The Jet Returns: Riverhounds re-sign midfielder-winger Junior Etou

Riverhounds SC announced Friday that they have re-signed midfielder/wing back Junior Etou to a two-year deal, plus a third-year team option, bringing back another key contributor to the team’s successes of the past two seasons.

Etou, 30, first signed with the Hounds before the team’s 2023 Players Shield-winning season and emerged as a regular in the lineup on the left side of the defense and the midfield. His deal is pending USL and U.S. Soccer approval.

“Junior is a constant threat to opposing defenses with his pace and engine, and he continues to create dangerous chances for our team on the left side. His voice has grown in the locker room, and he is a fierce competitor on game days. We are fortunate to have back in Pittsburgh,” Bob Lilley, Riverhounds head coach, said.

In two seasons with the Hounds, Etou has appeared in 64 matches, recording three goals and six assists.

He was named the USL Championship Player of the Week in Week 19 last season after a two-goal game against Oakland Roots SC, and his first Hounds goal was the fastest score in team history, coming just 21 seconds into a win over the Charleston Battery on June 10, 2023. Last season, Etou’s play also led to five penalty kicks being awarded to the Hounds — three for fouls committed against him, and two others for handling calls blocking balls played from his foot.

Etou also made his senior international debut in 2024, appearing as a substitute for the Republic of Congo in a 1-0 win over South Sudan in Africa Cup of Nations qualifying.

The Hounds currently have 11 players announced under contract for 2025, and talks are ongoing with additional players from last year’s team and potential new signings for the upcoming season.

Immediate Thoughts on Re-Signing of Junior Etou

This is a good move for the Hounds as they look to maintain continuity with a core group of players that has — for the most part — had plenty of success in the past few seasons.

It’s also an interesting move that they signed a 30 year-old player to a two-year deal with a contract option for a third year.  For the most part, Etou’s been durable, with the exception of late season injury in 2024.

Etou spent much of his early pro career as a central, holding midfielder, but in Pittsburgh, his role evolved during the past two seasons, finding a spot as a reliable two-way player on the wing.

Riverhounds Notebook: ‘The Jet’ Junior Etou has become ‘a problem’ for defenders in newfound role on left wing

Etou began his pro career in France’s Lique2 for Béziers — and then in the USLC with Charlotte and Tampa Bay — where in four seasons scored just one goal and had two assists.

When he came to Pittsburgh in 2023 as a hard-nosed, ball-winning central midfielder, who was essentially inserted as a key veteran at the start of 2023 to replace Danny Griffin, who left for an opportunity with Nashville SC’s MSLNextPro club, Huntsville FC.

After an early season injury, when he broke his arm, then with the emergence of Marc Ybarra and the eventual return of Griffin, Etou’s potential spot in the starting lineup was a bit in jeopardy.

Lilley though, couldn’t keep him out of the lineup, eventually finding a spot for him out wide, where his production peaked in 2024.

“Last year, I started by playing center mid, and when Danny Griffin came back, we had a conversation with the coaches who said ‘I think we can try you on the left wing, left wingback’ and I said why not?” Etou said following a win in May.

“He’s done a good job of learning a new position, or adjusting to it. He knows what we want, and it’s not a surprise,” Lilley added this past year at midseason.

Even from what was a rocky start to the 2024 season — which wasn’t great with Pittsburgh losing its first three — Etou was consistently a bright spot and nuisance for defenders on the left side.

You can go back to the Hounds first win this past season at Phoenix and make a solid argument that he was the most dangerous player on the pitch that night in the desert.

The question about Etou will be can he be reliable and endure the long, 34-match regular season again as he’ll be 31 next year. Between his broken arm early in 2023 and his late season minor leg injury, he’s otherwise been durable with the Hounds through much of his tenure.

There’s little doubt that the veteran is well liked and respected in the locker room both among teammates and the coaching staff — as he earned the nickname ‘Junior the Jet’ from Lilley for his explosiveness — especially when he gets in and around the box.

Now, the Hounds will look to build around what is a pretty solid core of returnees.

There are some other players who have been integral pieces who have expired contracts that it would seem that Lilley and his staff would like to have back.

For now, here’s a look at the 2025 roster and status of (through 12/20/2024) the all 2024 players

Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC 2025 roster (11/26/2024)

1. Danny Griffin MF (signed through 2025)
2. Kenardo Forbes MF (signed through 2025)
3. Robbie Mertz MF (picked up 2025 contract option)
4. Eric Dick GK (picked up 2025 contract option)
5. Jackson Walti  MF (picked up 2025 contract option)
6. Luke Biasi MF / D (picked up 2025 contract option)
7. Sean Suber MF (picked up 2025 contract option)
8. Bradley Sample MF (picked up 2025 contract option)
9. Aidan O’Toole MF (picked up 2025 contract option)
10. Jacob Randolph GK (picked up 2025 contract option)
11. Junior Etou MF (re-signed for 2025-26, contract option for 2027)

Contract Expired

1. Langston Blackstock  F / D
2. Edward Kizza F – Signed with Indy Eleven 
3. Dani Rovira MF / D
4. Patrick Hogan D – Signed with Indy Eleven 
5. Illal Osumanu D
6. EJ Johnson  F  (was on one-year deal without contract option)
7. Gabriel Perrotta GK (was on one-year deal without contract option)

Any coach in their right mind would want this guy to lead their back line. An absolute animal defender, attacker of set pieces and just all around talented CB. An even better teammate. Indy got a GREAT one. Deserved opportunity Pat, congrats brotha. Go dominate 2025 👊 https://t.co/Q9jQGYMIRh

— Eric Dick (@DaBrickWall00) December 12, 2024

Hounds Opted Not To Pick Up Contract Option

1. Babacar Diene  F
2. Kazaiah Sterling F
3. Nate Dragisich MF
4. Jake Kent-Loop D

Others

Pablo Linzoain, a senior high school student at Fox Chapel, was under USL Academy Contract (through the end of this season), which expired at the end of the 2024 season.