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Post by beauchenecoach on Dec 19, 2014 19:33:06 GMT -6
Love the move to NYFC... Hate NYFC... Love Kreis and Patrick!
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warrior16
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Post by warrior16 on Jan 1, 2015 0:51:04 GMT -6
This makes MLS look like a Mickey Mouse league:
www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/2014/12/31/new-york-city-fc-confirm-extension-frank-lampards-contract-manchester-city
It seems Frank Lampard will not be returning to NYCFC until the EPL season ends in late May, and since by then he will be a 37 year-old exhausted from a long EPL campaign that was supposedly a loan, he won't be able to help the club until late June at the earliest. MLS and NYCFC fans should be outraged at this, since this shows a complete lack of respect for the club and all of MLS.
What a disastrous start for a franchise that was created out of nothing: they play in the outfield of an MLB stadium with no definite plan for a stadium of their own yet, their kits are just the Adidas version of Man City's kits with no original identity of their own, and now arguably their biggest star won't even be there for the start of the inaugural season. If Man City was the team that owned Frank's contract and paid his wages and NYCFC was the team he was supposedly on loan to, this wouldn't be a problem, but since the teams' roles are switched, this is unacceptable. I thought this might happen ever since they kept extending his loan, which was originally supposed to finish at the end of December. At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if Lampard retires in May after the EPL season, making his purchase the worst in soccer history at any level. Even if he actually comes to MLS, I see him lasting two seasons at most, maybe even just one.
Is it impossible to take NYCFC seriously at this point, since their owners in Manchester obviously do not. They see NYCFC as nothing but a farm team. The least Man City could do is offer to pay Frank's wages and give NYCFC a good youngster to fill his spot, but that won't happen. The only way for NYCFC to save any credibility at this point would be to sell Frank's contract and get another DP who actually wants to play here, since Lampard obviously does not. Actions speak louder than words, and these actions by City Football Group tell me all I need to know about them. Many fans are already demanding refunds for season tickets, and legally they have very legitimate claims of false advertisement. Even Chivas USA didn't shoot itself in the foot this early on. NYCFC haven't even kicked off yet, and they will already be the most hated club in MLS, which is unfair for the players and coaches who honestly want to be there.
On the bright side, this could potentially be great for Patrick. With Lampard out for at least the first three months, Kreis will likely have to play David Villa in a more conservative role, which could open up lots of playing time for Patrick.
There are even rumors Don Garber is so outraged that he is planning on immediately buying back NYCFC from City Football Group to sell it to owners who won't treat it like a farm club. As much as I would love that, I don't see it happening. What an embarrassment for the league, and I feel very bad for Jason Kreis and Claudio Reyna for having to deal with the backlash.
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warrior16
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Post by warrior16 on Jan 1, 2015 1:30:07 GMT -6
There are even rumors coming out now (from Grant Wahl, arguably the best American soccer reporter) that Lampard never even actually signed a contract with MLS and that City Football Group secretly arranged a deal where Lampard would spend his entire season in England thanks to a break clause they activated yesterday. If that is true, then this could potentially be one of the biggest scandals in the history of sports. Man City and NYCFC are supposedly sister clubs, but if this is true, then Man City is working behind NYCFC'S back detrimentally with the intention of getting around FIFA Fair Play guidelines.
From interviews with Kreis and the extensive marketing campaign by NYCFC featuring Lampard, it's obvious on the MLS end that NYCFC expected Lampard to return to MLS this month to prepare for training. He is even listed as a player on the official NYCFC site. The only conclusion I can make from this situation is that City Football Group, which owns both clubs, arranged the secret deal that Lampard's contact with Man City would become permanent and his supposed obligations to NYCFC would not be honored. If this is true, than what CFG has done is nothing short of false advertising and they should be swiftly reprimanded and taken to court. They promised NYCFC fans (and sold 11K season tickets in doing so) a product it seems they never had any intention of providing. That may be good business on their part, but it is unethical and disgusting. MLS should strip them of ownership immediately if this is true.
Here is a link to the article on the matter, which I, for one, find very believable:
www.vavel.com/en-us/soccer/431372-more-questions-than-answers-in-frank-lampard-saga.html
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Post by happyjack on Jan 2, 2015 22:08:09 GMT -6
So if I'm understanding what you are saying, without Lampard NYCFC has no chance to compete, and would not have sold any season tickets. I think both of these are a big stretch...and I know it is MLS, a lower tier professional league where aging players go to earn a few extra million as designated players, but a 37 year old to be one of your designated players? Seriously? Sounds like when Robbie Fowler went to play down under and was living on reputation. And I don't know why he'd be exhausted, seeing as he has yet to play a full game...great off the bench for 30 or less...and if he never signed a contract, how could there be a secret deal?
