El Paso Locomotive FC set for season-opening match at home vs. Hartford

EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) – After an offseason full of change, El Paso Locomotive FC will put its new-look roster on display for the first time on Saturday in the 2024 season opener, as Los Locos play host to Hartford Athletic on Saturday at 7 p.m.

15 new players adorn the roster for second-year head coach and technical director Brian Clarhaut. After years of continuity, just one player (Yuma) remains from El Paso’s first season as a USL Championship club in 2019.

Clarhaut did what he said he would do in his first season: He got El Paso back to the playoffs. Now, with a roster built the way he wants it, the expectation is for Locomotive FC to compete for more than just a playoff spot.

For the third year in a row, El Paso will have to navigate a very difficult start to its 2024 season, with five games in 14 days (Saturday, Wednesday, Saturday, Wednesday, Saturday) to open the new campaign.

It’s the same type of schedule that has frustrated Locomotive FC head coaches in the past, but with more depth on the roster than last year, Clarhaut is hopeful that El Paso will be able to weather the start a bit better than it did a year ago, when Los Locos started the season 0-3 in the first seven days.

“I’m not happy about it. It’s a hard demand to put on players this early in the season. Depth is depth when guys are available, when visas are complete, when guys aren’t on national team duty,” Clarhaut said. “We’ll have to see at any given point what our depth of availability is. It’s not ideal the first three games, but we’re going to give them hell and we’re at home at least, so that’s what it’s about.”

After the season opener vs. Hartford, El Paso will host Monterey Bay on March 13, Louisville City on March 16, FC Juarez on March 20 and then travel to play Las Vegas Lights on March 23, before a two-week break in games.

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