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MLS Newsstand - August 2, 2016

Published on August 2, 2016 under Major League Soccer (MLS) News Release

1. Nick Rimando ties Major League Soccer's all-time wins record

By Aaron Falk Salt Lake Tribune - August 1, 2016

Goalkeeper can be a lonely position.

And, at least when it comes to Major League Soccer's all-time wins record, that's exactly how Nick Rimando would prefer it.

On Sunday night in Philadelphia, the Real Salt Lake goalie notched his 180th victory in net, tying the former longtime Galaxy keeper Kevin Hartman for the most in league history.

But Rimando's not quite satisfied yet.

"I'm tied with it," he said after Salt Lake's 2-1 win over the Union. "I want to have it all to myself."

Over his 16 years in professional soccer, Rimando has racked up all manner of accolades. He has been named a MLS all-star in seven consecutive seasons and lifted the league's trophy with RSL in 2009. With the United States, he has won a Gold Cup and earned a spot on a World Cup roster. He owns Major League Soccer's records for shutouts (126) and on Sunday he made his 412th career start in goal, overtaking Hartman in that category while matching him in total wins.

"It's just a testament to his hard work and being a great goalkeeper," RSL captain Kyle Beckerman said. "I don't know what other records he has to break, but I'd guess he'll get it."

To reach his latest record, Rimando needed to provide some late heroics Sunday night. Philadelphia went up 1-0 in the first half after RSL center back Aaron Maund was whistled for a foul in the box and Rimando - perhaps the best penalty stopper in league history - couldn't reach Roland Alberg's shot to the left corner of the net.

But after goals from Joao Plata and Javier Morales put Salt Lake up 2-1 in the second half, Rimando and the RSL defense did what was necessary to preserve a historic win.

In the 89th minute, Rimando punched away a free kick that was swinging into the box and then made a diving save and a kick save in quick succession to keep the one-goal advantage.

"It's a big accomplishment, I think. But it's not just my night," Rimando said. "I hold [the record] with a lot of players and defenders that I have played with over the years."

And, even at age 37, Rimando isn't done adding to his legacy's résumé. He'll be looking to move alone into MLS history Wednesday when RSL (9-6-7, 34 points) travels to Canada to take on Toronto FC (8-7-6, 30 points).

"This year, I wouldn't say I focused on it, but it was so close that I wanted to have it," Rimando said of the record. "I want to have those records and put my name on those sheets. It's nothing personal, just something that I want to get to and it's so close that I believe I can get there, especially with the team in front of me."

2. Sporting KC coach Peter Vermes notches 100th career MLS regular-season victory

By Sam McDowell Kansas City Star - August 1, 2016

Sporting Kansas City coach Peter Vermes joined exclusive company Sunday.

The club's 1-0 victory against Portland over the weekend provided Vermes with his 100th career Major League Soccer regular-season victory, and he became the fifth MLS coach to reach the milestone with a single franchise.

"That has been one of the biggest things - the fact that it has been with one club," Vermes said after the match. "I don't look at myself as a mercenary or someone who goes from place to place. I see myself as more of a builder, and being a part of the growth of this development is probably more of a humbling aspect."

Vermes took over the Sporting KC coaching job on in interim basis in 2009 before getting the full-time gig the following season. He is 100-79-57 in his regular-season coaching career, and he led Sporting KC to the MLS Cup championship in 2013.

"The pride, the passion - he lives and breathes KC and this team," Sporting KC defender Ike Opara said. "He demands success. And it shows throughout the club."

Vermes ranks eighth on the MLS career coaching victories list. Sigi Schmid, who was let go by Seattle last week, is first with 228 victories, with 115 of those coming with the Sounders.

Sporting KC, which has made the playoffs in five straight seasons, remained in fourth place in the Western Conference standings after the win Sunday. The top six teams in each conference qualify for the postseason.

3. Portland Timbers sign English Premier League defender Steven Taylor

By Jamie Goldberg The Oregonian - August 1, 2016

The Portland Timbers have signed long-time Newcastle United F.C. defender Steven Taylor.

The English Premier League veteran will join the Timbers following the receipt of his International Transfer Certificate and P-1 visa. The details of his contract were not announced.

Taylor will occupy an international roster spot.

