Roster changes for next season have begun. Best wishes to Wilson Kneeshaw... Thank you @SacRepublicFC on to the next adventure 🏹💜 much love! pic.twitter.com/x31XC64d6f— Wilson Kneeshaw (@wilsonkneeshaw) October 28, 2018
Lots of roster news today. Republic exercise options on 10 players Club option exercised: GK JOSH COHEN (no brainer) GK Rafael Díaz D Mitchell Taintor D Shannon Gomez MF Keven Aleman MF Villyan Bijev MF Jure Matjasic MF Jaime Villarreal F Cameron Iwasa F Roberto Hategan Out of contract but resigned MF Hayden Partain Out of contract: D Elliott Hord (negotiating new contract) D Carlos Rodriguez D Josh Turnley MF Luis Espino F Wilson Kneeshaw Retired Adam Moffat Player option declined: Emrah Klimenta (negotiating new contract) Club options declined: D Cole Seiler D Justin Schmidt MF Jeremy Hall (negotiating new contract) F Christian Eissele
That leaves Simon Elliott about 1/3 of the roster to bring in his style of play. The next couple of months should be interesting. Wonder if we will see any Kiwis or ‘Roos on the roster.
Partain's resigning is official... https://www.sacrepublicfc.com/news_article/show/974445 "The 24-year-old midfielder made 18 appearances for Sacramento last season, 16 as starts, and scored two goals for the club...The club lost just twice during Partain’s 16 starts, recording a 12-2-2 (W-L-D) record during that span."
New signing: Midfielder Drew Skundrich "Skundrich joins Republic FC after spending a season with USL Championship side Bethlehem Steel FC. The 23-year-old midfielder made 28 appearances last year for the Pennsylvanian club, 15 as starts, while recording two goals and three assists. Prior to joining Steel FC, Skundrich was part of the Stanford Cardinal team that won three consecutive NCAA Championships from 2015-17"
Republic FC sign midfielder Sam Werner "Werner joins Republic FC after a collegiate career with Stanford University where he won three consecutive NCAA championships from 2015-17. The Bozeman, Montana, native netted nine goals and added nine assists during his four seasons with the Stanford Cardinal, including the sudden-death goal in overtime during the 2017 College Cup that crowned the Cardinal champions... After graduating from Stanford, Werner played abroad in Israel "
With Elliott Hord's resigning, I'm updating the roster list with recent signings and adding details on contract length/option, if announced. Club option exercised: GK Josh Cohen, final year of contract GK Rafael Díaz, final year of contract D Mitchell Taintor, final year of contract D Shannon Gomez, final year of contract D Elliott Hord, club option for 2020 MF Keven Aleman, final year of contract MF Villyan Bijev, final year of contract MF Jure Matjasic, final year of contract MF Jaime Villarreal, final year of contract MF Hayden Partain, club option for 2020 MF Sam Werner, club option for 2020 MF Drew Skundrich F Cameron Iwasa, final year of contract F Roberto Hategan, final year of contract Player options declined but negotiating a new contract: Emrah Klimenta Jeremy Hall
Republic FC sign former English Premier League defender Dekel Keinan Keinan joins Republic FC after spending a season with FC Cincinnati where he captained the midwestern side to their first regular-season title. The 34-year-old center back made 23 appearances... He spent the first eight years of his career in the Israeli Premier League with Maccabi Haifa... In 2010, Keinan moved to England to play in the English Premier League with newly promoted Blackpool FC. The Israeli spent a single season in Lancashire before joining then-EFL Championship side Cardiff City. The following year, he played for both Crystal Palace and Bristol City on loan... Dekel Keinan Pronunciation: dek-uhl kay-NAHN Position: Defender Height: 6’1” Weight: 179 lb Born: September 15, 1984 Birthplace: Rosh HaNikra, Israel
Another signee from Bethlehem Steel... Defender Matt Mahoney One year deal with a club option. "A defender who can play both centrally and as a fullback, Mahoney made 44 appearances, 37 as starts, across his two seasons in Pennsylvania. In his final year with Steel FC, Mahoney recorded two goals and an assist, while leading the club in clearances (150), interceptions (81), tackles won (48), duels won (196) and aerial duels won (102)." Appearances/starts in 2018 were 35/33. 5'11'' & 170 lbs, 22 yrs old.
