CHARLESTON, South Carolina – According to Kekuta Manneh's recollection of FC Cincinnati's courtship of him, the process started back in October.

That gave Manneh, then a member of FC St. Gallen of the Swiss Super League, plenty of time to research FC Cincinnati. He'd already seen and heard plenty for himself, though.

"The club, the city. I've been watching them from afar, seeing all the noise that they've made over the last few couple years," Manneh told The Enquirer. "The growth and, you know, the passion people in Cincinnati have for the club – it definitely attracts anybody."

Upon finally completing the deal to join FC Cincinnati Feb. 13, which required a free transfer, new contract and trade with Columbus Crew SC for Manneh's rights, Manneh's expectations of the city were surpassed almost immediately.

"I've taken a couple Uber rides in Cincinnati and they didn't even know I played for FC Cincinnati but all the drivers were all excited about it," Manneh said. "It's like, 'OK, you don't really get this everywhere.' "

Aiding in the process to help set off the chain of events that led to Manneh coming to Cincinnati was assistant coach Pa-Modou Kah, a well-traveled player during his playing career.

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Kah, along with head coach Alan Koch, had a leg up on courting Manneh as they'd both worked with him previously in the Vancouver Whitecaps organization.

Kah was a good sounding board for Manneh as he, too, was well-versed in the various soccer leagues of Europe and other parts of the world.

Manneh already knew about MLS, having logged five combined seasons in the league for Vancouver and Columbus, but jumping back to the first-division league of the U.S. and Canada as an experienced, 24-year-old professional was something Kah could counsel him on.

"Having people that I worked with before and I know very well and they know who I am on and off the field. That was a big attraction," Manneh said. "Pah was big-time. He's family. Ever since we met, he became family. We understand each other. We know each other. He's like a big brother to me, so that was a big selling point for me."

For the time being, Manneh is sidelined. He arrived at FC Cincinnati with what he described as a minor ankle injury. He's been rehabbing it since joining the club and said the current projection is for him to rejoin practice sessions next week.

While Manneh didn't dress for Saturday's match against the Charleston Battery and figures to miss FC Cincinnati's final preseason games, he said his spirits are buoyed by the welcome he's received from teammates.

"I've been here for, what, three or four days?" Manneh said. "I feel like I've been here forever. Everyone is kind. Everyone communicates."

Once Manneh is healthy, the team will have big expectations of him.

He'll likely combine with Fanendo Adi and Darren Mattocks to take up the majority of the minutes at the top of FC Cincinnati's various formations.

"I've worked with Kekuta before (in Vancouver) so I know him very, very well. Just electric speed. He's dynamic," Koch said. "He has an infectious personality. He's an absolute pleasure to be around the group, so he'll fit in from the culture perspective very, very well. When he starts the game, he just brings energy and if he comes off the bench he brings energy, too. In this league, you really need players like that that are able to galvanize the team. He's an amazing athlete. He's a very, very good finisher, too."

Notes from Monday's training session

•FC Cincinnati returned to a practice field Monday, this time at the College of Charleston's off-campus sports complex.

It was a long and involved session focused on possession and playing up the field from the defensive line, among other subjects.

At times, the frustration for FC Cincinnati was evident, however, it was also clear the team was working through its frustrations as you'd hope professionals would.

Koch said he doesn't like to get too high or too low based on one day's results, but conceded after the session he felt optimistic afterward.

"I'm happy. We've shown a lot of growth," Koch said. "I am (optimistic) today actually., and I was after the game on Saturday night. I think on Saturday night there were some tough moments for us, but you want to have tough moments in the preseason. If it's too easy in the preseason, you're not really learning and you're not growing."

• The ranks of the FC Cincinnati injured thinned again on Monday. The only players working off to the side for the entire session were Manneh, Greg Garza, Emery Welshman and Rashawn Dally.

Fatai Alashe and Eric Alexander, who did not dress for Saturday's match, were both full participants while Kendall Waston was available for a portion of the regular training session.