"Taylor is a player with a wealth of experience in the English Premier League and will be a good fit in our club," said Timbers General Manager and President of Soccer Gavin Wilkinson in a prepared statement. "This addition addresses a positional need at a critical stage of the season."

The Oregonian/OregonLive first reported that the Timbers would be signing Taylor earlier this month. The 30-year-old was in attendance when the Timbers played the LA Galaxy on July 23.

Taylor is expected to fill a key void on the backline left by Timbers center back Nat Borchers, who suffered a season-ending Achilles injury on July 23.

The Timbers have struggled on defense this season. They've conceded 33 goals in 23 games, which is second worst in the Western Conference. Portland is hoping that Taylor can quickly slot in alongside captain Liam Ridgewell and give the club a boost as it continues to vie for playoff position.

"Steven Taylor gives us a proven piece that can step into our backline and perform immediately," said Timbers coach Caleb Porter in a prepared statement "His experience and leadership will be very important to our team down the stretch."

Before joining the Timbers, Taylor spent 13 seasons with Newcastle, 12 of which were in the English Premier League. He has made more than 190 appearances in the EPL, scoring 12 goals over that time.

The veteran defender was with Newcastle when the club won the 2006 UEFA Intertoto Cup and the 2009-10 Football League Championship.

Along with signing Taylor, Porter said last week that the Timbers are also planning to sign a younger defensive player. He said the second signing would likely be announced this week as well.

4. Ned Grabavoy brings experience to Portland Timbers in CONCACAF Champions League quest

By Molly Blue The Oregonian - August 2, 2016

Ned Grabavoy remembers the drive to the stadium.

Cranking up a winding, narrow road, fans who lined the streets pounded - really hammered - on the sides of the bus carrying him and his Real Salt Lake teammates to their CONCACAF Champions League match at Saprissa in Costa Rica back in 2011.

"You spend four or five minutes of taking that in before you even get up there," Grabavoy said.

Once you "get up there," you walk into the venue, which carries the benign name Estadio Ricardo Saprissa Ayma, but is better known as La Cueva del Monstruo or "The Monster's Cave."

"The stands are right on top of you. It's an older stadium and the fans are ruthless," Grabavoy recalled.

That's what the Portland Timbers will have to contend with as they wind their way through this year's CONCACAF Champions League tournament.

And that's a big reason why Portland made the move to bring Grabavoy in.

The Timbers will rely on Grabavoy's experience as they prepare for their first tournament match against CD Dragon on Wednesday, Aug. 3, at Providence Park.

Portland were drawn into Group B with CD Dragon of El Salvador, and Saprissa, which has won the tournament three times.

That road game at Saprissa, set for Wednesday, Sept. 14, probably will be "our most difficult game," Grabavoy said.

One of the reasons Portland brought the veteran midfielder in was because he knows his way around the tournament, which is shoehorned into the grind of the Major League Soccer season.

Grabavoy knows what it takes to juggle league and tournament priorities and how to deal with what both demand.

"You have to flip a switch a little bit," Grabavoy said. "It's a difficult tournament because of the midweek games and the extra days of travel.

"You're playing different opponents with different styles," he said. "But (it's) one hopefully we can have success in."

He has. Grabavoy was with RSL in the 2011 run, which went through Saprissa. RSL won 2-0 at home and lost 2-1 at the "The Monster's Cave," but advanced on aggregate goals and was the first MLS team to reach the tournament finals. RSL lost in the championship to Mexican side Monterrey by a 3-2 aggregate score.

Grabavoy, 33, has appeared in 14 matches (four starts) in his first season with the Timbers. Portland went after him to add depth and that tournament experience, and it has paid off as the team has had to deal with a spate of injuries.

Now, as the Timbers are in a tight window of games at a crucial point in the league's season, he's going to be counted on for that experience.

"I know from playing all over that we have a tough group, he said. "It's not going to be easy, so hopefully we can get off on the right foot."

5. Levis is dressed to impress as Caps open CCL play

By Marc Weber The Province - August 1, 2016

Brett Levis made a great first impression against Crystal Palace.

His reward is a trip to Trinidad & Tobago and another chance to show coach Carl Robinson and Whitecaps fans what he has to offer.

