Pacific FC 2020 Season Preview

Arrivals and Departures

Pacific had arguably the most disappointing season of any club last year. Many (us included) saw their experienced front line of Marcus Haber, Issey Nakajima-Farran and Ben Fisk as a distinct advantage, and yet only Fisk ended up making any sort of real impact, with Terran Campbell ending up leading the line. Unsurprisingly, significant offseason changes were in store, including the departure of that whole experienced front line.

Fisk was the big story, leaving to become Ottawa’s inaugural signing. Haber was released and eventually joined Cavalry, while Nakajima-Farran has left the professional game behind. Young forward José Hernández also departed in the CanPL’s first intra-league transfer, also joining Cavalry shortly after his contract expired. The defense saw significant changes as well, with leading centreback Hendrik Starostzik departing for Denmark, promising Canadian fullback Émile Legault joining Rio Grande Valley of the USL (where he’s been starting regularly) and Northern Irishman Ryan McCurdy going… somewhere… Talented young midfielder Ahmed Alghamdi also left for Saudi top tier side Al-Ettifaq, Panamanian ball-winner Alexander González returned to his home country, and keeper Mark Village retired to become goalkeeping coach with the club.

Pacific also has the dubious honour of the first manager to depart, when Dane Michael Silberbauer was fired just before the end of last season. In comes former Norwegian international Pa-Modou Kah from the Whitecaps youth system, while assistant James Merriman remains. Kah and the club made some of the most significant signings of the league to fill in the gaps, but are left with the smallest squad in PEI at 19 players (including 3 keepers).

The biggest signing, especially in his own mind, is winger/attacking mid Marco Bustos who joined from his hometown side Valour. Jokes aside, Bustos is a huge coup for Pacific and offers a mixture of flair and experience that was lacking on Vancouver Island last year. Joining him as a key attacking arrival is Mexican striker Alejandro Díaz from Liga MX side América. Quite the pedigree, but his one senior goal thus far leaves some question marks. Former Ottawa Fury man Jamar Dixon was another big add, adding experience and versatility to the midfield.

At the back, Pacific added two huge domestic signings: centreback Thomas Meilleur-Giguère, who spent the last two seasons on loan from l’Impact to Ottawa Fury; and keeper Callum Irving, a former Whitecaps academy product who spent the last three years in Ottawa. Rounding out the new arrivals are midfielders Sean Young and Josh Heard, highly-rated Canadian centreback Abdou Samake, and young keeper Emil Gazdov. Canadian leftback Jordan Haynes was also recently added - an interesting one after his tweet subtly referencing Nathan Mavila last year after being passed over by Cavalry. Well, here’s your chance to show what you’ve got Jordan.

Projected Lineup

We’re expecting Pacific to line up in a 4-3-3 system, and no surprise - Terran Campbell will be leading the line. Last year’s surprise package to a lot of observers will be counted on for the goals once again. On the wings, we see Bustos lining up as a winger on the left side, and promising Zach Verhoven starting on the right (although Díaz is another option there).

Victor Blasco will reprise his creative attacking midfield role from last season, with Noah Verhoeven and Jamar Dixon sitting deeper - Verhoeven as a deep-lying playmaker and Dixon as more of a ball-winner.

At the back, Marcel de Jong is healthy again and will be first-choice at leftback, with Kadin Chung starting on the right. Dixon can also slot in here when needed. In the centre, TMG will start alongside Lukas MacNaughton, who performed fairly well last season. Expect Samake to see a start or two as well in PEI.

Starting keeper should be Irving’s job to lose, but Nolan Wirth did pretty well given the defence in front of him when given the opportunity last year, and should see at least a couple of starts in PEI.

The Big Questions

Is Marco Bustos as good as Marco Bustos thinks?

Followers of #canpl on Twitter might recall some online dust-ups between Bustos’ friends and family, and certain bloggers around his move to Pacific. It was also clear from interviews that Bustos is certainly not lacking in self-confidence, and now he’ll have a chance to back it up. His 7 goals and 3 assists for Valour last year were among the league leaders in both categories, but how much does that matter when the team performs as poorly as it did? He’s also a smaller player, and can drift in and out of games, but Kah is very familiar with Bustos, and will be planning for him to be a main part of his attack. If he lives up to the hype, Pacific will be a team to watch out for.

Is the squad big enough?

At just 19 players including 3 keepers, Pacific have the smallest squad in the Island Games. For one or two games, this might not be an issue, but with 7 games and usually only 3 days between each, fitness could be an issue. If injuries start to pile up, Pacific could be in trouble.

Can Campbell repeat last year’s production?

It’s an understatement to say that Campbell didn’t get the appreciation he deserved for his 2019 season, especially from a lot of CanPL.ca’s so-called experts. But if anyone would have predicted him hitting double digits at the start of last year, there would have been some raised eyebrows. He won’t be sneaking up on anyone this year, and how he contributes will be a big part of Pacific’s success in the Island Games.

The Main Lads

Terran Campbell

With 11 goals last year, Campbell accounted for almost a third of the club’s league goals. A physical striker who’s strong in the air, but deceptively good with the ball at his feet as well, Campbell has a few different tools with which to test opposing defences. With Bustos and Blasco creating for him (and Bustos drawing the opposition’s attention), Campbell is well set up for a repeat performance in 2020 if he can stay healthy.

Thomas Meilleur-Giguère

Last season, centreback was an area of concern for Pacific throughout the year. Top man Starostzik was injured for a good chunk of time, MacNaughton was inexperienced, and McCurdy was frankly poor. In comes TMG, with more than 70 professional games at the USL level under his belt at only 22 years old. He’s a modern centreback, comfortable on the ball, and should help settle the backline regardless of his partner. We wouldn’t be surprised to see him play every minute in Charlottetown.

Victor Blasco

Able to operate on the left wing or behind a striker, the Spaniard probably didn’t get the accolades he deserved last season. One of the best dribblers in the league, able to find a pass, and dangerous from both direct and indirect free kicks, it’s not a stretch to say that Pacific’s offence will run through Blasco. Expect him to be ever-present for Pacific in PEI.

X-factor

Alessandro Hojabrpour

Just 20 years old still, Hojabrpour plays a midfield game much beyond his years. He offers a wide passing range - comfortable with tiki-taka in midfield as well as long switch passes - and isn’t afraid of a tackle either. The Canadian ended up playing in most games for Pacific last season, and we expect that will continue this year, although there will likely be plenty of rotation with him, Noah Verhoeven and Jamar Dixon.

Disgruntled Thought

Haynes versus Mavila, August 30th - mark it down!

Prediction

Despite the paper-thin squad, the starting lineup has star power in all the right places. If Pacific can stay healthy, and we’re guessing they can, there’s no reason why they can’t make the second round robin. Getting off to a strong start against Halifax will be imperative for the new coach and his squad. If nothing else, they'll be entertaining to watch!

Round-robin prediction: 4th