Posted by

Aaron Nielsen ,

April 1, 2014 Email

Aaron Nielsen



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@ENBSports

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Sports, like other aspects of life, was originally covered by the media as an event with reporters giving accounts of what happened and putting an emphasis of the surroundings. In many cases who had won, and in instances the score, not being the headline. As organized sports grew in popularity, more coverage was dedicated and journalists such as Sid Mercer, Milt Dunnell and Dick Young became celebrities in their own right, giving their spin on the game as they saw it. However, what they wrote and what was actually happening on the field was quite different and the saying “you never played the game” also became popular. To deal with this the leagues started releasing their own material, which in the industry is called “Sports Information” and this data included statistics to give an unbiased account of the events. Not much was being done with these statistics until in the 70’s and 80’s where people like Bill James starting using these statistics and expanding upon them to provide a sort of analysis. Which was brought to the World’s attention through the book/movie Moneyball and created a new buzz word in “Sports Analytics” I’ve always had a huge interest in Sports Information, similar to reading about the making of a movie or a history of a band, I will do the same in relation to sports. Statistics is a great way of providing a large amount of information. Although ideas and knowledge can come from it, looking at the industry I partly feel it’s like the glory days of sports journalists and sports analytics is losing touch with what is actually being played on the field, leaving themselves open, and rightfully so, to the “you never played the game” criticism. This brings me to my 2014 preview of FC Edmonton. There isn’t close to the advanced information that MLS now has, so most people, especially ones who now rely on data, wouldn’t even attempt to give an analytical point of view on what to expect in this season’s NASL. However, if you look at it more closely the average player age for FC Edmonton this season is the same as the Vancouver Whitecaps. Which means that the FC Edmonton players, to get to this level, have a similar path as MLS players, be it their history in academies, colleges, or as professionals, and many players in the NASL have actually played more professional games in North America than players in MLS. In my records I have the current FC Edmonton roster combining for over 1600 pro games, as well Colin Miller returns as the coach/recruiter putting a greater stamp on how he wants the team to play. Goalkeeping



The two primary keepers from last season return in 2014 in Lance Parker and John Smits. Both performed well last season with goals against averages around a goal a game and saving about 75% of the shots on target. Although he might be known more for his modeling career on the cover of GQ than that as a keeper, Lance Parker will be FC Edmonton’s number one after having the second lowest goals against average and the highest save percentage in the NASL last season. He has now played in the American professional soccer system for six seasons including time with Chivas USA in MLS and I’m surprised with both his ability and marketing potential, an MLS club hasn’t approached to sign him. Canadian’s John Smits and Tyson Farago are Parker’s backups, although Smits have played a quarter of FC Edmonton’s games the past two seasons and has been an admirable replacement when needed for Parker. Smits comes from the CIS playing his university soccer at University of Toronto where he won the championship in 2010 and was a first-team all-star. Full Backs



Last season, FC Edmonton were known for their organized system and their commitment on the defensive end playing as seven players dedicated to these roles. It was comparable to the system used by Sporting Kansas City, in some circumstances with three midfielders protecting the back four. Due to this, the position players played were interchangeable, although looking at the squad I think the best option at full back is Lance Laing on the left and new signing Milton Blanco on the right. Lance Laing is a 26 year old Jamaican International who started his NASL career with the Fort Lauderdale Strikers before joining the Eddie’s last season. Laing primarily was the starting left back last season, although he did provide some offense as well including 10 shots on target and a goal from a direct free kick against his former club, and along with Neil Hlavaty will take responsibilities on dead-ball situations. Milton Blanco is both a versatile and experienced player. The 29 year old started his pro career with Chivas USA in 2005 and has since played with a number of PDL, USL Pro and NASL clubs, including the Atlanta Silverhawks last season. Listed as a midfielder Blanco did play some games at full back for the Silverhawks after Mark Bloom joined Toronto FC. He scored one goal last season also via a direct free kick. If Miller chooses to keep Blanco in the midfield, Mallon Roberts, who started 11 games last season, or new signing Kareem Moses, could play in this role as I feel Edson Edward is more impactful as a centre back than on the right. Centre Back



Albert Watson is a centre back, and team captain who has played over 300 games in the Northern Irish Premier League with Ballymena and Linfield before joining Edmonton last season with Darryl Fordyce. Watson played 20 games with the Eddie’s last season with the club only allowing more than one goal twice while he played. As mentioned prior I think Canadian defender Edson Edward, based on his size, has more potential at centre back oppose to on the right. Edwards was part of the Ottawa Fury’s youth program and his success in the PDL got him an opportunity and a game in the MLS with FC Dallas in 2010. Since then, he played in Puerto Rico before joining FC Edmonton last season. Additional defenders include Canadian Michael Nonni, who played college at UC Santa Barbara and played in Germany, while 17-year-old new signing Marko Aleksic has great size and could be a future MLS and Canadian national team prospect. Midfielders



