FC Cincinnati signed Emery Welshman, a 26-year-old right-footed Forward, who played most recently with Puerto Rico FC of the NASL. Welshman is Canadian, however, he represents Guyana on the international level, playing numerous games for the South American country during the last qualifying session. Emery will complement recent FC Cincinnati signee, Tommy Heinemann. While Heinemann can play the holding forward, Welshman can provide the pace and expose defenses that focus too much on the big guy.
After spending much of 2016 sidelined with a hip injury suffered during his stint with MLS side, Real Salt Lake, Welshman was able to regain his fitness last year with Puerto Rico FC. During his time with La Naranjas’ (The Oranges), he scored 5 times and provided 3 assists factoring into 25% of the team’s goals. He was able to accomplish this while only appearing in 22 games, 13 as a starter mostly as Center Forward or Left Wing.
“Emery has exceptional pace and a nose for goal,” Head Coach Alan Koch said. “He is a player who has had a few setbacks with injury, but when at his best, he has the ability to play in MLS. He has not peaked yet and we look forward to working with him to help achieve mutual goals. He is a fantastic citizen and will fit in fantastically with the group that we are putting in place for 2018.”
Welshman has always been a talented player, during his first two years at Siena College of the MAAC, he won the Rookie of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year. He then transferred to Oregon State of the PAC-12 and played his junior and senior years with Will Seymore, another recent signing for the Orange & Blue. While in Oregon, he was named All-Pac-12 both years and combined for 13 goals and 11 assists during that time.
His talents did not go unnoticed by MLS, where he was drafted 16th overall by Toronto FC in the 2013 MLS SuperDraft. But success in his birth country did not come, making just 1 appearance for the Canadian side before his release. In 2014 he found a spot with the League 1 Ontario side of Sigma FC, where he scored 16 goals in 18 appearances.
In 2015 he was signed by Real Salt Lake and made significant inroads with their USL side, Real Monarchs, with 19 appearances, scoring 6 goals and 2 assist. His performance in 2015 led to an MLS contract with the first team. He is a hard worker as noted by RSL general manager Craig Waibel, “Emery deserves a lot of credit as he did everything asked of him over the past year. He matured and accepted the challenges given to him by the staff and in the end persevered to end the season on a very strong run.” However, he sustained a hip injury early in the 2016 season that required surgery and never saw the pitch with the first team.
Welshman is a solid signing, with a good upside and known for his pace. Last year he was able to get fit and contribute to an undermanned Puerto Rico side. While his stats may not jump off the page, he can become a big piece of solving FCC offensive struggles. If Koch can work him in and get him some significant playing time his speed and foot skills can punish opponents.
@khoetker for @CincySoccerTalk
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