Adding to the Attack: New Signings to Watch for Hartford in 2023
Adding to the Attack: New Signings to Watch for Hartford in 2023
It's been a busy recruiting offseason for Hartford, who have added to their roster with some prolific goalscoring threats. Here are some new players to keep an eye on in 2023.
In the midst of preseason action, Hartford Athletic are just under a month away from their first match of the 2023 season. It’s been a busy offseason for Tab Ramos’s side, with several new signings set to debut in 2023.
This is the first of three articles breaking down every new addition for the Green and Blue, beginning with the attack:
Antoine Hoppenot
The first new addition to the team in the offseason, Hoppenot is a nine-year USL championship veteran who has spent time with FC Cincinnati (2016), Tampa Bay Rowdies (2017-18), Reno 1868 (2017), Louisville City FC (2019-21), and most recently, Detroit City FC (2022). The French forward led the league with 11 assists in 33 appearances for Detroit last season, netting seven goals in the process. Hoppenot’s 80 chances created in 2022 also ranked third in the league.
One of only seven players to have recorded 30 goals and 30 assists in the championship’s history, Hoppenot brings valuable experience to Hartford’s locker room in 2023 with 38 goals and 44 assists in 201 appearances.
Kyle Edwards
A player with senior international experience for Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Edwards scored five goals and assisted two in 12 appearances last season with Houston Dynamo 2 of MLS Next Pro.
His professional career started when he was drafted 86th overall by the Houston Dynamo in Major League Soccer’s SuperDraft in 2020, before spending 2 years with USL Championship side Rio Grande Valley FC, scoring six goals in 23 appearances with the club.
Previously the forward spent time playing for the Houston Dutch Lions of the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) in 2018, before moving to USL League Two’s Brazos Valley Cavalry, where he won the 2019 golden boot with 14 goals in 11 appearances.
Kembo Kibato
Another young, experienced USL player, Kibato comes to Hartford on the back of a Newcomer of the Year award with western conference foes FC Tulsa in 2022.
Originally joining Tulsa on loan from Rio Grande Valley FC following his first season as a professional, the midfielder registered almost 1,500 minutes in 2022, becoming an integral part of Tulsa’s midfield scoring two goals and assisting one.
Kiabato is a product of Toronto FC’s academy. The 22-year-old made his professional debut with the RGV Toros in 2020, scoring one goal in 12 appearances in two years at the club.
Elvis Amoh
One of three acquisitions from the Colorado Springs Switchbacks in the offseason, the 30-year-old striker found the back of the net 13 times for one of the league’s most prolific attacks last season. The Switchbacks scored 64 goals last season en route to the Western Conference Final, the 6th most of any team in 2022.
Amoh entered the league in 2019 after several stints in his home country of Ghana, scoring 8 goals in two seasons with Loudon (2019-20). He then moved out west to Rio Grande Valley Toros (2021), where a breakout season saw him average 0.59 goals per game, scoring 13 goals and breaking RGV’s franchise scoring record in the process.
His offensive production didn’t slow down in Colorado, and the striker comes to Hartford with 34 goals across four seasons in the USL Championship.