And as long as MLS continues to play through international dates and World Cup, I can't take them seriously as anything but a farm league where youngsters try to get experience and aging players come to pad their pockets. This faux-indignation by Garber sounds like a publicity ploy.
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warrior16
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Post by warrior16 on Jan 3, 2015 0:02:31 GMT -6
So if I'm understanding what you are saying, without Lampard NYCFC has no chance to compete, and would not have sold any season tickets. I think both of these are a big stretch...and I know it is MLS, a lower tier professional league where aging players go to earn a few extra million as designated players, but a 37 year old to be one of your designated players? Seriously? Sounds like when Robbie Fowler went to play down under and was living on reputation. And I don't know why he'd be exhausted, seeing as he has yet to play a full game...great off the bench for 30 or less...and if he never signed a contract, how could there be a secret deal? And as long as MLS continues to play through international dates and World Cup, I can't take them seriously as anything but a farm league where youngsters try to get experience and aging players come to pad their pockets. This faux-indignation by Garber sounds like a publicity ploy.
I think NYCFC would be a decent MLS team even without Lampard, especially in the much weaker Eastern Conference. They will have David Villa after all, and he's got a few good years left in him. The issue is that someone in this whole arrangement is clearly lying, whether it's City Football Group lying to NYCFC, NYCFC lying to its fans, or MLS lying to NYCFC, or even some combination of these three. Whatever is going on, the MLS and its fans come out as major losers.
Lampard was heavily marketed as being the "main man" for NYCFC and there was even a massive billboard of him in Times Square encouraging people to buy season tickets. Images have even come out of Lampard's image being on the season tickets packages themselves (like all teams in all sports do), so from an advertising standpoint, it's clear Lampard is being used as a posterboy, which makes sense. He's the biggest name, and just the thought of him and David Villa being there will sell lots of seats.
From every interview and press conference I've seen with NYCFC in the last few months, they've always insisted Lampard would come back from his "loan" in January and return for training. On NYCFC's official site, Lampard is listed as an NYCFC player since 7/24/14 who is on loan to Man City, so on their end it's clear they think he's their man. On City's end, however, it seems Lampard never actually signed with NYCFC and he was a Man City player the entire time. The plan was to sign him until the mid-point of the EPL season (December 31), then release him to go back to New York for training. However, Lampard exceeded their expectations and ended up becoming a valuable asset in their title race with Chelsea, so they petitioned the EPL to activate a break clause in his contract, and they signed him through the end of the EPL season, cutting NYCFC out of the process. City Football Group ultimately pulls the strings for both clubs, and CFG decided it was better to keep Lampard in Manchester. That wouldn't be a problem if they would have just announced that's what they were doing, instead they strung NYCFC fans (and most likely the club itself) along and baited them with a promise they had no intent on keeping as soon as Lampard proved he is still actually a good player.
When you watch the press conference where NYCFC confirms Lampard is playing with Man City through May, you can tell Kreis and Cluadio Reyna are very angry inside by reading their body language, even if their statements are calm and collected. Their lips, upper bodies, and hands are very tense when they talk, which is a very straightforward sign of frustration. I doubt they would be frustrated if they had known this would happen from the beginning. They can't speak their minds because the same people who pay them and own their club are the ones who made the decision, but they are very frustrated.
This whole debacle just reinforces why this franchise never should have been created in the first place. There were no people demanding for a second club in New York. It was just created out of nothing, and a foreign group that owns a major world club was allowed to have majority ownership. That was a huge mistake. Several MLS clubs are partnered with other clubs, but NYCFC is the only MLS club to be effectively owned by another club. It compromises the entire business structure of the league to allow such clubs to exist. Even Chivas USA (which was owned by Chivas Guadalajara) never did anything like this to damage the independence of the league.
I agree with you that MLS should do a better job of scheduling outside of FIFA dates (it can't be that hard), but I am a firm believer that if we ever want the USA to have a successful men's national team, we need MLS to be strong, so I will always support the league. Our support of MLS is more important now than ever, as the league is in a crucial stage of its development. It isn't where we need it to be yet, of course, but it is miles better than where it was even 10 years ago, and it gets better every year. We need more designated players like Robbie Keane, Kaka, and Jermaine Jones, and less designated players like Jermaine Defoe and Lampard. MLS has gotten some very good young players from Central and South America over the last decade, and an increasing number of African player. Having a good mix of foreigners, along with a healthy development structure for young American and Canadian players is what will make the league succeed.
