PURCHASE, N.Y. – Jason Kreis knew there would be a time, whether it was through injuries, national team call-ups or a logjam in the schedule, that the depth of his team would be tested.
That time, it seems, is now for New York City FC.
With midfielder Mix Diskerud called up to the United States men's national team for their friendly against Mexico on Wednesday night (8:30 pm ET; Fox Sports 1, UniMas) and three matches for Kreis' side in eight days, beginning with Thursday night’s home game against the Philadelphia Union (7 pm ET, MLS LIVE), it is evident change is on the horizon.
“We all need to recognize there’s a lot of quality players on our team,” Kreis told reporters at training of his plans for the busy stretch. “I’m certainly willing to look to make changes.”
Diskerud's likely replacement, 32-year-old veteran Mehdi Ballouchy, possesses many of the same qualities as the US international and has featured in two games this season, both starts.
“Mehdi is a very technical player, very, very good on the ball and makes good decisions in possession and is capable of finding the right pass,” Kreis said. “He’s started a few games for us already, and he’s always in the mix.”
And while change may be underfoot in the team's on-field alignment, there are off-the-field growing pains the team is facing as well, which Kreis said draws similarities to the start he went through with Real Salt Lake in their first year as an expansion side.
“The fact that you have all these people moving to a brand-new place, they’ve been living in hotels and need to get their wives and girlfriends here and family support off the field,” Kreis said. “There’s a lot of things that go into it that you don’t often consider.”
As was the case in Salt Lake City, Kreis has what he calls “quality people and quality players,” but acknowledges the team is missing a bit of a bite.
“There’s also a dynamic in the team about who is going to step forward and be the guy who is not so nice,” Kreis said. “We have a lot of quality players, and we’ve got all quality people. In some ways, maybe we’re at the moment where we’re all a little bit too nice.”
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On Thursday, NYCFC may need to find that mean streak, with the team looking to snap its first-ever losing streak after conceding a stoppage time goal in a 2-1 loss to the Union at PPL Park on Saturday. It is the first major bump in the road for a team still learning to play with each other.
“The attitude is great, the hard work is there,” Ballouchy said. “I think everybody is staying as positive as you can be, and that’s all you can ask for.”
Kreis said he’s trying to remain patient with the team’s development, but with that it has led to a lot of sleepless nights. Though the late goal is certainly a concern, part of his conundrum has been NYCFC’s slow starts in every game but the 2-0 win over New England in the home opener.
“We’ve yet to play a full first half the right way, but at least we saw in those 25 minutes what we’re looking for,” Kreis said. “Ultimately, it’s on me. If the players aren’t doing what I’m asking then either the players are unwilling to do what I’m asking or I’m not getting the message across clearly.”