Another signing today... Midfielder Ray Saari From the presser: “We are delighted to add Ray’s competitive mentality to our midfield,” said Republic FC General Manager Todd Dunivant. “He led S2 as their captain and has a burning desire to win and compete. He’s also someone who has faced adversity and come out stronger on the other side. When we talk about indomitable spirit, Ray exemplifies it in spades.” Saari joins Republic FC after spending the last two seasons with USL Championship side Seattle Sounders FC 2. The central midfielder...appeared in 39 games and recorded four goals and six assists during his two seasons in Seattle. He also played for the MLS Seattle Sounders FC during each of the club’s three Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup matches over the past two seasons. Club option for 2020. 5'6", 148 lbs. I think I remember him last season and being pretty impressed. He covered a lot of the pitch and was a real nuisance. Here's an article where he describes his battle against cancer: Soccer saved me, cancer matured me
At this point in the off-season, I think we can identify a pattern. In years past, we signed a lot of guys who'd never played in USL before. There seem to have been a lot of guys who came from overseas or from Central or South America, guys with talent but unproven. Other guys were from MLS academies or were drafted by MLS and didn't catch on. "Look! We got an MLS guy!" Out of all these signings, a few worked out, many did not. Dunivant seems to be concentrating on proven, established USL-caliber players. On top of that, I think at least three of these guys were captains for their previous clubs, so we're getting veteran leadership, guys coaches trust. I like this direction. A lot.
Although it can be taken either way (in the sense of the future of the club), they are spending money again. This doesn't appear to be a cheap way to build a club. So the FO appears to be confident in the future, but which way that is (MLS or USL) isn't yet apparent (although signs point towards MLS, but until I get that email about a special announcement for soccer in Sacramento, I won't hold my breath)
New Forward: Stefano Bonomo "...said Republic FC General Manager Todd Dunivant. “He can score goals in different ways, has shown his leadership qualities as Red Bulls II captain and won the USL Cup in 2016... Bonomo joins Republic FC after spending the bulk of his professional career with USL Championship side New York Red Bulls II. Selected in the 2015 MLS SuperDraft by the NY Red Bulls, Bonomo signed with their USL affiliate and helped lead them to...their first USL Cup... ...In all, Bonomo made 64 appearances for RBII, recording 24 goals and nine assists across his four seasons in New York. He wrapped up the 2018 season in Florida with three goals and an assist during nine appearances with the Rowdies. Pronunciation: STE-fuh-no buh-NO-mo Height: 6’2” Weight: 170 lb No reference to a club option for 2020.
The holes in the lineup that seemed obvious to most here are quickly being filled. What was less obvious was that SRFC believed that last year's team lacked leadership. Why else would they go after so many team captains?
REPUBLIC FC SIGN DEFENDER CHARALAMPOS "HARIS" CHANTZOPOULOS 24 year old defender with experience in 2nd division Bundesliga and Finland's 1st division. Played with Eissele in Finland. https://www.sacrepublicfc.com/news_article/show/983302 Mangerson - hope you don't mind me adding this, but I felt the need to break from my reputation as a "thread-killer." Lol
Tyler Blackwood returns and Jure Matjasic departs by mutual consent Too bad, I liked Matjasic's play. Edit: No option for 2020 mentioned in the news release re: Blackwood.
New fullback... Former MLS Defender Jordan McCrary I have a hunch he will be an upgrade, replacing Taintor/Hord at outside back opposite Gomez.
It will be interesting to see if he plays more like Hord or Taintor. I don't remember him from Seattle......I guess we'll find out soon enough.
New signing: EL SALVADOR MEN'S NATIONAL TEAM DEFENDER JUAN BARAHONA Pending league and federation approval. "...all six years of his professional career with Santa Tecla in El Salvador’s first division. The 23-year-old defender, who primarily plays as a left back, won four league titles and two domestic cups during his time with the Central American club... Barahona has 20 caps for the El Salvador Men’s National Team, including five World Cup qualifiers. The defender has also featured in the Concacaf Champions League with Santa Tecla." Pronunciation: bah-rah-oh-nah Position: Defender Height: 5-7 Weight: 150 lb Birthdate: February 12, 1996 Birthplace: San Salvador, El Salvador Last Club: Santa Tecla
The club and Roberto Hategan have had one of those "mutually agreed to part ways" kind of separations.
They signed this kid for two seasons, we see him play all of 40 minutes, and then they let him go as part of a "mutual agreement." Seems like an awful waste of energy, time, and resources. What's actually going on when they sign academy players? Is it just a tactic to keep other clubs from cherry-picking them?
New midfielder.... BREAKING: Republic FC have signed attacker Dariusz Formella to a @USLChampionship contract for the 2019 season. 👊Welcome, @Darekformella9!➡️ https://t.co/ltjrenbMFd pic.twitter.com/WKP4morROI— Sacramento Republic FC (@SacRepublicFC) July 18, 2019 https://www.sacrepublicfc.com/news_article/show/1035813 “Dariusz is a dynamic, offensive player that will bolster our attack right away,” said Republic FC General Manager Todd Dunivant. “He brings several years of high-level European experience to our team and we look forward to his arrival in Sacramento.” Formella joins Republic FC after spending the past seven years in Poland’s first division, winning a league title and two Polish SuperCups with Lech Poznan, as well as the Polish Cup with Arka Gdynia. Edit: Pronunciation: da-ree-oosh for-meh-la Position: Midfielder Height: 6’1” Weight: 176 lb Born: October 21, 1995