What to Expect From Patrick Vieira’s Men In 2017

Background

NYCFC had high expectations coming into the 2015 MLS season having signed world class players including David Villa and Frank Lampard before the team had even stepped foot on a pitch together. After a rough start to the season NYCFC realized they needed a player to create the opportunities for David Villa, a midfield maestro if you will, and who better to bring in than “Il Maestro” himself, Andrea Pirlo. Even with 3 great veterans the team failed to make the playoffs. Perhaps the expectations were too high for Jason Kreis who had already won an MLS Cup when he was managing Real Salt Lake in 2009. Failing to reach the MLS playoffs in the 2015 MLS season resulted in the firing of Jason Kreis and the hiring of Arsenal legend Patrick Vieira.

Patrick Vieira was previously managing the Manchester City reserve team before coming to America and working with NYCFC. Most people loved the appointment of Vieira, another big name to add to the club’s history. However, quite a few people around the league had their doubts with good reason. Prior to Patrick Vieira, there is no real evidence of a European manager coming to America and playing football the way it is played in Europe. Some of the reason is due to the fact that MLS players don’t have the ability to play how Europeans play, they’re simply not talented enough. A lot of players in MLS rely on their physical strength and pace rather than talent on the ball, thus making it hard for them to play nice controlled build up play starting from the back. This was not the case with the 2016 Patrick Vieira side. Patrick Vieira began training with his new club in the cold winter months of New York City in January of 2016 to get his team prepared for the upcoming season which started in March.

Tactics