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A new dawn sets upon Yankee stadium, a new beginning. June 2nd 2014, marked the day New York City Football club acquired - without a doubt - the greatest player to don the sky blue jersey. A player that will forever live in New York City Football Club record books.
David Villa, El Guaje, up to this point has been NYCFC's best player. Although failing to bring in any major trophy, he did contribute a whopping 77 goals and 26 assists in 117 games played. For his incredible jaw-dropping skill on the field in 2016, he was recognized as the MLS Most Valuable Player in 2016.
His contribution, however, reached far further than his input on the field. His influence with young players on the team such as; Jesus Medina, Ismael Tajouri-Shradi, Yangel Herrera and Maximiliano Moralez has greatly benefited from a legend's presence.
Needless to say, New York City FC will have their hands full when trying to find an adequate and capable replacement. Being in a huge market such as New York the City Football Group (which also happens to own European powerhouse Manchester City) and director of football operations Claudio Reyna will not only seek out someone capable of replicating David Villa's on-field input but someone who can replicate his status off it.
New York City FC will have to be careful of not acquiring big star names past their prime, as past acquisitions such as Frank Lampard and Andrea Pirlo having failed to live up to their huge salary. In today's hyper-inflated market they will have to be careful of not splashing the cash on some over-rated, past-their-prime player. NYCFC wants to remain competitive so seeking who they buy will be the main story in their off-season.
Luckily for NYCFC, the January transfer window is about to open, and there will be no shortages of candidates capable of replacing the great Guaje.
#4 Dario Benedetto
July 19, 2013, on his debut with Xoloitzcuintles de Tijuana Dario Benedetto scored a hat-trick, that's all it took him to replace last season's hero Colombian Duvier Riascos. Fast forward to today Dario Benedetto remains a top quality striker, his recent displays with Boca Juniors in the Copa Libertadores has displayed such characteristics. In their recent semifinal two-legged tie against Brazilian Team Palmeiras, Benedetto scored three goals firing Boca Juniors to the final. And in the first leg of the Copa Libertadores final against heated rivals River Plate, Benedetto again scored putting Boca Juniors briefly on top.
In 2016 in his maiden season with Boca Juniors Dario Benedetto rapid their faith by scoring 21 goals and assisting on two occasions in 24 games. In 2017 he had a fast start to the season having even put Argentinean superstars such as; Sergio Aguero, Gonzalo Higuain and Paulo Dybala on the bench in the last crucial World Cup qualifying games.
But a rupture to his anterior cruciate ligament in November his right knee put him on the sidelines for eight months, ending his World Cup Dreams. However; he has come back firing in all cylinders, and although he has failed to get on the scoresheet in the maiden Argentinian League his link-up play with teammates has been exceptional.
Transfermarkt has Benedetto valued around $10 million and with rumors of league rivals LA Galaxy potentially monitoring Dario Benedetto as a replacement for the highly disappointing Giovanni Dos Santos, NYCFC will have to act fast in order to acquire Benedetto's services.
#3 Aritz Aduriz
Aritz Aduriz resembles wine, he just gets better with time. Last season he finished as joint top scorer of the Europa League alongside Lazio's Ciro Immobile with eight goals. In La Liga last season, he finished with a respectable 9 goals and 1 assist with the Basque Club. In the last La Liga 2016/17 season saw Aduriz finish with a remarkable 16 goals and in the 2015-16 Aduriz scored an astonishing 20 goals and assist on 6 occasions.
This season, however, has seen him play on just 9 occasions with 3 of those coming off the bench having failed to find the back of the net. With young faces emerging such as Inaki Williams and Iker Muniain preferred up top. Yesterday, however, saw Eduardo Berizzo (Athletic Bilbao Manager) fall 3-0 in their recent visit to Levante leading to his sacking.
Athletic Bilbao will be a little reluctant to sell with the upcoming January transfer window seeing many teams reluctant to sell top assets. If the price is right, however, the story can change. If NYCFC are looking for someone with David Villa's leadership and resume Aduriz is their man. Some fans may complain due to his age, 37, but opposing MLS defences will have a hard time keeping him out of the box as well as guarding the tall Aduriz in incoming crosses towards the box.
#2 Marco Fabian
The 2018/19 Bundesliga campaign hasn't gone as planned for the 29-year-old Mexican international Marco Fabian. New Eintracht Frankfurt boss Adolf Hutter having used Marco Fabian on just one occasion in their 3-1 loss against high-flying Borrusia Dortmund. Since his return from international duty, things have gone from bad to worse with Fabian not even making match day squads.
Marco Fabian still has a lot to offer but at 29 years of age, he isn't getting any younger. His playing days are flying by and in an exciting league like the MLS (were the slightest amount of skills and technique gets you past half the MLS defenders) his technique and assets will surely flourish. He's been mostly deployed as an attacking mid, but in his breakout 2013/14 Liga MX season with Cruz Azul, he was deployed as the main striker and displayed a 7 goal season.
His numbers are spectacular with the last season having seen him score only once. The season prior (2016/17) however; under the guidance on now Bayern Munich coach Niko Kovac saw Marco Fabian play 24 games and score 7 goals and assist on 4 occasions. For a player who has not even featured on the bench in recent games the price surely won't be high. His fellow countrymen Carlos Vela, Giovanni Dos Santos, Jonathan Dos Santos playing in the same league surely helps.
#1 Sergio Cordova
Since his arrival from Caracas, in fellow Venezuela, last season Cordova has irregularity featured for Augsburg. Last season saw him feature 23 times, but only 3 coming as a starter. He did, however; manage to get on the scoreline 3 times. This season has seen him feature only 6 times, with none of them coming of the start, and scoring just 1(whoscored). And although this season is still young, it's hard seeing Sergio Cordova situation change.
Sergio Cordova is still young, at 21 he still has his whole career ahead of him. A move to the United States where he will certainly gather valuable playing time will benefit him on the long run. In Augsburg, he finds himself behind talented Icelandic striker Finnbogason and journeyman Schieber in the pecking order. Fellow patriot Josef Martinez has become a global name worldwide with many elite clubs around the world monitoring his progress. It's hard to see what happened if he would of never trusted "Tata Martino" and joined Atlanta United.
Transfermarkt has his value at 1.5 million, which represents a high-reward low-risk deal for NYCFC. He's not a household name but he certainly has bags of potential to become an elite striker under the right coaching staff. The situation down south with Atlanta which is about to host a final just two seasons into existence shows you do not need high profile name in order to gather results.
What do you think!? Who should NYCFC acquire to replace Villa!? Let me know on the COMMENTS BELOW!! THANK YOU