Levis, a 23-year-old from Saskatoon, is one of four USL-signed players that Robinson has called up for Tuesday's CONCACAF Champions League game against Central FC (5 p.m. PT, web stream: TBA) at Ato Boldon Stadium.

"I'm very excited and I'm hopefully just going to continue to take every opportunity," said Levis, who travelled with the team from Dallas, through Houston, to Port of Spain on Monday morning.

"I've looked a bit on Google to see where we're playing (near the town of Couva on the island of Trinidad) but I don't know much about (Central FC) yet. We'll look at some video and hopefully we can deal with the conditions (hot and wet) and come back with the win."

Rule changes this season have allowed MLS clubs to call up USL players four times each on a short-term (four-day) basis.

Levis is joined on this trip by fellow USL players Kyle Greig, a Wisconsin native who leads Whitecaps FC 2 with 10 goals, Sem de Wit, a 21-year-old Dutch centre-back, and goalkeeper Spencer Richey, a Seattle native and the Caps' third-round pick in the 2015 SuperDraft.

It's the second call-up for Levis and de Wit, who both played the second half against English Premier League side Crystal Palace in the recent friendly at B.C. Place.

Levis and Alphonso Davies - the 15-year-old who is now signed to an MLS contract - were the standout performers in that 45 minutes.

Yes, it was a friendly, and a wide open game, against a team in its pre-season. But it was also an encouraging showing from Levis against a Premier League team.

It was something for him to build on.

"It did a lot for me," said Levis, who came on at left-back and whipped in a series of pin-point crosses that had some fans scrambling for their programs.

Kendall Waston headed in one of those deliveries for the tying goal, while Masato Kudo and Greig were both denied in close.

"I was really nervous and anxious and I just wanted to complete my first pass," said Levis. "It seemed to open up for me and my crossing was on that day.

"Every time you get called into the first team, for training or a game, you want to show well. To get an assist and be part of that game and play well, it showed me that the next level isn't maybe as far off as I'd thought."

Robinson could well start Levis on Tuesday because Jordan Harvey sprained his MCL in training this past weekend in Dallas, while Marcel de Jong started in Sunday's 2-0 loss.

There's no way any of the guys who played Sunday in 37-degree heat are featuring Tuesday.

The Caps (8-9-6 in MLS) have another road game next weekend in Colorado, where they'll have heat and altitude to contend with.

Robinson, no doubt, will take criticism from some fans for not dressing his best lineup in this tournament, but it's impossible to do so without compromising an MLS playoff spot.

Besides, he has to see what the likes of Levis can do on bigger stages. And without question, Levis has an opportunity in front of him.

With Canadian left-back Sam Adekugbe having gone to Brighton & Hove Albion in England on a year-long loan, there's a chance for Levis to pass him on the depth chart.

There might even be an MLS spot up for grabs this season, depending who comes and goes during this transfer window.

"I try not to think about that," said Levis, who has taken the road less travelled: from the University of Saskatchewan to the Victoria Highlanders of the Premier Development League, to the Caps.

He's scored four goals and added two assists in 18 appearances for WFC2 this season.

"We're doing really well in USL and if we continue to do well and make a push for the USL title then it will make quite a statement.

"The better we do as a team, the more opportunity there will be for players to push through."

6. Edgar expected to start in Trinidad, but what about MLS?

By Marc Weber The Province - August 1, 2016

Carl Robinson plans to start David Edgar in Trinidad and Tobago on Tuesday as the Whitecaps open CONCACAF Champions League play at Central FC.

But Sunday's 2-0 defeat at FC Dallas has left Caps fans wondering when they might see Edgar in his first MLS game, because it was another night of simple mistakes at Toyota Stadium.

"They were the better team," Robinson said of Dallas. "They deserved to win the game. There's a reason they've gone 18 or 19 games unbeaten at home."

Actually, 17, but you get the point.

The Caps (8-9-6) are hardly the only team to struggle in Frisco, Texas, although their 0-8-0 all-time mark there is something to behold.

It was also 37 degrees at kickoff Sunday, so the conditions were always going to be tough, and always going to favour the team that lives and trains there.

But the troubling pattern with this Caps team is that they can't keep the ball out of their net. They made it to halftime scoreless, which is a small achievement at league-leading Dallas, but it all fell apart in three minutes early in the second half.

