MLS: Pirlo and Lampard in line for debuts, and LA look to damage Dynamo

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/jul/24/mls-pirlo-lampard-new-york-city-la-houston

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Andrea, meet Frank

When Orlando City and New York City met at the Citrus Bowl in week one, back in March, there was global interest in the encounter. Two expansion teams were taking their first bow in the league and it was the first chance to see Kaka in action in purple and David Villa in sky blue. It felt like MLS was entering a new phase in its growth, and indeed over 60,000 fans turned out for a game which was given the full hype treatment on domestic and international television. It wasn’t a classic, but it was a game played with plenty of intensity, and there was drama, too, as Kaka’s deflected injury time free-kick cancelled out Mix Diskerud’s opener.

The two teams meet again this Sunday, at Yankee Stadium, and once again there is something special in the air, with Italian World Cup winner Andrea Pirlo possibly in line for a debut and former England captain Frank Lampard perhaps also ready for his first outing.

The words ‘possibly’ and ‘perhaps’ aren’t exactly in the spirit of hype, but given that Lampard has missed out on his two planned debuts due to a calf injury and that Pirlo only began training with Jason Kreis’s team this week, caution is necessary.

They may both be past their best, but there is still something exciting about the novelty of seeing two of the best midfielders in European football from the past decade and a half line up alongside each other for the first time. Anyone who paid attention to Serie A last season knows that Pirlo, never the quickest player, had to endure his legs no longer getting him away from opponents, but his unmatched passing skills remain undiminished. Lampard is in better shape and showed during moments last season that he still has the eye for goal and the wit and speed to make dangerous runs into scoring positions.

With Pirlo playing at the bottom of the midfield and Lampard surely given licence to get forward in support of Villa, there shouldn’t be a compatibility problem, although it remains to be seen how Diskerud fits into the plan. He can probably expect to cover a lot of ground.

If there is one area where Pirlo and Lampard might get in each other’s way, it is the matter of free-kicks, in which they both specialize, although Kreis would no doubt be quick with the managerial cliché about that being the kind of problem you are happy to have.

The pair will have to start making an impact soon however. NYC FC are in penultimate position in the East, three points behind Adrian Heath’s Orlando, who currently occupy the final play-off position. While there will surely be a big crowd and plenty of excitement in the Bronx on Sunday, the likely lack of sharpness of NYFC’s new arrivals means this might not be a bad time for an Orlando team that has clearly gelled much quicker than their opponents, to visit New York in search of three points.

We go again

Perhaps it is too cynical to suspect that Lampard and Pirlo will slowly ease their way into things – after all, Steven Gerrard certainly made an instant impact in his MLS debut. Not only did he score, he also had a hand in two of Robbie Keane’s three goals in the 5-2 crushing of the San Jose Earthquakes. It was Keane’s second hat-trick in as many games.

Certainly it was a performance that made the Galaxy’s rivals sit up and take notice and perhaps wonder what else is in store once Giovani dos Santos is added to the mix. For starters though, Gerrard and Keane will be looking to do damage again at struggling Houston Dynamo on Saturday.

Cubo is back

Houston have their own debutant, however, in Mexican forward Erick ‘Cubo’ Torres. The 22-year-old has finally joined with Owen Coyle’s squad after finishing his loan spell with Guadalajara in Liga MX and dealing with the allegations of sexual assault, of which he has been cleared by Mexican authorities and by an independent MLS investigation.

“It was indeed a very lengthy process that took place between the time I finished with Guadalajara and coming here to Houston. So obviously right now, more than anything, I’m just eager and aching to get in and be able to contribute to the club as quickly as possible,” he said this week.

Torres is a new face in Houston, but no stranger to MLS, having scored 15 goals in 29 appearances for Chivas USA last season. He wasn’t able to keep that scoring rate going in Mexico but with his legal troubles behind him, he should be able to create an effective partnership with Giles Barnes, once the Dynamo forward is back from Gold Cup duty with Jamaica. Barnes has enjoyed a productive tournament and it was his superbly taken free-kick that gave the Reggae Boyz victory over USA in Wednesday’s semi-final. Barnes will be in action against Mexico on Sunday in Philadelphia before returning to club duty.

Can Melano help Timbers cut down Dallas?

The West’s top team, FC Dallas, made it four straight wins with last week’s impressive victory over Eastern Conference leaders DC United with Colombian forward Fabian Castillo continuing his excellent form with his fourth goal in the last five matches.

Although the Timbers are down in sixth, the last play-off position, they are only three points behind Dallas and they are boosted by the arrival of their own South American designated player – 22 year-old Argentine forward Lucas Melano.

Melano, who has joined from Argentinian club Lanus, is lightning quick and play anywhere across the front line and Timbers coach Caleb Porter is hoping he can strike up an understanding with compatriot Diego Valeri. He certainly should give the Timbers an extra cutting edge that they have missed at times.

Can Chicago fire up Drogba?

The Chicago Fire have a little bit extra to play for in Saturday’s game against New England. As well as searching for the three points they need to kick-start any remote hope of making the playoffs (Chicago are six points off the final slot for the post-season), they will also know that former Chelsea striker Didier Drogba is likely to be watching, even if it is from afar.

Chicago, along with Montreal, have been holding talks with free-agent Drogba’s representatives, in the hope of convincing the Ivorian to end his career in MLS. The Fire hold the ‘discovery rights’ to Drogba but Montreal believe their French speaking environment may be more appealing to the 37-year-old.

Like any player, Drogba will want to know what might await him in terms of the talents of his team-mates and snapping a two game losing streak would certainly not do Chicago any harm.