Andrea Pirlo’s reportedly nearing move to the newly emerging New York City FC, will see the experienced Italian join up with fellow veterans of yesteryear – Frank Lampard and David Villa – as they look to transfer their skills to the ever developing Major League Soccer scene.
The notorious 36-year-old – who was representing Juventus in the Champions League final just a few weeks back – may not arrive in the States as a widely recognised figure, yet at least from a European perspective, his upcoming transfer to NYCFC nevertheless represents a rather daring move from the MLS.
However, despite the USA’s dramatic improvement on the international scene in recent tournaments, football ultimately doesn’t share the same level of attention across the pond that is so readily receives throughout Europe and beyond.
So then, even though sides such as New York City FC continue to grow their club and spread their influence through big name signings from Europe – will the MLS ever really develop into one of the world’s most important sporting spectacles, or is football in the USA ultimately never going to take off as many have previously hoped for?
The debate remains an interesting one to say the least…
Within the context of this particular discussion, it remains important to remember that the desire to sign ageing foreign stars with grand reputations isn’t exactly a new phenomenon for the MLS. Football in America has long since acted as a final port of call for several top veteran players in the past, including Carlos Valderrama, Bobby Moore, Franz Beckenbauer, and none other than Pele himself, to name but a few.
The likes of David Beckham and Thierry Henry may have captured recent attention for tying themselves down in the newly developing league, but their decisions to make the switch certainly weren’t the first the wider footballing community had ever paid witness to.
Perhaps then – despite the clear excitement and sensation that seems to surround the MLS whenever an American club makes a high profile signing from Europe – such big name appointments in the transfer market haven’t actually served the overall popularity of football in the US that well with all things considered.
If the likes of Moore and Pele failed to turn the MLS into one of the world’s most significant leagues, then who really can prove themselves worthy of taking the USA's domestic football up a level?
As long as teams like LA Galaxy and New York Red Bulls continue to act as a retirement home for expensive European talent when such players inevitably arrive at the end of their careers, then the MLS will arguably always remain a second rate league that can’t escape the ageing nature of its most recognised stars.
Yes, it’s certainly somewhat intriguing and interesting to witness the likes of Lampard, Kaka, and soon to be Steven Gerrard, plying their trade in a league so far away from home – but ultimately once such stars leave the ever competitive melting pot of European football, their places eventually get filled by a much younger and hungrier candidates who invariably manage to pick up where they left off.
It seems good for the players on an individual level to go an experience something new in a less pressured situation for sure, yet as long as the MLS remains an apparent dumping ground for veteran pros too old to make it at the highest level, then the chance for young, home-grown talents to shine in the American game will always remain somewhat restricted.
With leagues from the money rich Middle East and China also seemingly looking to make an name for themselves on the global footballing circuit – the MLS simply has to start producing some top players instead of relying exclusively on the interest developed from older stars who no longer have a great deal to play for.
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