David Ousted didn't look good on the opener, and Kendall Waston and Tim Parker were caught napping by Max Urruti's movement on the 2-0 goal.

Is Edgar the solution? The Canadian international - with over 200 games experience in England - can only help.

Who Robinson might pair him with at centre-back seems a legitimate question given Waston's struggles at times, but the sum of the parts probably makes the most sense with Parker pushed out to right-back and Waston and Edgar trying to build a partnership.

The Caps have now conceded 37 goals in 23 games, one more goal than they allowed all of last season.

Robinson lamented "a mistake from us," on the opener, and he seemed to single out Parker more than Waston on the 2-0 goal, although they could share the blame.

Robinson also had to contend with a last-minute injury to veteran Jordan Harvey, so Marcel de Jong started his first MLS game for the Caps at left-back.

The back line is far from the Caps lone worry this season, but if stability indeed starts from the back, they've not been nearly settled enough as a unit to expect success.

If Edgar looks sharp Tuesday, perhaps Robinson will be tempted to use him in Denver next weekend. But given the travel and conditions, at home to San Jose on Aug. 12 might make more sense.

7. Whitecaps preparing for the unknown in CONCACAF Champions League game

By Jim Morris The Canadian Press - August 1, 2016

VANCOUVER - The Vancouver Whitecaps are heading into the unknown as they prepare to face Central FC on Tuesday night in a CONCACAF Champions League match being played in Trinidad and Tobago.

The Whitecaps know little about the type of game Central FC likes to play or the conditions of the pitch.

"We are going into the unknown a little bit," said Whitecaps' head coach Carl Robinson. "It will be a good experience for a lot of my players."

The Whitecaps are coming off a 2-0 loss on Sunday to FC Dallas in a Major League Soccer match played in blistering 40-degree heat in Frisco, Texas. Robinson will take 18 players for the game being played in Couva, a city in west-central Trinidad with a population of around 21,000.

Known as the Sharks, Central FC plays in the TT Pro League, the country's top division, where they have won back-to-back titles. They also have won the last two Caribbean Football Union Club Championships.

Kenwyne Jones, a former English Premier League striker and captain of the Trinidad and Tobago national team, has joined the Sharks. He has over 100 goals in his career, including 40 in the Premier League. Jones is on loan to Central FC and is expected to join the expansion Atlanta United FC when they make their MLS debut in 2017.

The 10,000-seat stadium where the match will be played was built in 2011 and was named after Ato Boldon, the former sprinter and four-time Olympic Games medallist.

Robinson said he isn't sure what to expect in the match.

"It's probably a more slower style," he said. "You have to deal with conditions, different temperatures. It will be an interesting game. We will concentrate on us and what we can do. We know it will be a difficult pitch."

Defender Jordan Harvey said the Whitecaps have the ability to adapt to different styles of play.

"That's the beauty of MLS, there is a style change week to week," he said. "Different teams play differently.

"When you play a team like (Central FC) I'm sure we will have seen that style in different forms throughout the season."

Goalkeeper David Ousted is confident the coaching staff will have the team properly prepared.

"We are playing a side we honestly don't know a lot about," he said. "Obviously the coaches will do their due diligence and put us in the best position to win that game."

The Whitecaps are sitting in the sixth and final playoff spot in the MLS Western Conference with an 8-9-6 record. Vancouver hasn't scored in its last two MLS games and is 2-4-4 in the last eight.

"We have to hit form at some stage," said Robinson. "We have been a little bit to inconsistent this year.

"You're not going to win games if you make mistakes."

The Whitecap players not making the drip to Trinidad will travel to Houston where they will train for the rest of the week. Those playing in the CONCACAF match will return to Houston for a couple a couple of days of practice before the team travels to Colorado for a game against the Rapids Saturday.

Forward Giles Barnes, who the Whitecaps acquired Saturday from the Houston Dynamo will join the team in Dallas.

Central FC will play the Whitecaps Sept. 28 at BC Place Stadium.

8. Sounders defender Roman Torres returns to full training for first time since last year's knee injury

By Matt Pentz Seattle Times - August 1, 2016

Sounders center back Roman Torres returned to full training on Monday morning at Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila, his first full session with no limitations since he tore his ACL in a match last September.

