With the Premier League season over, Steven Gerrard is finally ready to make his MLS debut. The LA Galaxy fans are anxiously awaiting for him to arrive in North America and finally take the pitch. Gerrard’s arrival will undoubtedly represent a talent upgrade in the Galaxy lineup but that isn’t the only area where his presence will make a difference. Here is a look at three ways Gerrard’s arrival in LA will have an immediate impact in the MLS.
Bolstering The Galaxy Roster
The defending MLS champion Galaxy have struggled with consistency out of the gate with a 5-4-5 record through their first 14 games. While that isn’t a terrible record by any means, they are looking up at the Seattle Sounders, FC Dallas and Vancouver Whitecaps in the Western Conference standings and the consensus around the league is that they can do better. Gerrard’s arrival will represent an immediate talent upgrade in the middle of the field and make the Galaxy that much more dangerous.
Gerrard isn’t in the prime of his career any longer but he still has a lot to offer and he represents an immediate upgrade in the middle where he will join Stefan Ishizaki, Juninho and Jose Villarreal to complete what looks to be one of the most dangerous midfield cores in the MLS when healthy.
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Improved Offense
Yes, if you’re a fantasy junkie that’s been wondering what impact this has on the Galaxy, expect the offense to improve and the strikers to benefit. Sure, some of Ishizaki’s, Juninho’s and Villarreal’s numbers are going to get to poached a little but the Galaxy just haven’t that smooth with them so far. They have played 14 games so far this season, which is the most in the MLS – two more games than Seattle and Dallas – yet they only have 13 goals to show for their efforts. Both Dallas and Seattle are averaging 1.5 goals per game while the Galaxy are at 0.93. Gerrard should give that aspect of the team a boost.
Gerrard’s arrival will help create more opportunities for the attacking talent on the LA roster and nobody should be happier about him joining the team than Alan Gordon and Robbie Keane as the Galaxy’s top two scoring threats up front. Gordon already has 24 shots on target this season while Gyasi Zardes has 18 but those totals should only continue to rise with the addition of a top feeding midfielder in Gerrard.
Growing The Game Across North America
For as big of an impact as Gerrard will have in helping the Galaxy’s fortunes as they attempt to repeat as MLS champions, he will have an even bigger impact for the MLS as a professional sports league as he does his part to help grow the game’s popularity. It won’t just be Liverpool fans living in North America that will want to go see Gerrard play. His popularity will make him an attraction both in Los Angeles and in every market where the Galaxy go to play. There is no doubt that Thierry Henry and David Beckham helped pave the way for the league by coming to America to play in the MLS and now Gerrard joins Kaka, Sebastian Giovinco, Frank Lampard and David Villa as the next generation of soccer stars to make the transition from Europe in order to help grow the game’s popularity in North America.
Budgeting In Daily Fantasy
Remember that Gerrard is going to throw a lot of daily fantasy budgets out of whack. He’s a big brand name that’s going to cost you a pretty penny right off the bat for DFS leagues. You’ll want to take a wait-and-see approach with him just to make sure he settles in fine before you start investing. There are a lot of proven commodities in the MLS that are more reliable/predictable than Gerrard right now. Don’t get caught overpaying just because of who he is. Let’s see what he can do in the MLS first before buying in so quickly.