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Post by kevin on Jan 3, 2015 7:39:15 GMT -6
My guess is that NYCFC knew exactly what was going on and acted as though they (i.e, MLS) had signed Lampard, when they knew they actually had it. MLS had to know, but I guess they figured they'd keep it hush-hush, Lampard would leave Man City at the end of December, and no one would mind.
I agree about NYC not needing a second team. There are a handful of other markets fighting for a team, and we don't need to go selling out for some Middle Eastern oil money. Especially with no clear path to a soccer-specific stadium.
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Post by happyjack on Jan 8, 2015 12:40:01 GMT -6
Valid points Warrior, just don't think the majority of people view this as as big an issue as you do. People won't start/stop watching MLS because of this. I don't normally watch MLS as I find it slow and boring compared to the other leagues played across the globe. Would I tune in to watch Lampard play? Likely not...
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p_malinich
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Post by p_malinich on Jan 8, 2015 14:39:27 GMT -6
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Post by happyjack on Jan 8, 2015 14:49:06 GMT -6
Yeah, saw that earlier. Of course, there is now speculation that Adebayor may be heading to Toronto...and Dedoe being loaned back to EPL...Stevie G heading to LA. Foreigners continue to earn the designated star and the big bucks, even the old gray mares...
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Post by happyjack on Jan 11, 2015 7:58:02 GMT -6
Well, we can all rest easy now...Lampard has signed and arrives July 1...
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p_malinich
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Post by p_malinich on Jan 11, 2015 8:29:38 GMT -6
Well, we can all rest easy now...Lampard has signed and arrives July 1... Sarcasm duly noted.
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Post by playwide on Jan 12, 2015 16:26:14 GMT -6
MLS needs to align with the Fifa Calendar.
Relegation needs to happen, so mediocrity is not rewarded.
Franchises need to own the players, not the league.
MLS needs to be dependent on a ever-improving US talent pool, not 36 yr old English players who are walking into the sunset. For example, for the first time ever our u20 MNT doesn't have a single college player on the roster after the recent signing of the NC St player. That's progress.
MLS - spend the money on our young players and then some of the other athletes in other sports will see there is money in the sport. That's incentive to stick with it...
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Post by kevin on Jan 12, 2015 18:58:26 GMT -6
Calendar change--not gonna happen. Saturdays and Sundays would be ruined from Sep.-Jan. The end of the season would be competing against NBA playoffs. And that's not even considering the weather issues.
Relegation--not gonna happen. Even if you had an MLS1 and MLS2 with 16-20 teams in each, why would an owner want to risk it? And the MLS draft is far less important than the NFL or NBA draft, so there's much less incentive to tank.
Single-entity--the idea was to avoid the massive overspending of the NASL days. I think it's worked pretty well. And with DPs there's a little bit of flexibility from the strict salary cap. Could this change down the line? I suppose. The biggest issues with the structure have probably been the contorting (or complete discarding and fabrication) of rules to appease some of the USMNT players wanting to come into the league. Without a salary cap or some sort of fair play financial rules, there's always a risk of repeating the NASL's mistakes.
I think improving the league is a gradual process. The money from the new TV contract should be helpful, and I agree that it'd be good to see more money going toward young American talent.
Most of the teams have a good fan base. Now it's about continuing to grow the game on TV and attract more of the fans who are either occasional soccer-watchers or the devout followers of European leagues who think MLS isn't good enough. I think the set windows for matches in the new TV deal will help the casual fans find the games. And increasing the quality of play will get the Eurosnobs tuning in more and more.
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warrior16
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Post by warrior16 on Jan 16, 2015 22:16:10 GMT -6
Found a cool video of Maryland's soccer team back in 2013 when Patrick was a senior. He is featured heavily. Definitely one of the nicest college soccer facilities in the country.
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Post by kevin on Mar 8, 2015 15:19:44 GMT -6
Mullins is on the substitutes' bench for NYCFC's first league match today. On ESPN2 (or online via WatchESPN) right now.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 9, 2015 8:13:42 GMT -6
Lampard and NYFC aside, the 62,000 fans that packed the Citrus Bowl was definitely encouraging.
Unfortunately, MLS moving to the FIFA calendar just won't work here. (The Scandinavian leagues don't follow it either. For similar reasons...weather.)
