Ahead of FC Cincinnati’s first season in MLS, we’ve created a roster breakdown for each position group. For goalkeepers, click here. For the backline, click here. For the midfield, click here.
Here’s a preview of The Orange and Blue’s forwards:
Fanendo Adi
Age: 28
Previous club: Portland Timbers (MLS)
FC Cincinnati’s first Designated Player, Adi joined the club on loan last July and begins his first full season with the Orange and Blue in 2019. Adi scored three goals in 11 USL appearances.
Now back in MLS, the Nigerian forward is expected to lead FCC’s attack in the inaugural MLS season. During his time with Portland, he made 126 appearances and scored 54 goals. He produced 14 assists.
Adi was a 2015 MLS Cup champion and can hopefully recreate the same with his second MLS club. In the 2019 preseason, he played all seven matches, scoring once.
Emery Welshman
Age: 27
Previous club: FC Cincinnati (USL)
Signed in 2018, Welshman made 28 appearances for Cincinnati and scored four league goals. He also scored a hat trick against Detroit City FC in the 2018 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.
Welshman returns to MLS after being Toronto FC’s No. 13 pick in the 2013 SuperDraft. He made one appearance. He also signed with Real Salt Lake in 2016 but never featured.
He has six goals in seven caps with the Guyana National Team. Last October, he scored a hat trick against Turks and Caicos in a Concacaf Nations League Qualifier.
He made one preseason appearance before a hamstring injury.
Darren Mattocks
Age: 28
Previous club: D.C. United (MLS)
FCC selected Mattocks with the first pick in the 2019 MLS Expansion Draft from D.C. United. There, he scored 10 goals in 25 appearances during the 2018 MLS regular season.
Mattocks and Adi have familiarity together — they spent two years together in Portland.
Although he was injured during portions of the preseason, Mattocks was one of FCC’s better players and led the team with three goals in five appearances. He has 43 caps with the Jamaica National Team and 17 goals.
Kekuta Manneh
Age: 24
Previous club: St. Gallen (Super Swiss League)
Manneh joined FCC during the preseason after time in Switzerland. The Orange and Blue acquired his rights from Columbus Crew SC, his last MLS team.
Born in The Gambia, Manneh counts as a domestic player and should be one of the club’s quickest players this season. Despite being 24-years-old, he has 120 MLS regular-season appearances. He’s scored 26 goals and has 15 assists.
He was injured during the preseason and hasn’t debuted for the club yet.
Rashawn Dally
Age: 22
Previous club: Quinnipiac (NCAA)
Dally was FCC’s last pick in the 2019 MLS SuperDraft — No. 49 overall.
The 22-year-old made two preseason appearances but was injured and missed the remaining matches. Dally has experience with Jamaica’s youth national teams and has been called into senior camp previously.
