Head Coach: Enis Dokovic
Venue: Romeo Stadium
2024 Regular Season: 11W-3D-6L, 36 pts, finished 2nd in the NISA Eastern Conference, 2024 NISA Playoffs: Lost in semifinals to Irvine Zeta FC
2024 Season Recap:
The Michigan Stars FC completed its fifth season in the NISA league, finishing second in the NISA Eastern Conference with 36 points. The Stars lost in the 2023 NISA Championship final to Flower City Union and retooled their roster to go for another run to the NISA Championship final after winning the title in the 2022 season. Last offseason, the Stars brought back key players such as Leon Maric, Andres Chalbaud, Tatenda Mkuruva, Niels Lellouch, and Elias McCloud. The club also added new players like Sebastian Capozucchi, Sacko Konate, Daniel Wright, and Praise Maduekwe. The Stars began their season in the 2024 U.S. Open Cup, defeating Steel City FC 1-0 in the opening round. The Stars won their second-round matchup, defeating MLS NEXT Pro side Minnesota United 2 2-0 before falling in the third round, 1-0, to rival Detroit City FC. The Stars got off to a good start in NISA league play, winning its opening match 3-2 against the Savannah Clovers FC. Michigan won four out of its first five matches, with their only loss on the road to Georgia FC on May 11. After that defeat, the Stars won three consecutive matches against Club de Lyon FC twice and Georgia FC before falling to the Maryland Bobcats FC at home on June 7. The Stars would go on a five-match winless streak, which included their shocking 1-0 defeat in the first round of the 2024 NISA Independent Cup to Inter Detroit of the Midwest Premier League. The Stars form also dipped during that span, dealing with injuries and the departures of Niels Lellouch, Hunter Olson, Colin Stripling, Steven Juncaj, and Braydon Walker midseason. Juncaj, Olson, and Stripling moved to Slovenia to play for NS Mura shortly after Stars owner George Juncaj bought the club. The Stars brought back some familiar faces to fill holes in its roster with the return of Anthony Bowie, Kotaru “Kota” Umeda, and Yakov Shmelev. The Stars still couldn’t turn their form around to winning ways and basically finished the second half of the season winless in their final eight regular season matches, getting just three draws and suffering five defeats. The Stars also had four postponed matches, but the club was later awarded four forfeit wins by the league (Savannah twice, Club de Lyon, and Georgia FC). The Stars didn’t have to play those forfeited matches, but the extra time off also affected their form down the stretch entering the 2024 NISA playoffs. Leon Maric finished the regular season as the club’s top goalscorer with seven goals. In the semifinal round of the 2024 NISA playoffs, the Stars fell 3-0 to Irvine Zeta FC at Championship Stadium and saw their season end just short of another NISA championship final appearance, which would have been for the third straight year.
Offseason Updates
This offseason has been another quiet one for the Michigan Stars, even though that is the case for many NISA clubs lately around this time of year. Remember, last year, there were rumors that the Stars were planning to leave NISA for another league after the 2023 season but returned for the 2024 season. The Stars didn’t post much on their social media pages last offseason until this past January, when they announced their return to NISA, player tryouts, and began selling season tickets. Just like last offseason, this time around, the Stars haven’t posted anything on social media since their playoff loss to Irvine Zeta FC in October or announced any roster moves. The club has posted stories on their Instagram page on NS Mura and some former Stars players who are involved in action in Europe. In case you’re curious, NS Mura is on their winter break and sits 7th in the table in the Prva Liga in Slovenia. According to transfermarkt.us, Steven Juncaj has made 11 appearances for NS Mura, scoring one goal, Hunter Olson has made two appearances with one goal, while Colin Stripling has yet to make his debut. Some people have wondered on social media if Stars owner George Juncaj will continue using his financial resources to run the NISA club and NS Mura in 2025. When the announcement was made this past summer, the Stars mentioned on their Instagram page that the club and NS Mura would work together to offer Americans an opportunity to play professionally in Europe and create a partnership between Michigan and NS Mura. It will be interesting to see if more Stars players go to NS Mura during the January transfer window next month. Besides that, Justin Jun and Sacko Konate joined Mountain Premier League side Peak XI FC shortly after the NISA season ended and helped the club win last month’s MPL Championship. Jun and Konate were recently named to the NISA Nation Best XI for the 2024 West regional final. We’ll have to wait another month to see what the Michigan Stars have planned for 2025.
I’ll keep you posted if any more news develops regarding the Michigan Stars FC during the offseason. What are your thoughts on Michigan Stars FC’s 2024 season in NISA? Let me know in the comments section below. Next week I’ll recap Irvine Zeta FC’s 2024 season in NISA.
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