Two years ago, Striker Cyle Larin was the new kid on the block. The #1 overall pick in Orlando City’s first MLS SuperDraft out of the University of Connecticut, Larin came to Orlando City and immediately made his presence known. In his first season, he scored 17 goals and won MLS Rookie of the Year. No one thought he could duplicate that talent in Year Two, and rumors of a “sophomore slump” circulated during the offseason. But Larin proved his critics wrong, scoring 14 goals and earning three assists in 2016.
Now it’s Year Three. Head Coach Jason Kreis is expecting more out of his star player.
“I think we want a lot of improvement from Cyle [Larin],” Kreis said after the first day of training. “From my point of view, it’s every facet of his game. Now it’s his third year as a pro and he needs to move forward. He’s had a little bit of a stalling period last season, which you can expect with a young player. And now it’s about how you react to that and how you improve after that.”
Larin also expects more out of himself. But after the first day of training yesterday, he said he felt good.
“A lot fitter,” Larin said. “A lot fitter than I was at the beginning of preseason last year. And I think I know what to expect now. Last year, I didn’t know what to expect. This is my third year in the league now, and I think I can score a lot more goals and I know how defenders play.”
This will also be the team’s first preseason under Coach Kreis, and Larin says the communication between the two of them helps. “Now I know what to expect from the coach and from my team.”
Despite still being in the league’s top ten goal-scorers last season, Larin wants to improve his shooting and take more shots on goal. “I know I can shoot more in the game,” Larin said. “I don’t think I shoot enough.”
But Larin isn’t focused on his own stats. His focus is on the team, and how they can achieve the goals they’ve laid out. “I think I have more team goals than personal goals,” Larin said.
Orlando City’s road to achieving those goal in the regular season started with their first day of preseason. We’ll see where they go from here.+
