Parks and recreation in Lisbon: Keaton at NYCFC (on loan from Benfica)

Unfortunately the game is being played in New York. Otherwise I would be there too.

 

Domme confirmed today that Keaton will be starting (alongside other USYNT players Juan Pablo Torres and Justin Haak) vs NCFC on Wednesday:

Torrent confirmed Juan Pablo Torres, Keaton Parks, Justin Haak and Danny Bedoya will be in the #NYCFC starting XI vs. North Carolina FC #USOpenCup

— Dylan Butler (@Dylan_Butler) June 10, 2019

 

Double-confirmed.

📋 | #NYCFC Starting XI 🆚 @NorthCarolinaFC #USOC2019 pic.twitter.com/eAqf4gc08I

— New York City FC (@newyorkcityfc) June 12, 2019

14 minutes in, game is on ESPN+.

 

https://matchcenter.mlssoccer.com/matchcenter/2019-06-12-new-york-city-fc-vs-north-carolina-fc/recap

Sounds like he played well. Scored 2 in a 4-0 W

 

Very solid brace:

Keaton starts it. Keaton finishes it. ⚽️

Shoutout to #⃣5⃣5⃣ @keaton_parks #NYCFC pic.twitter.com/XxkQrhWQMb

— New York City FC (@newyorkcityfc) June 13, 2019

📽️ @keaton_parks has his brace ⚽️⚽️ #USOC2019 pic.twitter.com/uTlZXhHvVG

— New York City FC (@newyorkcityfc) June 13, 2019

Smooth finish on the second one.

 

He also claimed the opener, but it was ruled an own goal:

25. Breakthrough! #ForTheCity

🗽 1-0 ⭐️ pic.twitter.com/IcNZU6mvVk

— New York City FC (@newyorkcityfc) June 12, 2019

 

Putrid defending on his second...could've driven a truck through the holes in that defense!

 

that big east logo snuck up on me, i thought someone left a practice goal in the middle of the field...

 

Parks did well for himself tonite, he scored a brace in his game. A nice header on a cross and a 1-touch finish about 12 yards away. Parks played the whole game against Sarchatan team, yep, the same coach that only played him once in 2018.

 

Parks was the best player on the field. I watched most of the game rooting for NCFC but I'm also a pretty big Parks fan.

NCFC was overmatched from the start and things got worse when Brotherton had to come off at half time. Brotherton, Manny Perez, and Marios Lomis have been three of our best players this season and without them it's a much better team. One of the big differences between USL and MLS is team depth and NCFC's bench is not strong. It wasn't as much of a blowout as it looked on paper but Stuver made some great saves and NYCFC made the most of their chances.

Parks did his usual thing of metronome passing. I know some see him as a back pass merchant but I disagree. He is always looking for an incisive line splitting pass first, but will make up his mind quickly to find another teammate if they have a better option. He played as a true box to box mid, filling in sometimes at center back and other times pushing up to be a target in the box. His goals (and the first one, which was an OG but would have been his goal otherwise) were the result of strong runs from behind the attack into dangerous positions.

 

Has to be exhilarating after limited time for months. At least we know he's good enough to be a standout in the USL Championship.

 

Also interesting: the MLSPA released the league salaries, and we now know that Parks is making $150k(~$3k/wk) from NYCFC this year. I wonder if NYCFC are footing the whole bill, or if his wages are closer to $300k / yr (~$6k/wk) and they're splitting with Benfica.

 

so many transfers are basically luck of the draw. he clearly has the quality to get a lot of mls minutes but who knows why he doesnt

 

Because he hasn't done enough to beat out either Ofori or, way more sadly, Rocha, for minutes.

They've played a 3-4-3 for most of the season, and Torrent clearly doesn't view Parks as defensively sound enough to play in that two-man central midfield.

If they switch more regularly to a 4-3-3, as they have for the past two games, the defensive responsibilities of the 2 more advanced CMs are reduced a bit, so I'd expect him to see more time. Big "if" though, because NYC is rolling, having gone 11 matches unbeaten in all competitions.

 

right so its the whims of a manager, who knows if hes right though or just playing his favorites, which is always a problem

 

They haven't lost since March, so I think the manager is probably right.

 

Yes, they haven't lost but they aren't winning that much either. Their league record is W-5, T-8, D-1.

 

6 wins, 5 draws in the 11-game stretch. They started poorly using a 4-1-4-1/4-3-3, switched to the back 3, and results measurably improved.

 

It may be coming down to Parks needing to play well above the current starters because it’s a loan.

I bet if Parks was sold to NYCFC then maybe we would have seen him starting more often.

 

I don't think so. Ofori is there on loan from Stuttgart, Yangel Herrera played a ton last season on loan from City, Castellanos got some time last season before being purchased. They don't have an aversion to playing loan players.

 

totally agree....

whims are whims...nothing more.

regardless of the fact that NYCFC hasn't shown that it has any inclination at all to give the benefit of the doubt to american players....

I think when you look across MLS and see how well a bunch of fringe MLS players did this round of the US Open Cup....it lends itself to the idea that there aren't enough MLS spots to go around for domestics players in the league (weirdly considering all of the recent expansion)....and that just because a player isn't playing in MLS it doesn't mean he isn't good enough...

 

Again, the team started slowly. Torrent made material formation and personnel changes. They haven't lost since MARCH. Partially because of the changes made by the coach.

Everyone's happy Parks had a strong game and that the manager gave him a shot in the Cup game. But we NYCFC fans aren't exactly mad at the manager's recent decisions, and we aren't clamoring for Keaton and won't be barring injuries or if the team's form dips.

 

Maybe, just maybe, it's about Keaton a) not playing his own game so outstandingly well that the coach has to adjust his system to give KP more PT, or b) not adjusting his game to the coach's requirements.

Players are sent on development loans to see if they have the ability and/or strength of character to force their way into another starting lineup. If they don't, the next loan will be a "get 50% of his wages off the payroll and get a bad smell out of the dressing room" arrangement.

NYCFC aren't Benfica, but MLS is a decent league. If Parks can't do it there, he's unlikely to see the pitch for Benfica

 

The thing is his game hasn't changed, maybe a bit more hustle but overall his game is what is always been. Some coaches admire his passing game and occasional scoring, others hone in on his lack of hustle.

 

I think Keaton's loan took an unfortunate turn with Domme's change of formation / tactics, and Benfica will likely recognize that. I also think that Keaton's playtime will continue to grow just like it has all season long. It's not like he just scored 2 goals in the open cup, he was contributing all over the field:

Here is Keaton Parks' distribution chart to go along with two goals and six ball recoveries. Obviously North Carolina FC isn't LAFC, but, still an encouraging display from the #NYCFC midfielder. pic.twitter.com/JH9KhhUByA

— Tom Bogert (@tombogert) June 13, 2019

FWIW (very little), Benfica B have been bad without Keaton: They started the season 8-2-4 with him, and went 7-10-3 without him. This is worth little because of the other factors: they also lost their manager, Florentino (Keaton's midfield partner), and Joao Felix around the same time Keaton moved to NYCFC. Still, anyone who thought that Diogo Mendes could just slot in and take his place seems to be wrong...