After being named the team’s general manager in the summer, Caio Zanardi helped lift the Fort Lauderdale Strikers to the postseason after a difficult Spring Season. Now the team’s head coach, Zanardi has added a series of new pieces in an effort to seal a return to playoff soccer.

Zanardi has had some significant moves to make heading into the 2016 season. Gone is 2015 NASL MVP Stefano Pinho, as well as fellow playmaker Marlon Freitas. In their stead, Zanardi has brought in a new crop of talented South American stars, and he got a head start in doing so.

Following a front office restructuring, the Strikers season began in January with the Florida Cup. With most of the team’s roster constructed before February hit, the Strikers enter the 2016 season with over 20 new faces, but those faces have already been indoctrinated with Zanardi’s belief that this team is ready to win now.

“When you start building your roster, you bring in new players, but you have no idea,” Zanardi told SBI. “When you play against them, you have some information about them, but when you receive these new players from other clubs, you start to work with them and you need time before each one. You need to know more deep details about their lives, about their cultures. Everyone comes from a different place. You need time to know each one. After three months, you have details and it’s easier to build your team. We have great players.

“Most of it is new for us, but now we have it. It’s only a few days before we have our first match against Miami, and we hope we will be ready for the first match. After that, we have a long season with hard matches, but I hope we are able to build the team during the season to reach the finals at the end of the season.”

Here’s a closer look at the 2016 Fort Lauderdale Strikers:

2016 FORT LAUDERDALE STRIKERS PREVIEW

2015 FINISH: Overall – 11-11-8, 41 points (4th in Combined Standings); Spring Season – 3-5-2, 11 points (8th in Spring Season); Fall Season – 8-6-6, 30 points (4th in Fall Season)

HEAD COACH: Caio Zanardi, First Season

KEY ACQUISITIONS: Maicon Santos, Matheus Carvalho, Aurelio Saco Vertiz, Kleberson, Geison Moura, Luis Felipe

KEY LOSSES: Stefano Pinho, Marlon Freitas, Frankie Sanfilippo, James Marcelin, Shawn Chin

NEWCOMER TO WATCH: Matheus Carvalho. The Brazilian winger joins the Strikers after featuring for French powerhouse Monaco on loan throughout the 2014-15 season. With Champions League experience at just 23-years-old, Carvalho brings potential to match his experience and should prove to be yet another dynamic Brazilian presence in the Strikers’ lineup.

PRESSURE IS ON: PC. An NASL Young Player of the Year nominee last season, PC is one of the league’s more electric young midfielders on a team filled with attacking talent. However, following the departures of Stefano Pinho and Marlon Freitas, PC will be expected to carry more of the load for the Strikers this season at just 22-years-old.

OUTLOOK

From his first day as Strikers boss, Zanardi has made one thing very clear: the best players will play, and those who haven’t earned their time on the field will have to do so by outworking everyone around them.

In fostering competition, Zanardi has assembled a roster with unique amounts of experience. Brazilian star Kleberson joins the club with the 2002 World Cup listed among his numerous accomplishments. Youngster Matheus Carvalho enters the team having featured in the 2014-15 Champions League at just 22-years-old. Players like U.S. Under-20 Men’s National Team midfielder Luis Felipe and former U.S. Under-23 Men’s National Team midfielder Victor Pineda bring youth experience to what is generally a young roster.

Still, regardless of pedigree, reputation or age, Zanardi says he will field the 11 players that deserve to be on the field.

“They know that, with each opportunity, each one has to be ready,” Zanardi said, “and they need to take these opportunities. I spoke with the whole roster. Whoever is going to be better is going to play. Whoever is out, you’ll have to work a lot and wait for your opportunity.”

Much like last season, the Strikers are expected to lean heavily on a talented young attack. Playmaker PC returns to lead a midfield with plenty of Brazilian talent. Former Minnesota United midfielder Geison Moura and former Monaco loanee Carvalho are expected to flank him on either side. The Brazilian trio should provide plenty of creativity in the attacking third while helping to limit the damage of losing a star like Stefano Pinho.

Zanardi says he has been impressed with the growth of Moura and Felipe in particular, as he expects the duo to contribute in various ways throughout the season. Felipe, in particular, provides cover in a defensive role and could be used as the team’s pure No. 6.

Ahead of them, Zanardi says he has options at the forward position. Former D.C. United and Toronto FC forward Maicon Santos is expected to lead the line, but Zanardi insists that the returning Jose Angulo will certainly be in the running for minutes. In Santos and Angulo, Zanardi says he has two potent options with different styles, and he hopes to use those differences to his advantage in 2016.

In addition, Zanardi figures that veterans like Kleberson and Adrianinho will make a major impact. Although they may be advancing in age, the two Brazilians will be leaned on by Zanardi to provide leadership and expertise when the moment is right.

“You cannot work only with young players. You need some players with backgrounds and great experiences,” Zanardi said. “These kind of players form a balance between young players and the more experienced. They know the shortcuts on the pitch. I hope they can give us good feedback. They’ve had great moments in their career and I expect they give us wonderful feedback as soon as possible.

“These young players need a little bit of time to get some adaptation to the league, but I am very happy with what they are showing for us. I’m sure they’re going to all have great, great seasons.”

Zanardi’s biggest challenge, though, has been revamping his defense. Although the Strikers allowed just 40 goals in 2015, Zanardi says he was far from satisfied with the finishes they did allow, and hopes to remedy that situation with a series of new faces.

With a veteran goalkeeper in Bruno Cardoso in goal, the Strikers have added a series of experienced defensive pieces. Familiar faces like Gale Agbossoumonde, Julius James and Nana Attakora provide NASL experience, while Peruvian international Aurelio Saco Vertiz is expected to contribute out wide.

“We had defensive problems last year,” Zanardi said. “Whoever saw our matches last season could see defensive problems. I tried to fix this problem, to bring in high quality players and high-quality work. It’s not enough to bring in good players without good work. I believe in work.

“They have different styles, but they work very hard with a good character. I spoke to them. Whoever is better is going to play, simple. They know, and I’m going to start with two or maybe three, and others will have to wait for their opportunity and they’ll have to put in hard work. When the chance comes, he has to be ready to play. I have four central defenders that are at a high-level and I’m sure they’re going to have a great season.”

With so many new pieces in place, Zanardi admits he isn’t sure what to expect. Even with a long preseason, it may take time to gel and find their footing in a rapidly improving NASL.

Zanardi looks around the league and sees teams improving. The head coach like what he has seen from the expansion clubs Rayo OKC and FC Miami, and he believes several teams have improved after missing the postseason. However, in Zanardi’s view, the Strikers have to, and he expects the team to be there in the end once again.

“I need the feedback when I watch the matches,” Zanardi said. “We’ve had a preseason and we played some games there, but I need feedback from the league. They are new players. I don’t know exactly what feedback they will give me during a match. They are young players, new players.

“All of the clubs are looking for the title,” he added. “If you ask the coach of Rayo or Ottawa, all of the clubs want to be champion. With the Strikers, it’s not different. We want the title as well. We’re going to work for that. I’m very happy with our players. They work a lot and I expect to have a good season where, at the end of the season, I can say that we are champions.”

PROJECTED LINEUP

———————Bruno———————

Gabriel–Attakora–Agbossoumonde–Saco Vertiz

———-Alexandre——Hlavaty————

——————-Moura———————-

PC—————Santos————–Carvalho