He was a high school soccer star in Lexington. He just made his pro debut in Louisville.
Only a few months ago, Issac Cano took the next step in his budding soccer career.
A former standout goal scorer and state champion at Paul Laurence Dunbar High School in Lexington, Cano signed a USL Academy contract with Louisville City FC of the USL Championship in February.
The contract allows Cano to practice with and play for Louisville City’s senior men’s team, while retaining his amateur status.
Last weekend, Cano took another big leap.
During Saturday night’s friendly match between Louisville City and Atlante FC of Mexico at Louisville’s Lynn Family Stadium, Cano made his senior men’s team debut.
Cano, a forward, started the match and played 62 minutes in front of more than 8,000 fans in a 2-1 Louisville City loss to Atlante, which plays in Mexico’s second division.
Owen Damm — a former Central Kentucky high school boys’ soccer standout at Woodford County — also played for Louisville City in the match.
Following Saturday night’s match, Cano — who as a senior at Dunbar in 2021 scored 34 goals and helped lead the Bulldogs to a state championship — said it was a dream to make his first-team debut.
“This is what I was looking forward to my whole entire life, so to finally get it, my mindset was to go out there and take the opportunity that was presented in front of me,” Cano said.
Cano’s coaches and teammates also sung his praises postmatch.
Louisville City midfielder Carlos Moguel Jr. and head coach Danny Cruz both singled out Cano during their comments following the game.
“Some kids would shy away, but with (Issac) ... he went out and did everything he could,” Moguel said.
“I thought he did a really good job. He’s been excellent in training,” Cruz said. “I didn’t start him for any reason other than he’s done a good job and we felt this would be a good opportunity for him in a good moment.”
The 19-year-old Cano, who is training daily with the Louisville City first team, has been a top player in the club’s youth system.
Prior to signing his USL Academy contract, Cano had already made a mark with Louisville City during preseason matches. This included registering an assist against Major League Soccer team Sporting Kansas City.
“My main goal is to get a first-team contract and go on from there,” Cano said Saturday.
