Analysis: Having not played in two months, Christian Volesky parts ways with the Halifax Wanderers

The writing had been on the wall for some time.

It had been over two months since 31-year old American striker Christian Volesky played a minute for the Halifax Wanderers and, on Wednesday, the club officially announced that they had parted ways with the USL veteran. The news comes only seven months after the Wanderers signed Volesky to a deal that carried him through 2024, with a club option for 2025.

Previous to joining the CPL, Volesky was a known contributor for several USL clubs, registering 67 goals and 23 assists across his 10-year career. He had zero goal contributions across seven matches for the Wanderers.

So what went wrong in Halifax for Volesky? Josh Healey of The Wanderers Notebook has your breakdown.

Finding the right profile

After having a rotating cast of young and unproven strikers in 2023, head coach Patrice Gheisar prioritized signing a veteran No. 9 this past off-season.

This partly stems from the fact that of the three strikers recruited last year — with youngsters Théo Collomb, Kosi Nwafornso and Tiago Coimbra joining the fold — only Coimbra remained and the coaching staff felt he needed to be supported as his role grew. The other reason is that Gheisar and his staff felt they didn't have a consistent threat down the middle last year, the bulk of their goals being scored by committee. A true No. 9, it was thought, could help the club push past the goal scoring record they established in 2023.

Enter Christian Volesky, fresh off two seasons at Monterey Bay FC in the USL Championship.

Selected 32nd overall in the 2015 MLS SuperDraft, Volesky was the right profile on paper. He had recorded 18 goals and 10 assists during his time at Monterey Bay, showing his finishing ability, and was a 10-year professional. Volesky was also familiar with midfielder Aidan Daniels, having played together at Colorado Springs Switchbacks.

Speaking to The Wanderers Notebook after signing, Volesky talked about his role as a mentor to Coimbra but stressed his drive to win.

“To me, the most valuable thing is winning,” he said. “In America, I’ve gotten into some tussles with other clubs because I want to win so much. Some people see that as sometimes problematic but when I said that to Patrice, he’s like ‘That’s not a problem.’ He has the same vision. He just wants to win, whether that’s in the USL, CPL or MLS."

Off the rails

Although he was a fit on paper, things quickly started to unravel for Volesky once he arrived in Halifax. The Wanderers training camp opened the end of February at the BMO Soccer Centre before jettisoning off across the continent for pre-season friendlies. However, by the time the first pre-season match started, Volesky was unavailable due to injury. He would miss almost the entirety of pre-season.

Volesky was in the starting XI versus Pacific FC on April 13 and again versus Vancouver on April 18. As could be expected for a player who had missed pre-season, he seemed disconnected from his side's play. But he didn't get another start for the Wanderers; his remaining five appearances all came off the bench. The fact that the club had a historically poor start — the worst in CPL history — meant that any runway Volesky had to find his form evaporated.

With Volesky's role not going to plan, sources told The Wanderers Notebook that Halifax tried to move him to another CPL club around May but the deal fell through. Volesky then sustained a wrist injury, ruling him out of selection until Wednesday's announcement.

Conclusion

With Coimbra battling his own injuries and Volesky falling out of favour, Gheisar and his staff were in the exact same position as last year: the players supposed to be leading the line weren't available to put the ball into the back of the net, be it for very different reasons.

Part of the club's inability to score early in the season can be attributed to injury and lack of familiarity as almost every attacking player had some sort of knock throughout pre-season. Eventually, the Wanderers found their goal scoring touch, with veteran Ryan Telfer filling in admirably as the tip of the spear. Coimbra's recent return from injury also means Gheisar finally has two great options upfront, although both will need their minutes managed carefully given their knocks this season.

Still, Volesky's recruitment can't be viewed as anything but a miss; fixing that mistake, and finding the goals he was supposed to score, cost the Wanderers points.

And there's an interesting trend developing: Volesky is the second No. 9 in as many years to wash out only months into his contract for the Wanderers. Nwafornso left after only eight appearances last year. And Collomb, who had his warts, also wasn't retained after only one season which saw him frequently left aside. If anything, this only highlights the perils of trying to recruit strikers at the CPL level.

Cover Photo Credit: Canadian Premier League