State of the New York Cosmos roster: Goalkeepers

The 2015 North American Soccer League season kicks off on Saturday, and the New York Cosmos roster is pretty much set. Head coach Giovanni Savarese commented on the state of the roster when he addressed the media, and while he sounded mostly pleased with the current group, he did mention the need to add one more player to each area of the squad in order to add depth and competition.

On Wednesday, the Cosmos made the first of those additions, securing goalkeeper Keasel Broome ahead of the NASL opener. The deal with the Cosmos is the first professional contract signed by the 6'0" keeper, after playing collegiately at Providence.

Broome was a third round draft pick of the San Jose Earthquakes in the 2015 MLS draft, and was injured early enough in Earthquakes' training camp that he didn't have an opportunity to make much of an impression. The Cosmos coaching staff has seen enough of the player since he joined the club on trial to feel comfortable offering him a contract, but as far as the fans are concerned, he's a bit of an unknown.

Last season, the club were beginning the season with a starting keeper that the fans hadn't seen much of, but he turned in a very impressive 2014 season for the club. Jimmy Maurer didn't miss a beat taking over for the departed Kyle Reynish, earning NASL Best XI honors for his excellent work in goal. Maurer will be back this season, and will almost certainly be a fixture in the lineup as long as he stays healthy.

The newly-signed Broome will provide competition for Maurer's primary backup from last season, Kyle Zobeck. Zobeck joined the club in 2014, and made three starts as well as one substitute appearance for the club during the campaign. He performed well enough when called upon, but he'll be unavailable early on as he's still dealing with an arm injury that's had him out of action for most of the preseason.

Rounding out the depth chart is Brian Holt, who joined the Cosmos from the Philadelphia Union of Major League Soccer. The former Creighton man stands just 5'9" tall, and will likely spend most of the season with Alecko Eskandarian's Cosmos II squad.

Goalkeeping was not a problem with the 2014 New York Cosmos, and with the same starter and primary backup returning, it shouldn't be a problem this season either.