Torres is unlikely to return to game action as early as this Sunday at Orlando City, but the resumption of full-contract drills is an encouraging sign that he could rejoin the starting XI at some point this month. Two straight home matches await on the other side of the Orlando trip: versus Real Salt Lake on the 14th and Portland on the 21st.

"That's a bit of good news for a Monday," interim head coach Brian Schmetzer said. "Roman Torres in full training, and he worked hard. That's a plus. That's exciting. ... When he's ready, he's going to play. I'm going to be honest with you: (Orlando is) probably too soon, because he needs a full week, plus it's on the road and on turf and stuff like that. We'll keep him on the right path."

Torres, 30, played in just four matches for the Sounders last season after signing from Colombian club Millonarios in August.

His return will shake up a depth chart in central defense that has been steadily topped by veterans Chad Marshall and Brad Evans for the better part of two season now - with the notable exception of the period between Torres' signing and his injury, during which Evans was repurposed as a utility player.

9. Brian Schmetzer gives hints of what's to come

By Matt Pentz Seattle Times - August 1, 2016

Interim Sounders head coach Brian Schmetzer did not want to tip his hand before Sunday's match against Los Angeles, his first game in charge after taking over for Sigi Schmid earlier last week.

Schmetzer was also reticent about making sweeping judgments during his postgame news conference, wary of a too-emotional reaction to his team's 1-1 draw against the Galaxy after holding a lead. He needed to run back the tape, he said, and ask players for their input.

But after 90-plus minutes of game action and with more than 24 hours of retrospect, it's possible to sketch out at least a rough draft of Schmetzer's tactical vision for the Sounders, and how it might be different from his predecessor's.

The formation isn't set in stone Seattle opened Sunday's match in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with new designated player signing Nicolas Lodeiro slotted next to Clint Dempsey and Jordan Morris in the attack behind lone forward Nelson Valdez.

But while the framework did allow for Schmetzer to cram as much high-priced attacking firepower onto the field as possible, that was a pleasant side effect more than the central impetus.

Step one was to limit the influence of Galaxy playmakers Robbie Keane, Giovani Dos Santos and Steven Gerrard. They are all especially dangerous in the "soft area" between the midfield and defensive lines, Schmetzer said, so he paired Cristian Roldan with Osvaldo Alonso as an extra defensive midfielder.

"That was the starting point for the lineup choice," Schmetzer said.

"I thought the formation worked. I thought Cristian and Ozzie were very good, and that's a good team. I thought (our) front four was very good. They were creating stuff. This week, it'll be a little bit of fine-tuning."

Developing chemistry between Lodeiro and Dempsey remains a priority, as is easing fellow new signing Alvaro Fernandez into the fold.

Fernandez is one of the few true wingers on the roster, and he could provide a different look once he gets his bearings. Midfielder Erik Friberg missed Sunday's match with an ankle injury but returned to practice on Monday, and Andreas Ivanschitz can still hit a great dead ball.

Schmetzer hinted that he could subtly tweak the formation depending on the opponent and the point of emphasis, and his selections this coming weekend in Orlando will be even more instructive.

Much is being asked of the outside backs With Lodeiro, Dempsey and Morris all in the lineup, Seattle's attack was problematically narrow.

None of those three is a natural winger, and all of them prefer the section of the field that will be bound by faded football hash marks within the next couple of weeks. Lodeiro and Morris both looked to cut inside throughout Sunday's match, occasionally treading on Dempsey's toes.

If Seattle is going to use a similar configuration in the future, it is going to need outside backs Tyrone Mears and Joevin Jones to more aggressively push forward and stretch the field.

"At halftime, we spoke directly to the outside backs, Joevin and Tyrone, to unleash the parking brake and go," Schmetzer said. "Make Dos Santos chase Joevin. Make their outside midfielders chase Tyrone.

"That's a big part of our game, so that teams cannot collapse on Clint. We need to make sure that that happens."

Mears and Jones also must do a better job of coordinating their runs, so that they're not both caught up field at the same time as they often did in losses at Portland and Kansas City.

