Player and coach imports are bullish on U.S. league
Patrick Vieira won a World Cup with France and played for five of European soccer’s biggest clubs, but it hasn’t taken him long to find something he likes about Major League Soccer.
“Yes, they complain less,” Vieira, New York City FC’s new head coach, said when asked about the mentality of American players compared with those in Europe’s more affluent and long-established leagues.
Vieira’s first game in charge of NYCFC will be Sunday, as MLS begins its 21st season in a stronger position than at any other time in its history. High-profile foreign players continue to head Stateside, many of them at a significantly younger age than in previous years, and the overall quality of play has risen.
Much is made of the transition overseas stars must make, and Vieira has three of them, all signed for the club’s inaugural MLS season last year, at his disposal. Frank Lampard, Andrea Pirlo and David Villa have nine league titles in England, Italy and Spain among them, plus four Champions League winners’ medals, two World Cups and a European Championship.
But what about imported coaches and the issues surrounding their changes of scenery? Vieira and his rival this weekend, the Chicago Fire’s Veljko Paunovic, are the only two newcomers on the sidelines as the campaign kicks off, and they must adapt quickly.
MLS is in many ways a hybrid league, mixing traditional European soccer methods with the franchise-based business realities of American sports. Factors such as the draft, salary cap and playoffs are unheard of elsewhere in soccer.
“It is a league like no other,” Owen Coyle, the Scottish manager of the Houston Dynamo, told The Guardian last week. Coyle said his team will fly 63,000 miles for their 17 road games this season. “It is very unique,” he added.
Paunovic ended his playing career with a brief stint with the Philadelphia Union in 2011, then took charge of Serbia’s youth national team program. Having led his country to victory in the FIFA Under-20World Cup last year, he comes with a strong reputation for tactical astuteness and player development.
He is unconcerned about the vagaries of the league, saying the fresh challenge was one of the reasons he accepted the position.
“It is still the same game, the same grass, the same rules,” Paunovic said. “It is something I have been doing my whole life.”
Like Vieira, he has quickly become enamored with the mentality of the American player.
Not even the most ardent supporter of U.S. soccer would argue that the overall technical and skill base in this country can rival that of a European or South American nation, but factors such as dedication and work rate should not be underestimated.
“They do complain less,” Paunovic said. “The mentality of American players is great. They want to work. They want to ask questions and get better. I’m very happy about that.”
MLS is consistently plagued by the inevitable question of when the league can begin to match those further afield.
The reality is that the best leagues in Europe have been around for a century or more, while MLS still had only 12 teams just over a decade ago.
Vieira said perceptions can change — and quicker than people expect.
“It is still new. The league is still young,” Vieira said. “When you look at the league now compared to a few years ago, it is unbelievable. When Iwas young in France, Italy was the big league. No one was talking about England. Now look at it.”
While teams and their new coaches will wish for a strong start, both realize that in North American soccer it is more important to finish well.
MLS has gradually extended its season over the last few years. With a month-long playoff system in place, it can be a grueling haul to the finishing line.
Just don’t expect the players to complain.