It’s always good to have a young team in any sport, and for Patrick Vieira, it’s perfect. After his off-season acquisitions, the average age on this NYCFC squad lands at 25.77. A significant drop over the last two years, 26.6 (in 2016) and 27.4 (in 2017), and this could be crucial.
As we all know, this NYCFC gig is Vieira’s first professional one. Vieira’s coaching career began with NYCFC’s sister club Manchester City managing the academy squad. Vieira overlooked players such as Angelino and Shay Facey who were loaned over to NYCFC in the inaugural season.
Overall, Manchester City’s development squad under Vieira was one of the best in Europe.