UTICA CITY SIGNS RICARDO DIEGUES AND JAMES TOGBAH; RE-SIGN BO JELOVAC

Utica, N.Y. – Utica City FC announced today that the club has signed forward Ricardo Diegues, defender James Togbah and re-signed captain Bo Jelovac. Per team and league policies, the terms of the deals were not disclosed.

“We viewed the MASL free agency period as a chance to aggressively recruit some key players who we feel can be assets in our system,” said general manager Tommy Tanner. “Diegues has been on our radar for several seasons and we are excited to have him commit to our team early. Togbah is an attacking type defender who proved in his second season that he can score goals in our league as well as defend. Jelovac is the cornerstone of our roster and his leadership is essential in our pursuit of a championship.”

Jelovac, 31, is coming off a career season where he totaled 32 points (20-12-32) in 20 games with Utica City. The captain has suited up in 144 career games between the MASL and MISL, recording 76 goals and 66 assists. The Belgrade, Serbia native led Utica to a playoff berth in their first season and will lead youth camps at the Adirondack Bank Center throughout the summer.

Diegues, 29, spent last season with the Florida Tropics where he recorded 28 points (24-4-28) in 19 games. The forward has played the last four seasons in the MASL split between Florida and the Brownsville Barracudas, appearing in 67 games and racking up 113 points (79-34-113).

A native of Rio de Janiero, Brazil, Diegues has an extensive background. Ricardo played collegiate soccer for UT-Brownsville in the NAIA. At UTB, Ricardo scored 64 goals and had 20 assists in just 57 games over his three years with the school. He was the national tournament MVP and scored 34 goals and 11 assists in his senior year. 

Togbah, 24, had a breakout season with the Kansas City Comets last year, compiling 26 points (18-8-26) and 12 blocked shots in 23 games. In 35 career MASL games, the defender has 28 points (19-9-28) and 18 blocks in 35 games.

A native of Monrovia, Liberia, Togbah attended high school at Beech Sr. High School in Hendersonville, Tennessee before heading to college at Eastern Florida State College. Togbah played two years at Eastern Florida State before joining FC Wichita. At FC Wichita, he became one of the top outside backs in the NPSL during 2016 and was recognized with All-Conference and Defensive Player of the Year honors, as well as an invitation to the 2017 NPSL All-Star Combine in Los Angeles.

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