Seattle won't sit back Schmetzer spoke more wistfully about the handful of chances his team squandered than he did about the miscue that led to L.A.'s tying goal.

Galaxy defender Jelle Van Damme twice cleared Sounders shots off the goal-line, denying Dempsey in the first half and Morris in the second - when the rookie looked to have been aiming at an empty net. Lodeiro fired just wide of the post.

As time went on and Seattle struggled to add that all-important insurance goal, familiar nerves started to surface. The attacking verve that characterized most of Sunday's performance gave way to defensive anxiety, and L.A. took advantage.

"I don't like dropping too deep," Schmetzer said, tellingly. "We shouldn't fear teams. We went up 1-nothing and need to keep going. Put the pressure on them. I think we dropped a little deep."

This is very much a work in progress Schmetzer's stated vision for his team in the immediate aftermath of Schmid's departure had been both grandiose and vague: "We're going to have an attacking, scoring, tough-nosed defensive team that wins games."

Sunday teased out specifics - both on the field and in the locker room, where Schmetzer took the slightly unorthodox tact of allowing the players to talk amongst themselves both before and after the match.

"As far as the stamp on the team goes, I think you saw a glimpse of it," Schmetzer said. "I think every player on that field worked. They all believed. They all did exactly what was asked. ... It's their team, their group. Holding each other accountable. What was it, 92 minutes? I liked the team for 91 minutes and 30 seconds."

10. Sounders' Nicolas Lodeiro needs time to jell with Clint Dempsey - Schmetzer

ESPNFC.com - August 1, 2016

Nicolas Lodeiro, the Seattle Sounders new designated player, turned some heads in a fine debut on Sunday, but both he and his coach said it would take some time to fully adapt to his new club.

And time might not be a luxury the Sounders have with the team nine points out of a playoff spot with two and a half months to play.

Lodeiro signed from Argentina powerhouse Boca Juniors last Wednesday and immediately impressed, leading Seattle in touches and taking four shots in Sunday's 1-1 draw with the LA Galaxy.

"You guys saw it. He was very good," Sounders interim coach Brian Schmetzer said after the game.

But Schmetzer, in his first game in charge since the club sacked longtime coach Sigi Schmid last week, said the final link between the new midfielder and star forward Clint Dempsey is not where it needs to be.

"We just need to fine-tune to make sure Clint and he figure out the right spacing, because a couple of times I thought we could have done a better job in keeping Clint a little higher which would be my preference," Schmetzer said. "Get Clint closer to goal because we're going to need to rely on Clint to score some goals.

"So other than that little glitch, you saw his ability to cover ground at a high level, connect passes, run the team. There was a lot of positive out of that.

"I think together Clint will work a little higher up the field. Clint leads the front line, Nicolas leads through the middle, we've got experienced guys at the back, I was encouraged."

Lodeiro said it was a "fast week" in trying to adjust to his new club, as well as playing on artificial turf for the first time in his career.

"It was hard to adapt, obviously new team, new players, perhaps not enough time to get accustomed to each others' play," he said through a translator. "The only surprise was the synthetic field. I've never played on a synthetic field before so I have to get used to it."

But Lodeiro was confident that the Sounders have the talent to turn their season around before the playoffs.

"It's a good team, good players, and when you have a good team with good players, you feel at ease right away," he said. "It would have been better if we'd won the game, but we have good players.

"In the short time that I've been here I like to tell my teammates what I like to do, that I like to assist and my tendencies, and they understood me."

11. Portland Timbers seal signing of ex-Newcastle defender Steven Taylor

ESPNFC.com - August 1, 2016

The Portland Timbers secured the signing of former Newcastle United defender Steven Taylor on Monday.

Taylor had been a free agent after ending his 21-year association with Newcastle earlier this summer when his contract expired.

The 30-year-old had been linked with a move to Turkish side Fenerbahce, but he will instead move to MLS with the Timbers.

Taylor held talks and underwent a medical with the reigning MLS Cup champions last week before the team announced the deal on Monday.

"Taylor is a player with a wealth of experience in the English Premier League and will be a good fit in our club," Timbers general manager Gavin Wilkinson said.

"This addition addresses a positional need at a critical stage of the season."

The move will see Taylor link up with former Aston Villa and Birmingham City defender Liam Ridgewell with the Timbers.

