SARASOTA, Florida – Time to attempt to derive meaning from FC Cincinnati's first week of the MLS preseason, which isn't necessarily an easy thing because it was a decidedly casual four-day stretch compared to what's coming over the next few weeks.

The players were probably going at 70-80 percent speed, and the aims for the four days of work within the tight confines of the University of Cincinnati's Sheakley Athletics Center practice bubble were simple: Learn each other's names, give players a chance to regain their touch and stamina on the ball, and above all, don't get hurt.

It wasn't necessarily high-level stuff, but if you've ever seen an Alan Koch-coached training session, you know that every touch is an opportunity – and that's even truer now for a roster that numbers 31 players and has few if any cemented roles.

The Enquirer was in transit to Florida on Friday and wasn't present for the team's last training session of the week but there was plenty to see and dissect from the first three sessions:

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SUPER SUPERDRAFT PICKS: (Keeping in mind this was a light week of training)... It was easy to be impressed with the work of the club's six drafted players, especially No. 1 overall pick Frankie Amaya and No. 30 overall pick Tommy McCabe. There was the fascinating keep-away game on Tuesday involving Amaya, McCabe and Logan Gdula, the No. 13-overall pick out of Wake Forest. The three youngsters weren't fazed while playing with veteran professionals like Alvas Powell, USL MVP Emmanuel Ledesma, and Justin Hoyte, the former Arsenal man, on the very first day of training. As the week progressed, Amaya and McCabe seemed to separate themselves from their draft classmates just a bit. They saw more of the ball and sought more of it, too. They were tall, strong and confident in the midfield. Their positive start at FC Cincinnati could carry over to IMG Academy over the next two weeks.

FORWARDS TALKING THE TALK: The Enquirer spoke with Fanendo Adi and Darren Mattocks about outside criticisms of how FC Cincinnati's been built, and specifically the idea that the team will lack for goals in 2019.

Suffice it to say they've heard the criticisms of their position group (although maybe Mattocks has heard less as he said he doesn't read the critics on social media) and they're using it as motivation.

"Oh yeah, I hear it a lot, of course. I watch a lot of the pundits say that," Adi said of sparse offensive projections for Cincinnati. "But as a team, we have different makeups, from the backline to the forwards. The goals are going to come. We're going to win games, that's for sure, and we're going to score goals."

Mattocks was similarly confident.

"We've got Adi up front, a striker that's won an MLS Cup when he was in Portland in 2015, and he's been scoring goals wherever he goes," Mattocks said. "I played half a season last season for D.C. United (in 2018) and I scored double-figure goals, so I'm never really worried about the critics and what they say. It's good to have them because they keep you motivated."

It's certainly fair to ask any question you want of any team in the world. Plenty are projecting a low offensive output for FC Cincinnati in 2019, mostly because observable numbers show Adi's production dipping over recent seasons.

Still, FC Cincinnati might not be getting enough credit for the playmakers it has in the fold. Adi, too, isn't being credited for how high his motivation is to return to his form of old.

FANS ARE GOING TO LOVE GOALKEEPER PRZEMYSLAW "TITI" TYTON: Titi is unlike any goalkeeper FC Cincinnati currently has – or has ever had. He's also going to be the most entertaining.

Physically, Titi is long and lean and boasts a jaw-dropping vertical jump. Some might recall The Enquirer's description from Wednesday's practice of his standing jump from his own goal line where he stretch his right hand about four feet above the crossbar.

A second set of eyes – eyes that know Titi well – confirmed what was seen. Mentally and emotionally, Titi's defining trait is probably his pride. Pride in himself. Pride in his new club. He absolutely despises getting scored on. Even in drills, he is ceaseless in trying to prevent the ball from crossing the goal line. And with his profile and range, that means there's a lot of diving, sprawling and sacrificing his body.

Something to watch with Titi is that he likes to have the ball at his feet, which can be good and bad for a goalkeeper. "The goalkeeper is sometimes lonely," Titi explained to The Enquirer this week of his fondness for the ball.

AND NOW, IT'S OFF TO FLORIDA for FC Cincinnati. As of Friday, the club's first preseason match is five days away.

Koch said the team will have two full grass fields to work with at IMG Academy, and they'll put every inch of that ground to work during its two-week-long stay in Florida. Here's what the preseason schedule looks like. We'll have more details on the day-to-day activities in Florida and South Carolina soon.

Jan. 26 – Depart for IMG Academy, Bradenton, Fla.

– Depart for IMG Academy, Bradenton, Fla. Jan. 30 – 7 p.m. vs. Montreal Impact (IMG Academy).

– 7 p.m. vs. Montreal Impact (IMG Academy). Feb. 2 – 10:30 a.m. vs. Colorado Rapids (IMG Academy).

– 10:30 a.m. vs. Colorado Rapids (IMG Academy). Feb. 7 – 7 p.m. vs. DC United (IMG Academy).

– 7 p.m. vs. DC United (IMG Academy). Feb. 9 – Return to Cincinnati.

– Return to Cincinnati. Feb. 12 – at Indy Eleven (Westfield, Ind.).

Feb. 14 through Feb. 24 – Charleston, S.C.