7. David Villa – NYC FC – $5.61 million
When David Villa announced that we would be leaving Atletico Madrid to join, what he described as ‘an irresistible project’, I knew it was either going to be Orlando City or New York City. It was the latter and the Spanish World Cup winner became team captain of the 2015 expansion team. In his and the club’s debut season, Villa notched up 18 goals and 6 assists in 30 games. That’s not bad, but I think Villa could have done better. This season, Villa is looking sharper and hungrier for goals, scoring 8 in 12 games. I fully expect so see Villa competing for the top goalscorer in the league come October.
6. Andrea Pirlo – NYC FC – $5.915 million
Pirlo arrived in New York in July 2015 to fill their 3rd designated player slot and join David Villa and Frank Lampard in the MLS. At the time, questions were raised at whether Pirlo would have the legs to play through the US summer. Although he didn’t set the world alight like others on this list, Pirlo was solid and played well. This season, Pirlo has contributed with two assists in 10 games. His age doesn’t matter, he still has the quality to create chances out of nothing, especially with a striker like David Villa upfront.
Discussion about this post