Midseason signee Toby Uzo has provided spark to FC Tucson's attack

FC Tucson’s Tobenna (Toby) Uzo found himself in the middle of an usual, and, perhaps slightly uncomfortable situation last week.

The 26-year-old Nigerian forward signed with FC Tucson on July 1, a midseason acquisition that could have caused a rift among the veterans already on the team who were fighting to work out of a winless June slump. Tensions were compounded by the fact that the club let go of head coach John Galas a few days earlier.

“Sometimes when you’re the new guy in the middle of the year, you can get dirty faces and stuff like that,” Uzo said.

However, the move to add Uzo after his time with FC Arizona — a National Premier Soccer League team based in Gilbert — has seen an immediate payoff for both him and FC Tucson.

“The team here welcomed me as family,” Uzo said. “That just took all the pressure of coming here.”

And it was Uzo’s contributions — a full 90 minutes of playing time and an 84% passing efficiency rating — that proved instrumental in FC Tucson’s 2-1 over Fort Lauderdale CF last week at Kino North Stadium.

This Saturday, Uzo and FC Tucson head to face Chattanooga Red Wolves SC, a club that beat the Men in Black 3-2 in Tucson in mid-June.

At 6-foot-4 and with an athletic, lengthy build, Uzo is the tallest member of FC Tucson’s attacking lineup by a clear two inches. His conditioning is also in peak form as Uzo played a full game in his first appearance with the club and was the only forward to stay in the entire game.

Even in such a short time span of being in Tucson, Uzo has already seen effective strategies that the team deployed under interim head coach Jon Pearlman.

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“When we put pressure on the opponent in transition and force them to make mistakes, we can be really good,” Uzo said.

Uzo comes from a family of soccer players. His older brother, Uchenna Uzo, coaches soccer in the Phoenix area and previously played for Chattanooga in USL League One during the 2020 season.

The two share a unique bond, only separated in age by two years which gave them the opportunity to compete and train with each other growing up. The younger Uzo routinely seeks out guidance from Uchenna as he hopes to prolong his professional career.

Uchenna and other members of the Uzo family were in attendance in Tucson last weekend for Toby’s first appearance with his new club and shared in a special postgame celebration.

“He always gives me good pep talks and says go be a beast,” Uzo said of his brother. “He keeps me believing in myself and I’m just thankful to have someone like him.”

Corner kicks

Manu Ferriol and Charlie Dennis earned USL League One Team of the Week honors. Ferriol scored the team’s game-winning goal in the second half against Fort Lauderdale CF and was assisted by Dennis.

FC Tucson will have back-to-back home matches for just the second time this year starting next weekend. The club hosts New England Revolution II on July 17 and Union Omaha on July 24.