LAUDERHILL, Fla. – As he approached a group of reporters in between games on Tuesday at the 2015 adidas MLS Player Combine to talk about his club’s signing of US men’s national team midfielder Mix Diskerud, New York City FC head coach Jason Kreis cracked a wry smile.
Noted for his intense stare, the usually dry Kreis couldn’t contain his joy on Tuesday, telling media that he thinks his club has found a special player in the 24-year-old Norwegian-American.
“I know you guys think I never smile, so today’s my day to smile,” he said.
“Really, I just couldn’t be happier [about signing Diskerud]. He’s an exciting and dynamic player, the type of player that myself as a coach and I think our club, with the direction that we’re going in, fits in exactly with what we’re trying to do.”
Kreis didn’t provide many details on how he plans to use Diskerud in 2015, telling MLSsoccer.com in an earlier interview on Tuesday that he’s unsure where exactly the 2014 World Cup veteran will slot in and that he doesn’t yet know if the club will play with the diamond midfield formation he used for most of his tenure at Real Salt Lake.
Diskerud has the versatility to plug in at several spots in the midfield, something that Kreis thinks will serve him well in MLS.
“I think anytime you have a player like that, that can play in several spots in the midfield, it’s a benefit,” Kreis said. “When you’re operating under a tight salary-cap system and a tight roster system, you have to have guys that can be moved around the pitch. For him, it’s in different spots in the midfield. For other players, it’s guys that can play outside back and center back, and guys that can play outside back and midfield. In my experience those guys are really, really valuable.”
New York City FC had been pursuing Diskerud for a little more than a month, finally bringing him to MLS after two previous flirtations with the Columbus Crew and Portland Timbers saw the attacker stay in his native Norway.
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While Kreis is certainly excited to add Diskerud, he knows that the attacker, who holds US citizenship through his mother, will have some work to do in adjusting to MLS.
“I think that he’s attempting to add more to his game,” Kreis said. “I think [US national team manager] Jurgen [Klinsmann] has made no secret of the fact that he wants him to do more, he wants him to be a little bit of a harder, tougher player. I think the exciting thing for me is that when you speak to him, he takes those messages on board. He wants to develop his game. He certainly knows that he’s not a finished product and he wants to develop his game, so I’m just excited to be a part of that.”
Kreis also indicated that Diskerud won’t be the last big signing for New York City FC, maintaining the club’s long-held message that they will sign a third Designated Player to join current DPs David Villa and Frank Lampard. Kreis, who also said Diskerud’s signing won’t affect who the club targets with its second-overall selection in Thursday’s MLS SuperDraft, was hesitant to put a timeline on when New York will add that third DP.
“We’ve always been clear that we will have three DPs but the timing of it I think has never been exact,” he said. “I think that there’s one thing that we have been clear on and continue to be clear on, and that’s that we’re not going to add any player, regular player or Designated Player, because we’re against some timeline. I think that would be a faulty decision. We’re going to add the right player and the right fit for the team.”