Based on how the team was set up last season, Collin Miller favourite’s formation is a 4-4-2 or a 4-3-1-2, so he might not play players in the official role of defensive midfield. He does have a lot of players in his squad whose skills best fit this position as a box-to-box midfielders with greater upside on the defensive end than the offensive. Edmonton brought in three experienced midfielders in former Manchester United academy player and England youth international Ritchie Jones, Horace James from Atlanta and Mike Banner who played four years with Chicago Fire and with Finnish club FF Jaro. Jones played 159 league games across the lower divisions in England, scoring nine goals and 10 assists through only 36 shots on target. In Banner’s career he has seven goals, three assists and 26 SOT in 102 games. While James played in 21 games last season with the Silverbacks scoring two goals, an assist and six shots on target. I would expect similar numbers this season with a greater emphasis on defense and protecting the back four. Providing depth in this role will be Canadian Hanson Boakai, who moved to Edmonton from Guinea at the age of seven and represented Canada at the 2013 under-17 CONCACAF championship scoring two goals in four games, and Ghanaian Edem Mortotsi who has been part of the FC Edmonton reserve team well attending university at NAIT. Attacking Midfielder



Gone is Shaun Saiko who played a pivotal role in the Eddie’s offense the past few seasons scoring 18 goals, 14 assists with 71 shots on target in 65 games in primarily a midfield role. However, never one for more frigid play, Saiko found it difficult to adapt to Miller’s system and has joined rival NASL side San Antonio Scorpions. This means that FC Edmonton will expect most of their midfield creativity to come from, including on set pieces, Neil Hlavaty. The American midfielder was ignored by the MLS draft coming out of college but eventually signed with Swedish side Osters and then Polish side Jagiellonia. Most people following NASL will know him from his time at Minnesota. Last season he joined FC Edmonton and took up the role as vice captain as well as the go to guy on penalties and set play opportunities. He led the team in assists, although the club will expect more from the 27 year old this season as he supports the two strikers. Adding depth will be former CSL player, 22 year old Massimo Mirabelli, and former Whitecap academy player and CIS most valuable player at UBC Gurpal Dosanjh, who I actually wrote about on RNO in 2012 as a potential MLS combine invitee. Forwards



FC Edmonton doesn’t have a lot of depth up front but the two starters both have professional experience and have shown to be successful in the past. Daryl Fordyce is a 27 year old who played his academy football in England and started his pro career at AFC Bournemouth he returned to the Northern Irish Premier League scoring 62 goals in 263 games, mostly in a midfield role. Although with the Eddie’s he was mostly used as a forward scoring a team high 7 goals. He will be joined by Canadian International Frank Jonke who has spent the last five years in Finland. Known as a physical player, Jonke was a key player and target man for his Veikkauslliga sides scoring a goal every three games, getting more than a shot on target per game, but was also yellow carded as many times he scored. Jonke will be handful for most NASL defenders and if FC Edmonton decides to play more of a 4-3-3 or 4-3-2-1 with Fordyce and Hlavaty providing support, the Eddie’s could be a greater threat to score goals than they have in the past. Synopsis

As I write this FC Edmonton still have a few trialists in camp, as well in the past the Eddie’s benefited from players loaned to them by the Vancouver Whitecaps. With Jonke playing a similar style to Omar Salgado it’s understandable that Whitecaps loaned him to Charleston instead. Looking at the other teams in the league, I see FC Edmonton finishing the Spring League in the middle of the pack but the club still has opportunities to improve their depth. With the NASL playing a split season there is a chance to reshuffle for the Fall tournament to improve their chances for a 2014 NASL cup birth. I do have a soft spot for soccer in Edmonton and arguably my two favourite Canadian soccer moments, Eddy Berdusco’s goal against Brazil and the Women’s U19 semis took place there spurred on by the atmosphere of 40,000+ crowds. FC Edmonton’s home park of 5000, Clarke Stadium, is a far away from Commonwealth in terms of support and capacity. However, in following both the NASL and FC Edmonton as closely as I have, I have gained a greater respect for the quality of player who plays in the league and feel understanding the game at this level better will translate to a higher quality and a could advance MLS more than a gadget or stat.