He made 15 appearances from 2016-18.

Tytoń also had stints with VFB Stuttgart in the Bundesliga, PSV Eindhoven in the Netherlands and Górnik Łęczna in his native country, Poland. Internationally, Tytoń has made 14 appearances for Poland since 2010. He was not on Poland’s roster for the recent 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.

Tytoń is joining a league with not only experience goalkeepers, but extremely talented strikers. How will he fair when up against Raúl Ruidíaz in the season-opener? As mentioned, FC Cincinnati doesn’t have an easy opening schedule. In addition to Seattle, FC Cincinnati has a second-straight road match against Atlanta United FC, the league’s defending champions.

FC Cincinnati’s home opener is against the Portland Timbers. Adi will be up against his old team, but all eyes will be on Tytoń and if he can stop shots from Diego Valeri.

Is the interest for Fabian Johnson still there?

This is a tricky question.

Fabian Johnson, a U.S. Men’s National Team international, currently plays for Borussia Monchengladbach in the Bundesliga. However, despite signing a contract to keep him in Germany until 2020, Johnson was scouted by FC Cincinnati. According to Sports Illustrated, the club tried to sign him to a contract when they were still in the USL. However, U.S. Soccer prevented the signing from happening.

According to the league, FC Cincinnati had to wait for the allocation order to come into effect. It didn’t due to its status in the USL.

So, Johnson remains in Germany. However, Koch has proclaimed that he hasn’t given up on the USMNT utility man. Johnson, who can play left back, right back and in the midfield, was still on Koch’s radar in December.

“We definitely have interest in Fabian,” Koch told Grant Wahl of Sports Illustrated. “We had interest, we continue to have interest. I think a lot of teams would be very wise to take that approach. We’re definitely exploring all sorts of different things.”

However, that interest might have fizzled. After using an allocation pick Laurent Ciman on Dec. 27, Toronto FC claimed that No. 1 spot in the Allocation Order right back — no pun intended — from FC Cincinnati. Toronto elected to trade defender Nick Hagglund to the new MLS club in exchange for their allocation pick.

Toronto has not yet publicly announced the interest toward Johnson, but don’t be surprised to see them talking to him soon. Johnson would fit well in either system, for Toronto or for FC Cincinnati.

However, it looks like Toronto could scoop him up — if he chooses to go. Johnson, in a recent interview with the German publication RP-Online, said he’s comfortable in Germany and not yet thinking of a move to the United States.

“We feel well as a family here, I feel comfortable in Mönchengladbach,” Johnson said. “We will see what the future holds. You should think about it, but in football, a lot can happen quickly. It’s such a fast moving business that it’s hard to plan. I take the situation as it is and try to play as much as possible.”

Will FC Cincinnati be an Atlanta or Minnesota?

This is a legitimate question and truly not trying to poke fun at clubs.

Atlanta United FC and Minnesota United FC joined the league in 2017. While Atlanta enjoyed a successful first season, Minnesota struggled. Last year, improvements were made for the Loons, but they still missed out on the playoffs. This isn’t the first drop for an expansion club. Orlando City SC is entering its fifth season in the league and has yet to make the playoffs.

FC Cincinnati has a rough opening on their schedule. However, with the right talent and the correct formation, this team can be dangerous. Fanendo Adi is not someone to mess with. He enjoyed success during his time in Portland. Meanwhile, adding Garza on defense is going to extremely help.

Ever since joining FC Cincinnati as a USL club, Jimmy McLaughlin enjoyed success. Because of that, he was promoted to joining the MLS club. Now, he has to prove he can step up to higher competition.

Last Word: FC Cincinnati squeaks in — barely

There’s plenty of arguments to which conference is better. Both the Eastern and Western Conferences have had tight races to decide which teams make the playoffs.

However, this upcoming season, don’t expect that to change.

I predict that in the first season in MLS, FC Cincinnati will make the playoffs — barely. It’ll be a big-time Decision Day battle for FC Cincinnati, but I believe that Koch can take his team to the playoffs in year one. However, this won’t happen if Koch doesn’t make some summer moves. He should use the transfer window and not ignore it.

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