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Week 1 Preview: OKC Opens with Tough Test

By Tyler Vaughn, 03/08/19, 8:00PM CST

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Energy FC head into the 2019 USL Championship campaign with high expectations. USL Championship’s national writer, John Arlia, has not only picked the Greens to bounce back after missing the playoffs in 2018, but he also predicts they'll win the Western Conference! USL's Nicholas Murray predicts the team to finish fourth in the Western Conference, 538.com has given Energy FC an 86 percent chance to make the playoffs and a six percent chance to lift the USL Cup and USLChampionship.com staff have OKC at #7 in the league’s power rankings.

Head Coach Steve Cooke knows that all of the hype is just talk at this point.

“I don’t really pay any attention to it to be honest. Our job is to stay focused on the task at hand which is to play El Paso on Saturday. After that, we have to come back every day and work as hard as we can.”

Obviously, there is still a grueling, 34-match season ahead (plus U.S. Open Cup), but the signs are all there. During the 2019 preseason, Energy FC went 5-1-1, scoring 16 goals and allowing only four. Deshorn Brown scored seven goals in preseason and is predicted by many, including USL’s Arlia, to be in the race for the USL’s Golden Boot.

While Brown is one of the few returning attackers from last season, Cooke and his assistants, Danny Stone and Alexis Vizarelis, have put together a high-caliber squad full of talent and experience at every position.

Alexy Bosetti could be one of the most exciting players in the league this year. Having begun his professional career with OGC Nice in Ligue 1 and winning the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup with France, Bosetti is capable of dictating play, pulling the strings in midfield and getting in among the goals as well. Keep your eyes on this guy.

Cordell Cato has made 135 MLS appearances and earned 27 caps for Trinidad and Tobago. Cato has the skillset to leave any defender behind and will be a threat every time he has the ball.

Omar Gordon has 18 caps for Jamaica and won the 2016 NASL Spring Championship with Indy Eleven. Gordon is the total package: skill, strength, speed, intelligence. On his day, he’s unplayable.

That front four could be absolutely devastating with the potential to create and score goals at any moment. The USL Championship Western Conference better be on alert.

Defensive additions such as Mekeil Williams and Nicolas Taravel will bolster a backline that kept nine clean sheets in 2018. Williams, formerly of the Richmond Kickers has 27 caps with the Trinidad and Tobago national team. Taravel, “a unicorn” according to Cooke because he’s a left-footed left center back, arrives from Grenoble Foot 38 of France’s Ligue 2 and featured for France’s U-19 and U-20 national teams.

In the center of the park, Rafael Garcia will bring a different level of experience and leadership. The two-time MLS Cup winner isn’t afraid to get stuck into a challenge and will anchor the midfield, allowing Callum Ross to get further forward into areas where he really excels and can showcase his stellar vision and passing range.

The leadership doesn’t end with Rafa. Veterans Atiba Harris, Kyle Hyland and Cody Laurendi are all back this year.

Harris, the Saint Kitts & Nevis national team captain and MLS veteran with 276 appearances, completely changed the dynamic of the team last year and is revered by everyone in the dressing room.

Hyland, the all-time leader in appearances for Energy FC with 86 (79 in USL, seven in U.S. Open Cup), has been one of the most consistent and underrated players ever at the club. Barring any major injury issues, Hyland will become the first player in club history to surpass 100 appearances, and it couldn’t happen to a more worthy individual.

Laurendi, one of the most popular players to ever wear the OKC crest, is the all-time leader in appearances in goal and would likely be right up there with Hyland if it weren’t for the knee injury he suffered towards the end of the 2017 season. Still, Laurendi battled back to make nine appearances in 2018 and keep four clean sheets in the process.

If the 11 players mentioned above are the starters in week one, as they were last weekend in Tucson, then you have to admire the quality of depth of this squad.

Drew Beckie was a rock at the back when he arrived in the middle of last season and is going to be difficult to keep out of the squad.

Marco Bustos is an incredibly talented playmaker with a left foot that allows him to score from anywhere. If OKC are going to be successful in 2019, you have to imagine that Bustos is going to be a factor.

New signing Christian Eissele has a ton to offer at the no. 9 position with his exceptional holdup play, ability to link up with the rest of the attack and of course, his eye for goal.

We already know Christian Ibeagha is a quality defender that can play in multiple positions and is always dangerous on set pieces.

If guys like that are coming off the bench, then this team is absolutely stacked. And there might even be more signings to come throughout the season. Remember that Cooke made 10 signings after the opener last year!

We also can’t forget about all of the top talent with local ties that are available when called upon.

Josh Garcia and Kal Okot were standouts with the Energy FC U23 team last year and have continued to show their quality during preseason.

Bryan Byars could start at most teams. The OKC native impressed in each of his eight appearances last year and was nominated for USL’s Save of the Week twice.

Baby-faced Harrison Bouma made history as the club’s first-ever academy contract signing. At 6’4” and just 18 years of age, his upside is huge.

If all that weren’t enough, veteran defender Max Gunderson and 2018 MLS SuperDraft pick Amer Sasivarevic add to an incredibly strong backline with both players able to get up and down the line to attack and defend.

While the individual talent is impressive, the most admirable thing about this squad might be the quality of character and camaraderie. Just about every time Coach Cooke speaks about his players, he talks more about them being great human beings than he does about them being great footballers. It's clear that this team, full of different backgrounds and upbringings, is already a strong, cohesive unit, and that bond will only strengthen as the season progresses.

The Opposition

Being a completely new club makes it hard to know much about El Paso Locomotive FC as a team. Energy FC did just face them in preseason and come away 2-1 winners in Tucson, Ariz., however, that’s still just preseason. One would have to believe that the Greens face an entirely different prospect in El Paso in front of a 10,000 strong, sellout home crowd that will be rocking Saturday night.

There are a few things we do know about Locomotive FC. Head Coach Mark Lowry has a good reputation from his time at Jacksonville Armada FC, and his sides like to keep possession, El Paso native Omar Salgado is a fantastic player with MLS and Liga MX experience, and there is quality throughout the squad with the likes of former FC Cincinnati midfielder Richie Ryan and former All-USL defenders Mechack Jerome and James Kiffe.

Needless to say, expect a battle in El Paso. Locomotive FC like to possess the ball and Energy FC can be lethal on the counter with speed that few teams in the league can match.

Here’s to the Greens start things off on the right foot and bringing three points back home!

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