Former England under-21 international Taylor made 268 appearances, and scored 15 goals during his time at Newcastle, where he at times struggled to stay injury-free.

"Steven Taylor gives us a proven piece that can step into our backline and perform immediately," Timbers coach Caleb Porter said. "His experience and leadership will be very important to our team down the stretch."

12. Lampard's run of form improves his NYCFC image

By Alexander Abnos SI.com - August 1, 2016

If you've followed Major League Soccer for any significant length of time, chances are you're well aware of how quickly a team's fortunes can change. The Portland Timbers were nothing special last season, until a late surge and an especially-epic penalty shootout put the team on a path to its first MLS Cup. In 2014, the New England Revolution memorably followed up a five-game winning streak with an eight-game losing streak and wound up as league runner-up. These are just two recent examples of a normal occurrence: Teams are good, until they're not. Or vice versa.

The path with players has rarely been so quickly redemptive. It seems that MLS players, especially foreign signings, either fit right in, or face an especially difficult road. If they struggle at first, it's rare that a player, regardless of experience, figures it all out in the space of a season, let alone in just a handful of games.

All of which is to say: What Frank Lampard is doing for NYCFC the last several weeks is truly special, and this week's hat trick (the first in NYCFC history) against the Colorado Rapids is only the latest example. Just a handful of weeks ago, the former Chelsea and England player was being talked about alongside Lothar Matta-s and Rafa Marquez as one of the league's worst signings ever. Now he's been arguably NYCFC's best player as it has stormed into Eastern Conference contention. The numbers say nearly everything about how big of a turnaround this has been:

What those numbers don't show is how clearly Lampard's standing has changed both within the locker room and in the heart of the club itself. It's no small point that the midfielder wore the captain's armband on Sunday. David Villa may have been suspended, but Andrea Pirlo played, as did numerous other figures in the locker room whose on-field experience with the short-lived club far eclipse that of Lampard. But watching NYCFC's demolition of Colorado, it became clear that despite all his troubles earlier in his career, Lampard has the respect of his teammates. He directed traffic, took the reins when needed, and generally played like the seasoned leader in soccer we all knew him to be before he arrived in New York City.

In the past, Lampard, coach Patrick Vieira, and others at NYCFC posited any number of tried-and-true explanations for why NYCFC's $6 million man was performing so ridiculously below his price tag (if he was performing on the field at all following his protracted Manchester City tenure). Either Lampard simply wasn't fully fit before, or he needed time to get his feet under him in a new country, or he still needed to adapt to MLS's playing style. With negative goodwill built up based on the manner of his arrival, these rang as hollow excuses.

If the Lampard we've seen recently isn't a mirage, it may be time we start thinking about him differently.

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(This sampling of coverage is a service provided to members of the media by MLS Communications)

MLS Newsstand - August 2, 2016

MLS Articles

1. Nick Rimando ties Major League Soccer's all-time wins record (Salt Lake Tribune)

2. Sporting KC coach Peter Vermes notches 100th career MLS regular-season victory (Kansas City Star)

3. Portland Timbers sign English Premier League defender Steven Taylor (The Oregonian)

4. Ned Grabavoy brings experience to Portland Timbers in CONCACAF Champions League quest (The Oregonian)

5. Levis is dressed to impress as Caps open CCL play (The Province)

6. Edgar expected to start in Trinidad, but what about MLS? (The Province)

7. Whitecaps preparing for the unknown in CONCACAF Champions League game (The Canadian Press)

8. Sounders defender Roman Torres returns to full training for first time since last year's knee injury (Seattle Times)

9. Brian Schmetzer gives hints of what's to come (Seattle Times)

10. Sounders' Nicolas Lodeiro needs time to jell with Clint Dempsey - Schmetzer (ESPNFC.com)

11. Portland Timbers seal signing of ex-Newcastle defender Steven Taylor (ESPNFC.com)

12. Lampard's run of form improves his NYCFC image (SI.com)

(Additional articles for consideration can be submitted directly to Jane Sexton of MLS Communications at Jane.Sexton@MLSsoccer.com .)

1. Nick Rimando ties Major League Soccer's all-time wins record

By Aaron Falk

Salt Lake Tribune - August 1, 2016