With New York City FC a few short days away from kicking off their 2026 Major League Soccer season, this feels like a good time to revisit the state of the team’s depth chart.
We first did this exercise in mid-January as the club began preseason preparations. Back then, Kai Trewin had not yet joined, Julián Fernández and Mitja IleniÄŤ were still on the roster prior to being loaned out, and we weren’t sure who Pascal Jansen would prefer to play at striker while operating without the injured Alonso MartĂnez.
Preseason came and went, and resulted in some notable modifications and clarifications across the squad. If you want to compare how our depth chart looked in January, you can find the original version here.
The biggest changes are the player comings and goings, plus the positions at which we chose to list a few key players, Nico Fernández Mercau and Kevin O’Toole. Nico is no longer counted as a midfielder since the Designated Player looks set to function as a center-forward, at least until a new signing arrives — or until one of Talles Magno or Seymour Reid supplants him as Jansen’s preferred choice.
O’Toole, meanwhile, gets added as a depth option in the defensive midfield, a role he filled for the majority of this preseason while Aiden O’Neill and Jonny Shore were injured.
As a reminder, we color-code each player on our version of the NYCFC depth chart depending on their level of past contribution at a given position at the MLS level. We only include players signed to a contract with the club – in two cases, that includes players signed to NYCFC II of MLS Next Pro, midfielder Peter Molinari and attacker Sebastiano Musu.
Matthew Mangam
This depth chart doesn’t include players still under contract with NYCFC but loaned out to other clubs, like IleniÄŤ, Fernández, James Sands, or Jovan Mijatović. We also sort the three injured members of the squad out with long-term issues – Malachi Jones, AndrĂ©s Perea, and Alonso MartĂnez – into their own separate bucket, pending their returns to health.
Below, you can look over our updated 33-player depth chart, then read a brief rundown of how each position group across the roster is shaping up as the season starts.
New York City FC | 2026 Depth Chart
Forwards (7)
Nico Fernández Mercau; Seymour Reid; Hannes Wolf; AgustĂn Ojeda; Talles Magno; Sebastiano Musu; Zidane Yañez
We had Moussa Sylla all set to climb to the very top of that group of center-forward options, but his medical in Manchester had other ideas.
Instead of a high-priced No 9 arriving, preseason camp saw Nico Fernández Mercau emerge as the likeliest starter up top for Pascal Jansen, even if Nico doesn’t play in that spot like a true striker. Talles Magno got one start at the 9 in Austin prior to picking up an injury that’s kept him out of the rest of the preseason, but Pascal Jansen sounded very willing to try him at that position, a position which Talles told Jansen he wanted to play.
Out wide, it seems Jansen has settled on starting Hannes Wolf on the left and AgustĂn Ojeda on the right, with Ojeda a potential option on either wing, based on his usage last season and during preseason. Loaning out Julián Fernández might open up more minutes for the soon-to-be 18-year-old Máximo Carrizo, who can play as a No 10 or on the right.
Striker remains the big uncertainty and point of potential weakness, though with Nico, Talles, and Reid the proverbial “next men up” at the position until the depth chart changes again.
John Baney
Midfielders (9)
Maxi Moralez; Keaton Parks; Aiden O’Neill; Jonny Shore; Máximo Carrizo; Cooper Flax; Kevin Pierre; Jacob Arroyave; Peter Molinari
Keaton Parks got through preseason and appears back in good health, while Aiden O’Neill and Jonny Shore dealt with injuries and enter Matchday 1 as slight question marks, though, while also looking closer to making returns to full availability.
Maxi Moralez remains entrenched at the No 10 spot, though with Carrizo and, potentially, Fernández Mercau at the ready to slot into that role should age, ineffectiveness, or injuries limit Maxi’s availability.
We don’t list them as true midfielders, but on our depth chart, you’ll see we have both Kevin O’Toole and Kai Trewin included among the team’s defensive midfield options. O’Toole played that role this preseason while O’Neill and Shore were on the mend, and might be in that spot again at the very start of the season.
Getting Andrés Perea back would round out what remains the deepest part of the squad for New York City FC, given they also added 2026 MLS SuperDraft pick Kevin Pierre to the defensive midfield mix.
They have lots of quality choices in the center of the pitch, it will all come down to availability and tactical choices from Jansen as to how that central midfield looks game to game.
Oliver Strand
Defenders (10)
Thiago Martins; Raul Gustavo; Tayvon Gray; Kevin O’Toole; Kai Trewin; Strahinja Tanasijević; Nico Cavallo; Drew Baiera; Max Murray; Kamran Acito
In both of his preseason appearances, Kai Trewin had the task of replacing Justin Haak at left-center-back, and that seems to be where Jansen likes his new versatile Australian, at least for now.
Trewin’s arrival might mean more time for Raul Gustavo as a left-back who tucks inside, the so-called “elbow” back role that grew in popularity in global soccer in the early 2020s. The real mystery is how and if Jansen will fit all three of Trewin, Raul Gustavo, and Kevin O’Toole on the field at the same time. Given the positional flexibility offered by all three players, that might be a good and easily solved problem for Pascal Jansen to have.
The right side of the NYCFC defense is locked down by club captain Thiago Martins at right-center-back, and Tayvon Gray at right-back. There’s more depth at center-back this season, given Strahinja Tanasijević and Max Murray remain, and given that Kamran Acito got a taste of MLS pace during the preseason against Kansas City at Coachella, a match in which he actually played left-back.
The fullback depth isn’t quite as deep as at CB, but Drew Baiera is here to take on the loaned-out Mitja IleniÄŤ’s minutes at right-back, while Nico Cavallo got a lot of run at left-back during preseason when O’Toole played in the midfield.
The defense was consistently NYCFC’s strength over the course of the 2025 season, and the club will need strong first full seasons in MLS out of Raul Gustavo and Kai Trewin if elite goal prevention is once again going to be a core part of the 2026 team’s identity.
Mark Radigan
Goalkeepers (4)
Matt Freese; Tomás Romero; Greg Ranjitsingh; Mac Learned
Still the most settled position group on the team, with nothing happening during preseason to change that. Matt Freese is aiming to cement his spot as starting goalkeeper for the United States men’s national team at this summer’s FIFA World Cup, and he’d probably like to actually win MLS Goalkeeper of the Year after only placing in the Top 3 for his efforts during the 2025 season and being snubbed entirely by voters for his breakout 2024 season.
Romero and Ranjitsingh are holdovers in the No 2 and No 3 goalkeeper roles, while Mac Learned is newly signed to the MLS squad this season after impressing for NYCFC II last year. Goalkeeper is one position New York City does not need to worry too much about, assuming Freese can hold his elite level and not be thrown off course by the World Cup competition pressure.
John Baney