People need to understand that supporting MLS is crucial for the growth of the game in this country. MLS will likely never be a top 10 league. Not for many years at least.
The fact is, the vast majority of leagues are 'feeder leagues' anyway.
That said, MLS needs to change it's salary cap and start paying players accordingly. And the USSF is going to have to step in and implement pro/rel in the next 5-10 years.
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p_malinich
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Post by p_malinich on Mar 15, 2015 20:29:51 GMT -6
Mullins scores on first touch of ball today for NYCFC vs former team (Revs) - assist by David Villa.
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warrior16
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Post by warrior16 on May 3, 2015 21:04:54 GMT -6
Patrick assists NYCFC's lone goal as they fall at home to the Seattle Sounders 3-1. NYC played well, but Seattle just outclassed them tonight. Obafemi Martins and Clint Dempsey shredded the defense. Looked like a great atmosphere at Yankee Stadium. I was skeptical if the New York-Jersey area could handle two teams or not, but it certainly seems to be doing well so far. We'll see if it lasts.
It will be tough for them to make the playoffs in their first MLS season. Luckily they are in the far weaker Eastern Conference of MLS and they only have to be at least sixth in the East to qualify this year. Philadelphia, Montreal, and Orlando City are on track to finish at the bottom of the table, while New York, New England, DC United, and Columbus have had strong starts. Chicago and Toronto are too inconsistent to tell yet, but I think Toronto has the starpower to finally make the playoffs this year, and Giovinco is arguably the best player in MLS right now.
In the West, Seattle, Vancouver, and Dallas are the cream of the crop so far. LA Galaxy are really struggling without Landon Donovan and Marcelo Sarvas in the midfield. You can never count out a Bruce Arena team though, and Steven Gerrard's arrival in July should help them a lot.
If I had to pick an MLS Cup matchup after nine weeks, I think it will be Seattle and New England this year. The Revs finally win an MLS Cup after going 0-for-5 in their previous tries. They have a good shot at the Supporters' Shield too since the West is a lot more competitive.
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warrior16
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Post by warrior16 on May 10, 2015 19:18:08 GMT -6
Great day for Patrick, even though his team lost again.
First ever "New York Derby" between NYCFC and NY Red Bulls results in a 2-1 victory for the Red Bulls. Record-breaking sellout crowd of 25,217 at Red Bull Arena looked like a great atmosphere. Jurgen Klinsmann was in attendance as well.
Patrick came on in the 68th minute for David Villa and scored a nice goal in the 76th minute to cut NY Red Bulls' lead to 2-1. Both Red Bulls goals from Bradley Wright-Phillips, whom our English posters on this board will be familiar with. He is the son of Arsenal legend Ian Wright, and his older brother Shaun was a good player for Man City and the English national team a few years ago. Bradley led MLS with 27 goals last year, and has had a great start to this year, as well.
Red Bulls played down to 10 men for most of the game and still looked the better side. Having lost their last four, NYCFC (1-6-3) have just managed 6 points in 10 games, and don't look like a playoff team at this point. We'll see if they can turn it around. Never count out Jason Kreis.
www.mlssoccer.com/video/2015/05/10/highlights-new-york-red-bulls-vs-new-york-city-fc-may-10-2015#ooid=kzNmUwdTop0avQqh-ldAW987cUdceA6p
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warrior16
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Post by warrior16 on May 15, 2015 20:47:58 GMT -6
After being down to 10 men and trailing 2-0 within 30 minutes, the Blues made a heroic comeback to salvage a 2-2 draw with the Chicago Fire despite being outperformed most of the game. The game was a tale of two halves, as for the first 40 minutes, atrocious defending by NYCFC made Chicago look like Barcelona, before a stoppage time goal by Medhi Ballouchy made it 2-1. In the second half, it was NYCFC who made Chicago look like amateurs despite being down a man, constantly bombarding the Fire goal with shots before Khiry Shelton finally got the equalizer in second half stoppage time.
Patrick got his first start of the season, but was subbed off for Khiry Shelton in the 60th minute, who proceeded to score the tying goal in the 91st minute. Patrick played well, in my opinion, but I fear he will struggle to get consistent playing time on this team with so much competition at the forward position. Villa is guaranteed to start when healthy, and Patrick will have to compete with Adam Nemec and Khiry Shelton for time on the field. Even worse is the fact that New England look to be MLS Cup contenders while NYCFC will struggle even just to make the playoffs. Hopefully this will prove to be a good career move for Patrick in the long run.
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