There was plenty to talk about at Talen Energy Stadium on Wednesday afternoon.
Chief among all topics was the signing of Auston Trusty to a homegrown player contract. Trusty was set to join the University of North Carolina but instead chose to turn professional at age 17.
It's a big win for Earnie Stewart and the Union technical staff, who are now beginning to see players come through the academy and straight to the first team, instead of going to college. Trusty had been with the academy since it's 2013 inception and previously went through the Union Juniors program back in 2011.
Trusty is a 6'3" center back with significant upside. He hasn't exactly grown into his body yet and still has a bit of leanness and lankiness that might draw comparisons to the build of Andre Blake or Josh Yaro. But the athleticism is undeniable. Trusty has seen significant playing for Bethlehem Steel and also trains regularly with the Union first team.
"I'm hyped," Trusty told reporters after Wednesday morning's training session. "When the Union started I was amazed by the stadium and just always had a dream of playing here and being a part of Philly. Being able to grow up in Philly and watch the team grow along with this community, and the soccer community around Philadelphia, and watching the game become popular, I'm honored to be part of it. It's like, I don't know, it's amazing to grow up here, to be from Delco and represent Philadelphia in a professional aspect. I'm just honored. It's a privilege to be able to play."
Head coach Jim Curtin says Trusty will continue to play at Bethlehem Steel as he progresses with the squad. Similar to fellow homegrown signing Derrick Jones, Trusty will need time before cracking the gameday 18.
'It just went'
Defensive midfielder Brian Carroll came off crutches Wednesday but will miss the next few games.
The Union veteran is out for up to six weeks with plantar fasciitis, an issue that flared up in the weekend draw at D.C. United.
"I've played through plantar fasciitis before and it kind of was a little bit sore but I got a bunch of treatment on it," Carroll explained. "I felt better Thursday, Friday, and then game day. Hard field, hard day, and it just went. I exploded to win a ball and my foot just kind of fell out from under me. It was a small tear in the heel part of my fascia. There's a time frame on that, but it's really when the pain goes away and I can tolerate it again. They say two to six weeks, but it could be anywhere within that timeframe so we'll see."
Carroll added that past problems have been mostly minor. The fasciitis would result in morning stiffness in the heel area but would eventually go away as the day progressed.
More on Maurice
Not that it wasn't already important, but Carroll's injury puts more emphasis on getting Maurice Edu back on the field.
The Union captain entered the season atop the defensive midfield depth chart before a stress fracture returned him to the sidelines.
It's the number one topic among Union fans - when will he play again?
Edu has been in and out of full participation with the first-team squad. Wednesday, he worked to the side during a later team drill that combined a small-sided game with a transitional exercise stretched across the entirety of the field.
"We've discussed it internally," Curtin said of a timetable for Edu's return. "Again, Mo is frustrated. He just wants to be unleashed, and let go, and play. I think it's not far off before he's playing some minutes with Bethlehem. I think that's close. I think that needs to happen as the first step. I think he's been in training sessions that have been as intense and high paced as those games are. He's held up well, so there's a lot of positives right now. To put an exact week on it, I've learned, with his specific injury, it's not a good thing to do because you're not going to get your hopes crushed. But it's towards the end. I think the next step is playing minutes with Bethlehem. That will be a big step, to see how his body responds to that. If training is any indication, it's going to respond well, and you start to think about minutes for us, which is a good thing to have."
More personnel options
Center back Ken Tribbett got some work at the defensive midfield position on Wednesday. It's the position he played in college and he could jump in if Carroll's current backup, Warren Creavalle, has to come off in an emergency. Curtin also suggested that right back Keegan Rosenberry might be an option at the six.
New signing Alejandro Bedoya will be part of the squad that travels to New England on Saturday. He appeared to be playing as a number eight during team exercises. Bedoya at the eight would see Tranquillo Barnetta moved back into his preferred number ten role, with Roland Alberg and/or Fabian Herbers returning to the bench.
Rolling with Ronaldo
Curtin was on 97.5 the Fanatic this morning with guest hosts Matt Lombardo and Eytan Shander, who were sitting in for Anthony Gargano and Jon Marks.
The Union manager was asked about the Bedoya signing and the growth of soccer in America. He was also asked about which Philadelphia sports team he's most excited about (Sixers). The segment then wrapped up with Shander asking Curtin if he would prefer to build a team around Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi.
"So, I'll say it like this – Messi is the better player, but I'm building around Ronaldo just because of the physicality that he brings," Curtin explained. "And if it's just to win one game, I'm going with him, because I think in the biggest moments he steps up and gets goals. They're both, I mean it's like 1 and 1a. Messi is probably the better player, but if I'm playing to win one game or win a season, I'll roll with Ronaldo because of his size."