Iraola Retires

[Jon]

http://www.nycfc.com/post/2016/11/17/andoni-iraola-retires

"Andoni Iraola has retired from soccer.

Bringing the curtain down on his 16-year playing career, the former Spain international ends his year and a half association with New York City FC.

Iraola made 40 appearances for NYCFC in all competitions since joining in 2015, playing a pivotal role in helping the team reach the MLS Playoffs for the first time in his second season."

#ThankYouAndoni pic.twitter.com/VO31MeKlHY

— New York City FC (@newyorkcityfc) November 17, 2016

 

[NYCFC_Dan]

Whyyyyyyy this offseason became that much more hectic... How do we replace him now

 

[Fantazma]

yes.....lots of change yet again.....and now another position that needs to be filled with correct player ( i like bravo but refs seem to not like him so any contact he has is a yellow, plus his loan ends this year).

 

[JayH]

This actually is a game-changer, particularly if Pirlo hangs around another year. Pirlo without Iraola positioned optimally caused a universal formation weakness. Either Pirlo needs to follow, or PV will have to get creative with a replacement and the formation.

 

[D_RoyJenkins]

So glad I got to meet him when we presented him with the unsung hero award for this season. He played a big part in clinching our first ever playoff berth.

 

[canchon]

This actually is a game-changer, particularly if Pirlo hangs around another year. Pirlo without Iraola positioned optimally caused a universal formation weakness. Either Pirlo needs to follow, or PV will have to get creative with a replacement and the formation.

No worries, just send Pirlo to visit de Rossi with several bottles of Pratum Coller and we're set there.

 

[dannd23]

Iraola was excellent this year and I'm sad to see him go, but with the right replacement I don't think we will be hurting too badly.

 

[canchon]

So 2/3 of the 100 year old midfield is now gone. Big changes a comin.

 

[Fantazma]

This actually is a game-changer, particularly if Pirlo hangs around another year. Pirlo without Iraola positioned optimally caused a universal formation weakness. Either Pirlo needs to follow, or PV will have to get creative with a replacement and the formation.

i could have sworn there was a player option for a third season ( 2017) i remember joking saying oh if we win this year we can have him for first part of CCL in 2017.

 

[D_RoyJenkins]

Whyyyyyyy this offseason became that much more hectic... How do we replace him now

It's not so bad really. While Andoni did a good job for us he was an older player making a switch from his natural position. We'll be so much better with a younger pure defensive midfielder, I'm looking forward to seeing who Vieira brings in to fulfill that role.

 

[LionNYC]

Hot Take: Andoni Iraola retires this offseason

Called it!

I got the Vieira as our next head coach correct. I got this right. Now I need just Etihad Island and Mix Hat Trick.

 

[Viewfrom226]

http://www.nycfc.com/post/2016/11/17/andoni-iraola-retires

"Andoni Iraola has retired from soccer.

Bringing the curtain down on his 16-year playing career, the former Spain international ends his year and a half association with New York City FC.

Iraola made 40 appearances for NYCFC in all competitions since joining in 2015, playing a pivotal role in helping the team reach the MLS Playoffs for the first time in his second season."

#ThankYouAndoni pic.twitter.com/VO31MeKlHY

— New York City FC (@newyorkcityfc) November 17, 2016

Have to admit, I didn't see that one coming. A few thoughts:
- Credit to Vieira and him for switching his role this year and allowing him to thrive and make real positive contributions to the team. I thought he was a complete debacle at RB, but he did a very nice job as a DM. Many feel he was the catalyst for jump-starting the season, and while I'm probably one level lower than that, he was extremely important. You could see what we were missing when we didn't have him late in the season in a match like the New England debacle.

- At his price tag, it would have been nice to have him back next year in some role, but I also think this is a good evolutionary step for the team and another chance to add more athleticism and bite to the MF which, I think, is the most important offseason priority. The challenge will be making sure we can find a mix (pun acknowledged but not intended) that still allows Pirlo some space, assuming he is back.

- One thing I'll miss about Iraola is that he was probably the biggest sniper at the refs and linemen of anybody on the team. He was just relentless. Who knows if it helped the team, but it was funny to watch, especially since he seemed like a mild-mannered guy generally.

- While his record here was a bit up and down, I hope he is indicative of the type of player we can get from time to time. A good professional who has a great background who are interested in spending some time in NY and have made a lot of money and are willing to do it at a cut rate. That isn't how we should be building the team, but it could be a useful pipeline for supplemental talent.

 

[Fantazma]

ill also miss his awkward run with his fists raised when celebrating a goal

 

[NYCFCfan]

This sucks, I really liked him. He was great on the field for all the above-mentioned stuff but he's also just a really nice guy.

I met him right after his introductory press conference, he was just standing on 42nd right outside of the Grand Hyatt in a NYCFC polo looking around. I spoke with him, took a selfie because I'm a giant nerd, and wished him well.

He struggled last year but really came into his form this season, in a position he hadn't played before either. World class player, class act. I think we're lucky to have seen him play here.

 

[D_RoyJenkins]

His assist to Villa against Columbus is probably the best cross played in club history

 

[JayH]

- One thing I'll miss about Iraola is that he was probably the biggest sniper at the refs and linemen of anybody on the team. He was just relentless. Who knows if it helped the team, but it was funny to watch, especially since he seemed like a mild-mannered guy generally.

It was hysterical to watch. You just knew that if there was a potential card-worthy foul, Iraola would be there within seconds to get in the face of both the official and the offending player. He could be 70 yards away at the time of the incident, but he took his enforcer role very seriously and would run faster than he ever did during the run of play to make sure that he got there first.

 

[Futbolkicks]

Iraola was a good player for NYC , I want to thank him for his play , the effort he gave and being a great representative for NYC.

Iraola retirement is good for NYC , Iraola is old and has lost speed not a good combination. His retirement will allow NYC to bring in a younger , faster and more skillful player to replace him.

 

[canchon]

The move to DM helped to stabilize the midfield, seemed to give Pirlo a trusted partner. Sometimes I thought that Iraola's performance was up or down, leading to the wild swings in performance. Some nights he was just dealing (I remember one with a 97% completion percentage) but others, when he and Pirlo couldn't get in sync, it seemed that the team was completely disjointed.

Towards the end of the year, he appeared to either get tired and/or MLS midfields started to figure him out. I also think Vieira started to drop him more between the CBs as a passing outlet and/or additional defender which seemed to take away from his effectiveness. Not surprised he retired; never thought his coming here was a long term thing.

Will be interesting if NYCFC wants to now try to develop more Fede Bravo into a pure DM and find another box to box guy (I give about three seconds until someone shouts MIXXXXX) to play beside Pirlo and provide some athleticism. Or you drop Pirlo deep but get two bulldogs on either side of him, i.e. Juve.

 

[joe]

(I give about three seconds until someone shouts MIXXXXX)

I've been doing that at my desk for the past ten minutes

 

[canchon]

I've been doing that at my desk for the past ten minutes