The Union’s trade of Jamiro Monteiro makes room for the team’s rising stars. Now they have to play.

As Union manager Jim Curtin settled in front of the camera for a Zoom call from the Union’s preseason camp on Wednesday, he knew he was about to face some heat.

Everyone who watched the Union trade star midfielder Jamiro Monteiro to San Jose over the weekend knows the move can be a successful one for the team. But in order for that to happen, Curtin has to give Monteiro’s playing time to academy products Jack McGlynn, Quinn Sullivan, and Paxten Aaronson.

“When you lose a player of Jamiro’s quality, we’re not better,” Curtin said. “He’s a guy that meant a ton to the club, won a lot of games with us and certainly now it will be an opportunity for others to fill in.”

All three academy products showed glimpses last year of their potential, from Aaronson and Sullivan’s acrobatic goals to McGlynn’s composed possession. Leon Flach has also improved his contributions to the attack this spring. But he’s still a better defender than attacker, and a balanced midfield needs the punch that the other three players have more of.

“Paxten has taken big strides forward; Jack McGlynn has taken a huge step and is, soccer IQ-wise, one of the best players even though he’s only such a young player,” Curtin said. “Quinn Sullivan just dominated our fitness test … Those guys have certainly shown that their MLS starters and now it’s a matter of them continuing to push for minutes and show the coaching staff just how good they are.”

» READ MORE: Union trade Jamiro Monteiro to the San Jose Earthquakes

Mikael Uhre still hasn’t gotten to Union camp yet, and the team remains powerless to fix the delays in processing Uhre’s visa paperwork. In fact, Uhre might not be here in time to play in the Feb. 26 season opener against Minnesota United.

“A frustrating situation for all — Mikael just wants to be here helping the team; I just want him to get integrated with his teammates,” Curtin said. “But things that are out of our control have made that process take longer.”

Olivier Mbaizo has arrived, after getting some rest in the wake of Cameroon’s Africa Cup of Nations run. He might play in the Union’s final preseason scrimmage, 11 a.m. Friday against Nashville SC in Clearwater, Fla.

» READ MORE: Former Union midfielder Anthony Fontana joins Italy’s Ascoli, and the Union will profit from it

You’re forgiven if you’ve lost count of how many times you’ve read that headline. Yes, Sergio Santos is injured again. This time it’s a foot contusion picked up “a couple days ago,” Curtin said.

“He hasn’t trained and hasn’t tolerated it,” Curtin added.

On top of that, Cory Burke is out of town for a few days as he finalizes getting a green card. So Julián Carranza will be the only available striker, and Curtin might test Carranza in the “Christmas tree” 4-3-2-1 formation the Union used late last season.

“I like to have two strikers up against, especially, big strong centerbacks like Nashville has,” Curtin said. “But yeah, we’ll get a look at it. I think [Carranza] can do it. His skill set, his ability to hold the ball is good, he wins things in the air, his movement can get in between the center backs and give them problems.”

The good news is that once Burke has his green card, the Union will have three open international roster spots. That’s a lot of room for foreign signings, or trade bait for other teams before MLS’s roster compliance deadline on Feb. 25.

The Union unveiled their new primary jersey for the next two years on Wednesday morning. It keeps the traditional navy blue color, and brings back a vertical stripe on the chest for the first time since 2017. This time, the stripe is bright blue — not quite the sky blue of the secondary jerseys, but closer to it — with gold trim, running under the crest the full length of the shirt.

The Bimbo Bakeries sponsorship is in the same gold color as the trim, which de-emphasizes it compared to the more-contrasting colors used for the sponsor’s logo in past years.

This is the last home jersey that will carry the Bimbo logo before the Union’s current deal ends after next year. The sponsorship is still controversial among some fans, since many non-fans only know the word as an insult toward women. But the controversy isn’t as loud as it used to be, in part because time has worn down some of the critics. This is Bimbo’s 11th year as the Union’s main jersey sponsor.

The bakery’s Artesano brand appears on the Union’s alternate jersey, which remains one of the league’s most popular items.