Oh, and Lampard is still banged up. Here are the most important things we learned during this afternoon's weekly conference call with the gaffer.
Against a backdrop of insular MLS orthodoxy, Patrick Vieira is an iconoclast.
The patented 3-2-2-3, a.k.a. the"W-M?" You know, the formation so archaic that it died from the consumption back when doctors could still chain-smoke reds while they checked you for lumps? Vieira loves it.
"We started working on it when I was coaching the EDS (Elite Development Squad/Under-21's) in Manchester," the NYCFC gaffer said on today's media conference call, adding that his players trained in the formation during preseason camp in Florida.