Two days after he was picked first overall in the 2019 MLS SuperDraft, Frankie Amaya sat inside his hotel room and spoke about his future objectives.
At the time, he was with the U.S. Under-20 National Team in Florida and said he wanted to be successful on the international level. After all, the U-20 FIFA World Cup is a few months away.
But as for his thoughts on FC Cincinnati’s upcoming season, he said he wanted to be a part of it. He wanted to make appearances and earn minutes.
That goal came true Saturday night.
With Cincinnati trailing 2-0 against the Philadelphia Union, Amaya made his professional debut.
“It was an unbelievable feeling,” Amaya said about his debut. “It was a moment I dreamed of as a kid. When (Head Coach Alan Koch) called me up and said ‘I’m going in,’ it was just a shocker … I couldn’t thank him enough.”
Truthfully, the circumstances were horrendous.
Down two goals when entering play in the 76th minute is hardly ideal, but it was even more so with the monsoon-like rain lashing down on – and wind whipping around – the Nippert Stadium pitch.
Amaya’s debut was his chance to show FC Cincinnati fans why he deserved to be the top pick, and also a chance for the center midfielder to prove to himself he deserves to be in MLS.
“It was a small time, but I thought I did pretty well,” he said. “I could’ve been a little bit better defensively and a little more higher … I could’ve done more things, but that’s all I did.”
With limited minutes, he entered a match where Cincinnati needed creativity and he provided some.
While there was an urgency from the home side to build possession and push the ball forward, the 18-year-old kept his composure to pick the right pass with every touch. Amaya’s 93.8 percent passing accuracy led FC Cincinnati – granted he played the least number of minutes. But on a dark and gloomy night, Amaya was a bright spot who offers optimism moving forward.
“Frankie’s coming,” Koch said of the midfielder’s growth. “Right attitude; right mentality since day one.
“We wanted to give him the opportunity … He’s been working incredibly hard in training. He’s a quality player. You can see his moments of quality. I think he went a did a good job of helping us possess the ball and trying to maintain and secure possession.”
Now that his debut arrived, Amaya said he’s ready to look ahead. Next comes a longer appearance, or maybe a start.
“I got my chance, I showed what I can do and hopefully I get more chances and I just keep working hard,” he said.
