Season Predictions: What issue is most likely to derail the Union’s season?

The reason we all continue to watch sports is that the results rarely turn out how we expect. We watch for the unknowns. We asked the staff which unknown are they most concerned with as we head into this season?

Jared Young – Qualify of the Roster Depth
On paper, the Union starters look solid. The returning veteran core of Bruno Damiani, Danley Jean Jacques, Jovan Lukic, Milan Iloski, and Andre Blake is enough of a stabilizing force to keep the XI competitive, as the newcomers get into their roles. But after the starting XI, there are a host of Hail Marys. It’s essentially a Union Academy evaluation year. Can the kids contribute to winning soccer? The Union have a packed schedule with the MLS season, Leagues Cup and CONCACAF Champions Cup (although I don’t anticipate this run lasting long), and the reality is that multiple starters will go down with an injury for a material amount of time. It always happens. It’s as guaranteed as death and taxes, but much less talked about. Carnell will heavily rotate, as he did last year, and deal with injuries, and I’m not convinced the Union have the bench that will contribute to winning games when it counts.

Owen Boyle – Lacking playmakers
The Union has lacked a true playmaker for a very long time. They have been longing for a South American attacking midfielder with some flair and attitude who can take over games and even seasons, like Evander of FC Cincinnati, or 2023 MLS MVP Luciano Acosta. Outside of forcing turnovers using their pressing style, most of the Union’s playmaking and chance creation from open play and set-piece situations came from their left back, Kai Wagner, who has departed for the EFL Championship. Last season, Wagner led the team with 10 assists, followed by Quinn Sullivan’s eight. With Wagner gone and Sullivan out till the summer, the Union will need to find a playmaker, likely already on their roster, to fill some big shoes. Could that be Cavan Sullivan?

Evan Konigsberg – Defensive cohesion
The Union lost a few key defenders this offseason, with Jakob Glesnes sold off to the Galaxy and Kai Wagner making the jump to Birmingham City. 2026 is yet another season in which the Union front office put their constant Ship of Theseus-like roster building strategy to the test, and while it worked in 2025, there is concern that it will take more time to gel this season. Frankie Westfield and Olwethu Makhanya were new to the starting lineup last season, but Westfield came through the academy and Union II and Makhanya spent a year gaining experience with the Union’s specific tactics on Union II as well. Sery Larsen and a potential left back signing will not have time to gain this familiarity and will more or less have to gain that understanding as the season progresses. This could cause the Union to have a rough start to the season. 

Matt Ralph – Veteran Leadership
It’s great that Alejandro Bedoya is back for one more season but as valuable as his contributions off the field, day-to-day in training and in the locker room will still be, I still worry about how much institutional memory was traded away in the offseason. There is opportunity for players like Indiana Vassilev, Milan Iloski, Jesus Bueno and others to step up but it might take some time for the team to gel and make up for what they’ve lost with the departures of Kai Wagner, Jakob Glesnes, Tai Baribo and Mikael Uhre.

Evan Cohen – Defensive Unknowns
I’m really high on Japhet Sery Larsen, and I am a huge fan of the step Olwethu Makhanya took last year. Outside of those two, I worry about the defensive abilities of this roster. Geiner Martínez has looked questionable at best through his limited preseason minutes, and Frankie Westfield has far less defensive ability than what Kai Wagner showed on the left side for so many years. It sounds like another defensive move is coming, but regardless, I worry. 

Matt McClain – Roster Turnover
Whenever you lose three of your most important players in one off-season, it becomes a cause for concern. The Union shipped away two of the best MLS defenders over the last 5+ years and one of their most prolific goal scorers since Sebastian Le Toux this offseason. They also have one of their most creative and explosive players sidelined for a significant portion of the season with Quinn Sullivan still rehabbing an ACL injury. So if you subtract three high-impact players and can only bank on a partial season from your spark plug in Quinn, that suggests several players will need to either step-up in big ways or make immediate impacts in terms of solid play and much-needed veteran leadership. We know the coaching staff and veterans like Andre Blake and Ale Bedoya possess the ability to integrate new players well into the high-pressing style of play and team culture dynamics. But what we don’t know is the impact the departure of key MLS veterans like Jakob Glesnes and Kai Wagner will have on that culture and what impact the new faces will make both on and off the pitch. It’s a bit of a mixed bag emotionally – it causes concern but also a level of excitement and anticipation.

Quentin Hall – Away Form
The Union’s away approach under Carnell is built to survive, not to win. Sitting deep, frustrating opponents, and playing for draws works over a long regular season where a point on the road has value. In the playoffs, that philosophy becomes a liability. If the Union is forced into an away match, at some point, they must take control of a game rather than absorb pressure. This also ties into personnel: the squad still lacks a player who can grab a match and decide it individually when the system stalls. The contrast between home and away performances is stark. At home, the Union presses, forces turnovers, and feeds off the crowd. Away, they drop into a shell, their energy dips, and if that shell gets broken, there isn’t much of a counterpunch. That stylistic gap is manageable in the table, but dangerous in knockout play.

Jared Young

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