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Tuesday Kickoff: Lampard could extend loan; Vela ready to return to El Tri; and more

Frank Lampard comes on Manchester City

Photo by ISIPhotos.com

By DAN KARELL

Frank Lampard’s loan spell in Manchester could continue longer than originally envisaged.

With Yaya Toure likely to leave Manchester City during the busy holiday period and throughout January for international duty with the Ivory Coast at the African Cup of Nations, the club would be left with just holding midfielders Fernandinho and Fernando.

As such, Man City are reportedly interested in extending Lampard’s loan at the Etihad Stadium, possibly through the end of February, when he can step into the New York City FC squad in time for the start of the 2015 MLS season. Man City coach Manuel Pellegrini was asked if he’d be interested in extending the loan, and while he didn’t say yes, he said they would revisit the situation in January.

“‘I can’t answer about that in this moment,” Pellegrini said. “Frank will stay until January because until January he doesn’t have anything to do in the United States because (NYCFC) are not working. In January we will see what is happening and we will make a decision then. It is not a problem in this moment.”

Here are some more stories from across the globe:

VELA SET FOR CALL-UP IN NOVEMBER FRIENDLIES

Carlos Vela’s self-imposed exile from the Mexican national team could be coming to an end.

According to El Tri manager Miguel Herrera, Vela phoned the national team boss this week and is reportedly open to a return to the squad. While it’s too late for him to be included for Mexico’s October friendlies, he could be made available for a pair of November friendlies in Europe.

Vela hasn’t played for El Tri since March 2011, when he made two substitute appearances under manager Jose Manuel “Chepo” de la Torre. Since de la Torre’s dismissal, Vela has been asked to return numerous times, including ahead of the 2014 World Cup, but each time the Real Sociedad forward refused the selection.

Now it seems he is ready to return, though it remains to be seen how fans will accept him after all the times he turned down the call to join El Tri.

QUICK KICKS

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti is set to drop Iker Casillas and promote Keylor Navas to starting goalkeeper. (REPORT)

Valencia, behind youngster Paco Alcacer, routed Getafe in La Liga action, 3-0. (REPORT)

AS Roma will be without midfielder Daniele De Rossi until Oct. 12 at the earliest due to a calf injury. (REPORT)

Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich are both interested in signing Barcelona winger Munir El Haddadi. (REPORT)

Oft-injured Arsenal midfielder Abou Diaby is expected to start against Southampton in the League Cup as he builds match fitness coming off yet another serious injury. (REPORT)

Fernando Santos has been named the new head coach of the Portuguese National Team. (REPORT)

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What do you think of these reports? Do you see Lampard extending his stay at Man City? Do you think NYC FC would allow it? Should El Tri continue to try and call Carlos Vela into their team?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. You make some good points and I was being a little dramatic. However, being completely serious now, I believe that NYCFC will be in for a rough ride. They have some major things against them and the biggest of all is that they have to come up with a fan base out of thin air.

    1. NYC soccer fans number one local team is the Metro Stars/Red Bulls. Say what you want about the franchise but they have years of fan base development. The vast majority of those fans are not going to jump ship. How could NYCFC possibly draw equal to the Red Bulls? Chivas proved that the name of a big foreign club doesn’t get you there. In fact, all the local ManU fans will probably become Red Bull fans now.

    2. The stadium situation will cause them significant indigestion. It may be a VERY long time before they get their own stadium. Several years at least. The Yankee name will only get them so far. Playing in a baseball stadium will brand them as a minor league soccer team no matter how major league the Yankee name is.

    Understand that I don’t wish NYCFC any ill will. I just think the rose colored glasses are on right now. Playing in a baseball stadium to a non-existent fan base is going to be rough. Worrying about having your marque players absent because they have better teams to play for is going to make recruiting new fans that much more difficult. These are fundamental issues that throwing money at won’t necessarily fix.

    Reply
      • We are in agreement that they face some challenges- an expansion club always does. Just pointing out that they do have some distinct advantages with which to meet them- a successful soccer organization in place, a large market, a great coach from the new league and financial resources. I think there will be some RB fans that come over due to pure geography/convenience, others due to long term Metro Stars/RB mediocrity, some for the lure of something new, some due to image/ branding/NJ/Sports drink but….. the real key to major success is tapping into a large amount of soccer fans in the greater NY area that have never quite bought into MLS and/or RBs. A winning side with some hardware and flair/NY bravado on the field will go a long ways.

