Curious Indy Eleven lineup for season opener

Indy Eleven at San Francisco Deltas at Kezar Stadium. Photo: Robert Edwards-KLC fotos.

Indy Eleven went to California for their NASL season opener against San Francisco Deltas on Saturday night. Indy started their campaign similarly to the way they had last year, with a point on the road. The Eleven drew the Deltas 1-1 with a solid effort and newcomer Tanner Thompson bagging his first-ever professional goal… but let’s talk about the lineup that no one saw coming.

2016 had some interesting swaps at times, but Indy Eleven head coach Tim Hankinson eventually settled on a group that he felt gave Indy the best chances to win. Lineup controversies were few and far between as Indy came down the stretch last year. Some partnerships were solidified. Some seemed to be set in stone. None of those partnerships were more prominent than the striking duo of Justin Braun and Eamon Zayed. The pair combined for 23 goals and 15 assists in their first season with Indy. The week one lineup saw the free-running Braun return to a familiar role and Zayed with a front row seat on the pine.

There didn’t seem to be health or injury concerns for Zayed and his scratch from the starting 11 seemed to be due to some other factor. The aforementioned Tanner Thompson started in Zayed’s place. This is what coach Hankinson had to say on local radio station 1070 the Fan in an interview yesterday morning:

¨You’re going to see Tanner start. We are going to make some adjustments. We really liked the energy that he brought in the Louisville game. And you know this is about performance. It´s not about who you were last year. It´s about who you are now and what you are ready to bring.¨

Zayed holds Indy Eleven records for most goals in a game with three (twice) and goals in a season with 15. He started 32 times for the boys in blue during 2016. His minutes were second only to Nemanja Vukovic.

Injuries are already a problem for Indy

The injury bug has already bitten Indy pretty hard and that shallow roster starts to force creative adjustments. Indy Eleven captain Colin Falvey is still not fully recovered from an offseason surgery for a sports hernia, but his go-to replacement is Lovel Palmer and Palmer did not make last night’s squad due to his own strained adductor. Hankinson had only five subs at his disposal including goalkeeper sub Keith Cardona.

Testing the depth chart at center back is not a consistent recipe for success, but curious decision number two panned out for Hankinson in the opening match. Daniel Keller is the lone Indiana native on the squad and he stepped into a role he has seen before in the middle of defense. This is Keller’s third season with Indy and his Swiss Army utility role has benefited Indiana’s team before. But why was Anthony Manning left on the bench?

Manning is a pro who was taken in the 2015 MLS SuperDraft. The Indy Eleven website lists Manning as a ¨towering center back.” Keller is listed as a midfielder. This is not the stuff of scandal, but it provides for the unpredictable nature of yesterday´s roster selections. They were a surprise to everyone I spoke with last night. With fewer players to choose from, one might assume lineups might be easier to predict.

The clearest lesson to learn from all of this is that Hankinson is in charge and players must impress him. There are 20 players on the official team roster, but Hankinson recently told Soc Takes “that may change based on either injury or performance.¨

Zayed came on in the 77th.

You can follow Soc Takes and Aaron on Twitter @SocTakes and @AGunyon.