Union Omaha Signs Two New Defenders

Union Omaha fans received a double dose of Tuesday magic, as the club announced the signing of two defenders – Luca Mastrantonio and Marco Milanese. While their hometowns in Italy are separated by about 112 miles, their arrival in Omaha involved drastically different paths.

Defender Luca Mastrantonio

Luca Mastrantonio enters his third year of USL League One action, spending both prior years with FC Tucson. The club finds itself in a different environment, opting to relegate themselves to USL League Two. Mastrantonio, however, will remain in the comforts of League One environments, albeit wearing different colors. In his two years at FC Tucson, Mastrantonio left a lasting impression.

In 2021, Mastrantonio played in 18 matches, starting in 14 of them. Both of his goals that season were headers and he led the club in conversion percentage. His 2022 season turned a lot of heads, as well. Replacing high profile departures on the backline, Mastrantonio took full advantage of his opportunity to lead his team from the backline. By the end of the season, Mastrantonio led his team in over a dozen categories including appearances, clearances, blocks, tackles, aerial duels, and aerial duels won. He even went so far as to lead the entire league in interceptions and duels won (%). From 2021 to 2022, his number of passes more than doubled, his accuracy from 80.6% to 86%, managed to keep his total yellow card accumulation across both years to 10 cards, and never earned a red card.

	MP	Starts	Goals	Pass	Pass Acc %	Long Pass	Long Pass %	Cl	Bl	Int	YC
2021	18	14	2	670	80.6	154	51.9	63	10	28	4
2022	30	30	2	1,666	86	340	59.7	114	23	51	6

In Union Omaha’s press release, Head Coach Dominic Casciato emphasized his lasting effect on FC Tucson and what he brings to the Owls. “Luca is a player that has been an important piece of FC Tucson’s backline for the past couple of seasons,” Union Omaha Head Coach Dominic Casciato said. “He’s a hard-nosed defender that loves to compete, and I’m looking forward to adding his desire to win and professionalism to our locker room.”

Club General Manager Peter Marlette echoed Casciato’s sentiments in the press release, as well. “Luca has proven over the last two seasons that he is a great player in this league,” Union Omaha General Manager Peter Marlette said. “Being able to sign a guy who started every possible match last season was a huge opportunity for us, and I’m glad we were able to get it done. I know the fans will love what Luca brings to the team and community.”

Mastrantonio issued an enthusiastic quote affirming his decision to join the club. “I can’t wait to join this great club with such amazing fans,” Mastrantonio said. “The winning culture in Omaha has always been outstanding, and it was a no-brainer for me to join this team. I am sure we are going to accomplish great things this year together.”

Fellow countrymen and defender Marco Milanese will join Mastrantonio on the backline and provide defensive efforts for the Owls, as well. Outside of the veterans already signed to the club, these two signings mark the first inclusions of players new to the club.

Defender Marco Milanese

Before playing in the United States, Milanese spent time in the U19 programs for Serie A clubs Napoli and Torino. Once in the States, Milanese spent time at both University of Akron and University of North Carolina – Greensboro. After amassing over 80 appearances between the schools, competing in the NCAA tournament, and collecting individual accolades, Milanese took his talents to USL League Two club Ocean City Nor’easters, where he spent time with a familiar face: newly hired Assistant Coach & Head of Scouting Kevin Nuss, who was the Head Coach at the club.

Head Coach Dominic Casciato praised the new defender in the club’s press release. “Marco is a cultured defender that can fill a couple of different positions on our backline,” Union Omaha Head Coach Dominic Casciato said. “He joins us off the back of a stellar college career at the University of Akron and UNC-Greensboro and arrives in Omaha with great pedigree having played for Napoli in the UEFA Youth League during his formative years.”

General Manager Peter Marlette offered up his own assessment of Milanese. “Marco is a versatile player with a ton of upside as a professional,” Union Omaha General Manager Peter Marlette said. “He’s exactly the type of signing we hope to make out of the college game, and I’m really excited for what he’ll bring to us in Omaha this season.”

In the same press release, Milanese sounded ready to hit the ground running. “I am very excited to join this fantastic club and its amazing fans,” Milanese said. “Looking forward to giving everything I have on the field to make this club successful.”

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