TUCSON, Ariz. – Seven unsigned trialists and SuperDraft picks traveled with the New England Revolution on their first preseason trip to Casa Grande, Arizona. That number was cut to five ahead of the current trip to Tucson, and was further reduced to three this past weekend.
Emmanuel Appiah, Otis Earle, Napo Matsoso and Jeremie Sabaly all spent time with the Revs this preseason, but the quartet of defenders and midfielders has been released from camp, offering them the opportunity to latch on somewhere else prior to the start of the season.
“We wanted to have an extended period of time with trialists and our draft picks that were unsigned to give them a long enough and fair opportunity to make the team,” said General Manager Michael Burns. “Because we made a decision not to pursue signing those players, you want to give them ample time to try to get on with another club, whether that’s in MLS or whether it’s in USL or NASL.”
That leaves the trio of Tristan Bowen, Josh Smith and Tyler Turner still in camp, and Burns said all three will remain with the Revolution through the end of the Desert Diamond Cup this weekend. Smith – the Revs’ 4th-round SuperDraft pick this year – has seen ample time at center back this preseason, while forward Bowen and right back Turner both have MLS experience.
Burns said decisions have yet to be made on that trio, although he anticipates that the Revs will pursue signing at least one – if not more – of the trialists still in camp.
“At the end of this preseason trip we’ll make some decisions on the other trialists and draft picks,” Burns said. “We’ll likely extend offers to one or two of those players.”
Even with multiple trialists and draft picks signing, the Revs would still have both the roster space and budget flexibility to continue adding after the season begins, and that’s been the Revolution’s plan all along, according to Burns.
“We’ll continue to look over the next couple of months to add some other players, as well,” Burns said. “A (transfer) window just opened last week … It’s a constant process.”