  2. Good grief. If NYCFC agrees to that, they are starting off completely wrong.

    Dempsey is complaining about being tired, and he isn’t 37 years old. Donovan tried that, ended up vacationing all over the planet during the preseason ( and WCup qualifying ).

    Don’t do it NYCFC. January was too long already, he will struggle in MLS enough already. It takes a half a year to a year to get a feel and he will be approaching 38 by then.

    Making a questionable signing even more questionable.

    Reply
  3. Pellegrini to Kries and Reyna: “I decide what happens to your players. Got a problem with that? Talk to your boss, they have my back.”

    Chivas East is going to be a disaster. Get ready MLS

    Reply
    • I suppose one never knows, but it really is a pretty distinct situation. Quite contrary to Chivas, MC ownership has taken steps/created a separate identity, not fallen prey to the idiocy of severely limiting its fan-base at the onset and has unlimited motivation and resources to see NYFC succeed. There is bound to be bumps in the road, an adjustment/learning curve to forming a club from the ground up, but the investment in buying and equipping a club to succeed in MLS is quite literally peanuts in comparison to the EPL and the potential for growth is exponentially greater, particularly in NY.

      On the other hand, at the head of it’s organization, Chivas de Guadalajara has been an unmitigated disaster. Vergara is a bufoon who has turned one of Mexico’s most beloved clubs into one in chaos that quite recently was fighting relegation. He pretty much admitted to having to abandon Chivas USA to concentrate on its MX team in crisis. I’m not a fan, but whatever one may think of MC and its ownership, there is little danger of the organization or City sinking to that level and little doubt they have plenty enough resources and reason to run both clubs well.

      Reply
    • Main Entry: en·vis·age
      Pronunciation: in-ˈvi-zij, en-
      Function: verb
      Inflected Form(s): en·vis·aged; en·vis·ag·ing
      Etymology: French envisager, from en- + visage face
      Date: 1660
      transitive verb
      1 : to view or regard in a certain way 2 : to have a mental picture of especially in advance of realization

      Reply
    • That would actually surprise me because I think NYCFC’s marketing is based around their DPs and whatever entity runs Sheikh Mansour’s football clubs probably wants him in NYC for the start of the season.

      Reply
      • He is owned by NYCFC which is owned by MC. There are plenty of reasons why they would.

        Why do I get the feeling Frank is going to be an ’emergency player’ for MC for the next two years….

      • Eh… reactionary emotion of the moment. He had a nice goal this week and at this instant, MC is thin at his position. Plenty can and will change between now and January and some will not. Frank’s performance could taper off, MC could well find younger more capable help…. he’ll still be an aging star, Sheikh Mansour will still have FU $, and MLS will still own his rights/veto power and the need for him to help showcase its newest big market club. February… maybe. June? Doubtful unless MC uses its money/leverage to find a glitzier option in his stead. Course, the simpler solution is just to do that for the mother club.

      • And NYCFC is controlled by MLS. And if they wouldn;t allow Klestjan to come on a six month loan they are not going to allow their new franchise to look like a farm team by leaving their best player in England to start the season.

      • Saying they are “controlled” by MLS is overstated. MLS has certain approval rights with regard to its member clubs, and plenty of ways to make life miserable, but they are independent entities that make their own decisions. NYCFC’s owners would have to assess what kinds of consequences they would be willing to risk/accept for this sort of decision.

        They’d have to be pretty clueless, but….

    • When is it ever easy?

      Not unless you are employing the exact same logic that used big names to justify why we had no business being in the last group of death.

      We may not have the sexy names but I am sure our rivals in this region are just as scared of us.

      Reply
    • People just don’t get it…they see this as threat to the USMNT…I seem to think that the USMNT actually cherish the moment to play against more quality opponents, hence all the friendlies they have had in Europe in the last couple of years, because it makes the team better. Much different than Mexico’s “Pep talk filler” games against less quality opponents at home (or the U.S. , which could be considered home as well) to help their national team get overhyped and get their critical fans off their back.

      Reply

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