Listen to an audio version of the above video here.
York United FC President and General Manager Angus McNab sat down with CanPL.ca Virtual Newsroom hosts Marty Thompson and Charlie O’Connor-Clarke for an in-depth review of York United FC’s squad.
Last week, York signed Dominick Zator and Noah Verhoeven from Cavalry FC and Pacific FC, respectively, with the former being sent out on loan to Swedish second-tier side Vasalunds IF. The pair completed York’s 23-player roster for the 2021 Canadian Premier League season – the first club to do so.
McNab addressed the Zator deal, the addition of Eva Havaris at the club’s executive level, and detailed York’s recruitment policy, specifically with international players.
RELATED READING: CPL off-season roster tracker: Who’s in and who’s out for 2021?
“We want Dom and wish him every success in his loan move. He’s a good footballer, people will watch him and be interested in him,” McNab said of the loan and potential interest from other clubs in Europe.
“He has gone out of his comfort zone and when you’re positioning yourself to (the Canadian) national team you’re trying to show you can adapt and thrive.”
McNab also addressed criticism of his squad and the high turnover between 2020 and 2021 – York is set to bring back just nine players from their Island Games squad.
“If you do the same things, how can you expect different results? We needed change and volatility. People have said our team is stacked up top and in the midfield. That classic football saying of ‘you can’t buy a goal,’ well, we’ve got options to rectify that,” McNab stated.
York has added five new internationals for 2021, four of whom are South American, including Colombian midfielder Sebastian Gutierrez.
RELATED READING: York United’s Dominick Zator loaned to Swedish side Vasalunds IF
“We were looking at a few fringe first-team players and unfortunately with the pandemic, injuries, and fixture congestion, those players saw the field and absolutely knocked out of the park and the clubs re-signed,” McNab explained.
“But that allowed us to build some great relationships… so we could identify underrated talents like Sebastian – top goalscorer for his club in 2019 and COVID came at the worst possible time. With that digging on the ground, it lets you learn (about) the person, too. When I heard the emotion at the other end of the phone of a player that’s delighted to play for your club, you know you’ve done right.”
All but one of the club’s internationals are on multi-year deals, something that’s by design for McNab’s team.
“If we look at the overall football ecosystem, and transfer revenue, these guys may love the country and seek permanent residency. If they do that, they suddenly become domestics within the MLS ecosystem. And that gives us more roots to sale,” McNab said.
“If you look to England, we can show someone who’s come settled, spoken English, and could be a target for Championship, League One, League Two or even Premier League clubs.”
