NEW YORK – The headlines and the highlights have been about David Villa – and understandably so. After all, Spain’s all-time leading scorer has had a major impact in New York City FC’s first two games.
The Designated Player set up Mix Diskerud’s goal in a 1-1 draw at Orlando City SC in the teams’ season opener and then scored a goal and set up Patrick Mullins’ late insurance goal in a 2-0 win over New England in front of 43,507 at Yankee Stadium on Sunday.
But behind the scenes is a backline that, if not for a deflected Kaka free kick in second-half stoppage time, would have back-to-back clean sheets heading into Saturday's away matchup with the Colorado Rapids (4 pm ET; MLS LIVE).
The tandem of Jeb Brovsky and Josh Williams on the outside and Chris Wingert and Jason Hernandez in the center half have only been together for three matches, including one in the preseason, but appear to have meshed nicely.
It’s quite the contrast for Wingert, who largely played with the same group at Real Salt Lake for six or seven years prior to coming to NYCFC.
“Josh, Jason and Jeb are easy guys to play with because they’re great listeners and communicators,” Wingert said. “Hopefully I’m doing a good job of listening to them as well.”
And while the results may suggest it’s a backline built from entrenched, star players, it actually took some piecing together by head coach Jason Kreis.
Wingert has played left back for much of his MLS career, much of it under Kreis during his time at RSL, but he’s transitioning to central defense with NYCFC.
“I actually prefer playing in the middle, but I’ve only played there a limited amount over the past seven, eight seasons with Salt Lake,” Wingert said. “The more time I can get there the more comfortable I’ll be.”
It’s a natural transition, according to Kreis, one that most likely would have happened at RSL. Kreis said he caught a glimpse of the future several years back when he used Wingert as an emergency central defender in a Reserve League match.
“I was really impressed with what he was able to do there with literally no thought or premeditation,” Kreis said.
Hernandez, 31, is enjoying a resurgence in his second stint in the New York City area after starting his career with the MetroStars in 2005. He’s not surprised at the group’s early success.
“Our relationship and being able to communicate well and to get an understanding in a short period of time has helped a lot,” Hernandez said.
And there is also depth to the group.
- Get more NYCFC news at NewYorkCityFC.com
Shay Facey made his debut Sunday, coming on in the 79th minute for Williams. The 21-year-old is on a six-month loan from Manchester City, but Kreis is hoping to extend that for the remainder of the season.
“This isn’t a closed-door loan situation,” Kreis said. “It’s a loan for six months and before the end of six months I’m hopeful to revisit it. It would be our idea that we’re really pleased and he’s really pleased and he stays with us for the rest of the year.”
Perhaps the biggest X-factor NYCFC has defensively is George John, the 27-year-old former FC Dallas standout who is currently rehabbing from knee surgery in October.
While there is no timetable for his return, John could make a major impact when he’s 100 percent.
“A George John that is healthy and playing to his capabilities is one of the best defenders in our league,” Kreis said. “He had a lot of talk around him, and I think justifiably so, about being a national team prospect. This is a high level defender and I’m just extremely hopefully we can get him back to being himself.”
