There’s no skirting the fact that FC Cincinnati’s first season in Major League Soccer has been a difficult journey. 

The Orange and Blue sit last in points in either conference with 17, and they have the worst goal differential at -31; the next-closest in the Western Conference is -12. The leakiest defense in American soccer hasn’t been aided by an offense struggling to score goals. Additionally, there have been off-field issues with players like Fanendo Adi and his driving incident, plus potentially multiple regime changes in one season. Already Alan Koch was fired and replaced by interim coach Yoann Damet, and now Ron Jans looks set to steer the ship.

In short, this has been a year of turbulence. 

But starting with tonight’s game against the Vancouver Whitecaps, FCC have a chance to start turning things around. Seven of their 11 final games are at home in Nippert Stadium, which despite the team’s struggles has been a fortress of mayhem, and a new face in defense could help stop the bleeding.

Saturday’s opponent, the Whitecaps, are struggling even more than FC Cincinnati. 

The Canadian side hasn’t won a game in any competition since late May and has been pulverized on a number of occasions. They found themselves on the losing ends of games like a 6-1 defeat to LAFC, a 3-0 wallop to Sporting KC, and a 4-0 loss to the red-hot New England Revolution. The Whitecaps are definitively in rebuilding mode, and a large amount of roster overhaul has seen this side struggle to net goals. 

There’s also quite a bit of history between these two clubs, with players like Spencer Richey and Kendall Waston having stints in Vancouver.

With three of the next four matches at Nippert Stadium, #FCCincy look to take advantage of being at home. @Alex_Stec_ and @Tommy_G preview the club’s first matchup tomorrow against @WhitecapsFC.#IgniteUnite | #CINvVAN pic.twitter.com/DwkCi7J69H

— FC Cincinnati (@fccincinnati) August 2, 2019

But here’s one reason why Cincinnati fans can be hopeful: new center back Maikel van der Werff.

The Dutch native had barely been in the U.S. for a week when he made a start against one of the league’s most talented teams in Toronto FC, and he played the full 90 minutes impressively. Van der Werff brings a wealth of experience after logging more than 200 professional appearances in the Netherlands. He’s composed on the ball, a threat in the air, and can be creative with his passes — attributes he already displayed against Toronto. 

In that game, van der Werff touched the ball 59 times with an 84-percent passing tally. He won four aerial duels, leading the team, and completed nine long balls — the most of any position player for the Orange and Blue. 

With more experience next to Waston, van der Werff offers a great solution to this defense. 

Date: Saturday, August 3

Kickoff: 8 PM ET

Location: Nippert Stadium, Cincinnati, OH

Teams: FC Cincinnati vs Vancouver Whitecaps

Broadcast: FloFC (local) and ESPN+ (national)