Competition to make FC Cincinnati lineup could increase with U.S. Open Cup run finished

Charlie Hatch | chatch@enquirer.com

Show Caption Hide Caption FC Cincinnati vs. Minnesota United FC Open Cup postgame review Pat Brennan and Charlie Hatch discuss the FC Cincinnati vs. Minnesota United FC Open Cup game.

Alan Koch has preached there's no such thing as a "squad rotation" with this Futbol Club Cincinnati roster. Whether a player has been a regular starter or has made a handful of appearances, Koch said he and his training staff maintain the same expectations. Results have reinforced that claim.

FC Cincinnati used the 2018 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup as an opportunity to distribute chances across the lineup. Now that the cup run is complete, Koch said Thursday after practice that rotating players will continue as the club plays through a condensed United Soccer League schedule that continues Saturday night with a road trip to North Carolina FC.

"We're playing all these games right now," Koch said. "Everybody's going to get an opportunity in the short term. But when we get to the stage where we have one game a week, we're going to play the best group of players every week. ...We're not even thinking that far ahead just yet."

It's no secret players can openly treat Cincinnati's final months in USL as "tryout" to make the inaugural Major League Soccer roster in 2019. So far, no one's name is confirmed, meaning rotating players offers players minutes, experience, rest and opportunities.

Of the club's 25 players, only Mark Village and Tyler Gibson have yet to play. Gibson is recovering from a broken leg sustained during preseason camp in Florida, while Village is stuck behind an Evan Newton-Spencer Richey goalkeeping pairing that has resembled two starting keepers more so than a first and second string.

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Newton has started in nine of the 15 games in all competitions. Richey played Wednesday night and earned a clean sheet for the first time since April 28 in a 3-0 win over Ottawa Fury FC.

Expect Richey and Newton to rotate throughout the summer. Perhaps Village will join the position battle. The Enquirer wrote story about the highly-contested position in March.