Newly appointed New York City FC head coach Patrick Vieira offered more insight into his new assignment in part two of an exclusive interview released Friday by the club’s official website.
The Senegal-born, Paris-raised former Arsenal and French star, who was appointed earlier this week to take over for former head coach Jason Kreis, says he would never have imagined he’d be coaching a soccer club in New York, having only retired from an accomplished playing career in 2011.
- Find part one of Vieira's interview here
“And that just showing you life can take you to places you would never think about you would never dream about,” he said.
He credited Brian Kidd, a joint assistant manager at Manchester City where Vieira started his coaching career in their youth ranks, with inspiring him to transition from playing to coaching.
“When I stopped playing I really didn’t know which way I was going to take, but I was quite lucky to have Brian Kidd next to me and really guide me and open my mind a little bit on the managerial side of it,” he said. “And he really pushed me to spend time with the kids at the Academy at City. And more I was putting time in the academy and more I loved being around the players, and I fell in love with the job.”
- Get more City news at NYCFC.com
Vieira inherits a club that includes a mixture of youth and veterans, such as international stars David Villa and Andrea Pirlo. But not surprisingly, it's the team’s youth that he looks forward to developing.
“Young players are the future of our football club, and they will have a massive part to play,” he said. “And working with the youth at [Manchester] City I know how important it is because the youth is the identity of the football team. They are the ones who link quite well with the fans and the fans want to see young players coming through.”
Lastly, Vieira offered his hopes that NYCFC fans would continue to support the club despite the struggles in its inaugural season that resulted in the team missing out on the Audi 2015 MLS Cup Playoffs.
"The message to the fans would be keep following the team, keep supporting the players because all together we can achieve something really special here,” he said.
