Opinion: RBNY & Steven Gerrard are not a good fit

As you may have heard, Steve Gerrard, currently with Liverpool FC, is rumored to be coming to Major League Soccer, although to the LA Galaxy. He has been linked to the New York Red Bulls as a possible destination source, but I'm not sure that's a good fit.

Gerrard is a legend at Liverpool and almost any team would be happy to have him. He even has ties to the Red Bulls as he played under Gerard Houiller and was named captain by the Red Bulls' Head of Global Football Operations at the age of 23. He still has skill also; he scored 15 goals in 39 matches for Liverpool in 2013-14, and has tallied 7 in 27 so far this season. However, is another aging (Gerrard is currently 34) Designated Player something the Red Bulls need?

Gerard has been playing senior level football since 1998, and is close to 700 total club matches in his career. He's also played a total of 114 matches for England (he retired from international football in July). He has a lot of miles on hie legs, and has had injury issues in the past, including a hamstring injury during the 2013-14 campaign. His 2010-11 and 2012-13 seasons were also cut short due to injuries. Given the physical nature of MLS and turf fields in Seattle, Portland, Vancouver, New England, and Montreal (early season); can he survive a full MLS season? Could he even come in and join mid-season after playing 9 months of EPL and Champions/Europa League or who he need time off? That brings me to the other big issue.

Almost all players who MLS mid-season (see Thierry Henry, Tim Cahill) have issues adjusting to the league and fit in after generally half a season. Given this, can the Red Bulls afford for him to get up to speed? If the Red Bulls are in "win now" mode, in 2015 then no, they can't wait. If they can, then it signals that they are most likely in "rebuilding"/"retooling" mode. If this is the case, then why even go after an aging player that has no long term future with the club? You shouldn't build around a player like Gerrard because then we'll just be in the same situation in 3-4 years that we are now. If the Red Bulls are serious about building a team for the future and going with a youth movement, then Gerrard makes absolutely no sense.

An aging Designated Player who will just be gone in a few years anyway? We've been down this path (Henry), and while it happened to work out, it's not guaranteed to happen again. That's why I don't want Steven Gerrard (or any aging DP for that matter) to join the Red Bulls.