Opinion

After wrapping up his second preseason as manager of New York City FC, Patrick Vieira is looking ahead to today’s match against Orlando City. There is optimism in the air for the Frenchman. After all, his first season in the Big Apple was considered a success. He guided the second-year franchise to a second place finish in the Eastern Conference and the conference semifinals of the playoffs – albeit the embarrassing aggregate loss at the hands of Toronto (0-7).

The secondary jersey for the Colorado Rapids just has everything in it that you would look for in jerseys that are representative of state flags. One of the most beautiful and well-designed flags in the United States is the Colorado state flag, and the new jerseys definitely depict that. All the way from the blue sleeves, to the gold torso you can find the additional pieces of this jersey that make it such a well done jersey.

In between weeks eight and nine of the 2015/16 Premier League season, Liverpool added to their list of great signings by bringing in former Borussia Dortmund manager Jürgen Klopp.

Going into the 2016/17 Premier League Season, Liverpool had extremely high expectations. During the first half of the season, Liverpool saw a mixture of great results against high-caliber teams who had their hopes set on the title race. However, in 2017 Liverpool has seen a handful of mixed results that have set back their title race dreams.

This season could not be more quintessential Arsenal if it tried. From their annual shellacking by Bayern Munich in the round of 16 to their current standing of fourth in the Premier League, everything is going according to plan. 

Hand in hand with these results are the seasonal calls for Arsene Wenger to leave and the questioning of the big-game ability of the majority of their squad, particularly the team’s highest-paid player (who’s also asking for more money), Mesut Ozil.

I’ve seen some s**t. I remember thinking Sam’s Army was about the coolest thing throughout the buildup to the 2006 World Cup. It was a group of Americans that were all soccer fans that got together to cheer for soccer — it was insane, it was wildly progressive and it was extremely dangerous.

Bayern Munich's greatest talent has the potential to fill the shoes of the retiring Philipp Lahm and then some. Joshua Kimmich will more than likely represent both Bayern and the German national team with as much, if not more, success than his predecessor.

In his storied career, Lahm has amassed an impressive trophy case with almost every accomplishment imaginable. He is a seven-time Bundesliga winner, a six-time German Cup winner, possesses a coveted Champions League title and, of course, the 2014 World Cup title.

Fiorentina manager Paulo Sousa has a problem. Paulo Sousa isn’t very good at his job. What’s more, people are starting to notice. For a while now, Fiorentina fans have been trying to tell anyone who will listen that the Portuguese manager is performing well below expectations. After two high profile capitulations in the space of a week, Sousa’s problem is now clear for all to see. Paulo Sousa isn’t very good at his job.

The offseason purchases of Mirlalem Pjanic from Roma (€32 million) and Gonzalo Higuain from Napoli (€75.3 million) haven’t debilitated the selling clubs, but they have had the desired effect for Juventus. Higuain has scored 19 goals, tied with Edin Dzeko for the most in the league, and no Juventus player has more assists than Pjanic.

Even more importantly, Napoli, the team that ran them closest last season, will come short of last season’s total of 82 points while Juventus look poised to surpass their own total of 91. There’s no surer gauge of the impact of that transfer.

We all know the legitimate questions that greet every disappointing showing from the USMNT: why does the US struggle so mightily when it comes to developing players from a young age? Why can’t we develop a star player? Why isn’t the American system doing a better job at finding Hispanic talent?

The extremely complex process of youth soccer development in America is hampered by the pay-to-play system, the daunting task of casting a net over millions of U-6 to U-18 players and the lack of qualified coaches to ensure their development.

Carli Lloyd just signed for a short-term stint with Manchester City. Rising star Crystal Dunn is leaving for Chelsea. And soccer rock star Alex Morgan is (temporarily) at French Club Lyon. While these might seem like isolated incidents, it's actually a pattern. More and more U.S. women's soccer stars are leaving the states, at least in the short term for Europe.