FC Edmonton is trying to remain a competitive fish in a rapidly expanding pool.



As the North American Soccer League continues to grow and owners starting pouring big dollars into their clubs, the local professional side is working hard to keep up.



Considered small market to the likes of the New York Cosmos, the Fort Lauderdale Strikers, Minnesota United FC, Miami FC and the Tampa Bay Rowdies, FC Edmonton is going to have to grind out victories this season.



“It’s the same in any league in the world,” said FC Edmonton head coach Colin Miller. “You have three or four big hitters in each league, then you have the rest that are middle of the pack and then you have the rest that fight relegation.



“In our league, it’s no different. We have three or four clubs that have spend, in NASL standards, some serious money. But we’re not an inexpensive club, I don’t want to make any excuses, (owners) Tom and Dave Fath put a lot of money in this club.”



FC Edmonton will attempt to earn its first win of the NASL spring season when they face the host Rowdies on Saturday (5:30 p.m.). The club held Rayo OKC to a scoreless tie in their opening game, then were out-classed by Minnesota in a 2-0 loss at home on Sunday.



Minnesota loaded up as they prepare to join Major League Soccer next season. Tampa Bay is also considered one of the league’s big spenders.



“Not for one second am I saying that because Minnesota spent more money that necessarily means that they’re better than us,” Miller said. “Again, you just have to look the Leicester City scenario in the (English) Premier League. There are clubs that spend 250- to 300-million pounds on their players, and Leicester City haven’t spent anything remotely close to that. I don’t want to make it as an excuse, I actually want to use it as incentive that we can keep up to these teams, and continue to fight tooth and nail with them.”



Leicester City, considered minnows in England compared to clubs like Manchester United, Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, Tottenham and Liverpool, are on the verge of completing a shocking championship run. They have given hope to every small club in the world.



“We’re two games into the season, we don’t go down to Tampa with an inferiority complex by any stretch of the imagination, because our guys don’t get coached that,” Miller said. “We go down there and I want to see a reaction, I want to see our sleeves rolled up. I would take a hopeless performance and a 1-0 win on Saturday, because that’s where we’re at. We want to grind out a result there in some way. The guys are chomping at the bit to get a result.”



In its short existence, the NASL is becoming an entry-level league for owners with deep pockets who want to get into the soccer game.



Miami FC is co-owned by former Italian star Paolo Maldini. Rayo OKC is owned by Raul Martin Presa, who also owns Rayo Vallecano of the Spanish La Liga. Puerto Rico FC, which will join the league for the fall season, is owned by NBA star Carmelo Anthony of the New York Knicks.



“The league is getting bigger, a lot of people are spending more money to bring in bigger players and bigger names, so it’s starting to turn into a more attractive league,” said FC Edmonton midfielder Nik Ledgerwood. “People have said this is the best Edmonton team that they’ve seen, but I think everybody else is saying the same with their teams.



“It’s hard to tell, it’s so early in the season, where Edmonton actually stands. I think maybe after the spring season, we’ll get a better idea of how we actually fare up against teams like New York, and Minnesota, who are making a push for the MLS, and Tampa, who spent a lot of money on their team as well. It’ll be interesting to see once we do play every team where we fit in.”



Going into their game against Tampa Bay, FC Edmonton staff and players know they are in for a tough challenge. But the team was able to pull out a victory in Tampa last season and have always been competitive with the Rowdies.



“We’ve have nothing to fear going to Tampa,” Miller said. “If the guys are in the right frame of mind, which I’m sure they will be, then we give ourselves a chance. If we go down with a defeatist attitude, which I’m positive we won’t have, then we’re fighting an uphill battle.”



Dvandiest@postmedia.com



On Twitter: @DerekVanDiest