EDMONTON - If training camp is a gauge for what FC Edmonton fans can expect from the Eddies in the upcoming season, then expect big things.

A large returning contingent of players along with key additions to the roster in the attacking and goaltending departments has Eddies fans and FC Edmonton head coach Colin Miller believing in the potential of this lineup.

“If I were an Eddies fan, I’d be rubbing my hands at the quality of teams and players that they’re going to see this season,” Miller said. “The standard is getting better and it bodes well for the league.”

The Eddies’ training camp opened this week at the Commonwealth Community Recreation Centre as the team prepares for a pre-season visit to Florida before facing the expansion Jacksonville Armada FC in the North American Soccer League’s spring season opener on March 25.

The arrival of players like Major League Soccer veteran Sainey Nyassi, Iceland’s Oskar Orn Hauksson (on loan from Icelandic side KR Reykjavic), former El Salvador under-18 international Tomas Granitto and former Minnesota United FC goalkeeper Matt Van Oekel has bolstered the options for FC Edmonton’s coaching staff.

As for how many roster spots are up for grabs, Miller said the players aren’t going to make it easy on him this year.

“There’s only one open spot at the moment,” Miller said. “When I see the quality that we have in the group now, its very exciting and I genuinely have some serious selection problems this season which I’m over the moon about.

“My mandate in the off-season was to get better quality in the attacking third with guys who have an abundance of pace and can create more opportunities. In the modern game, if you’re slow, you will genuinely struggle.”

Miller’s fast-attacking and physical philosophy from last season is about to take major steps forward with the injection of key players who can make a big difference on the pitch.

“Last year, it was a work in progress, you could see what we were trying to do,” Miller said. “This year, it’s my group of players. The coaching staff is happy with them and I can picture how I want them to play. There’s no dead wood in this group.”

Nyassi is a Gambian international who played in Finland this past season after seven seasons with the New England Revolution and DC United in the MLS. He officially signed with FC Edmonton following training on Tuesday and will bring a strong veteran presence to a young Eddies squad that narrowly missed the playoffs last year after a strong fall season.

“I’m excited to join the guys here and it felt good to get my first training session in. What I saw of the guys was impressive,” Nyassi said. “The movement and quality of the players is definitely here, so I’m excited.”

His last visit to Edmonton was in 2007 for the FIFA under-20 World Cup with his twin brother Sanna Nyassi, who currently plays in California with the San Jose Earthquakes of the MLS.

Van Oekel, who spent five seasons with Minnesota, is impressed by the tempo and intensity of training north of the border.