Raul's son begins career with New York rivals

Despite finishing his career with New York Cosmos, Raul Gonzalez's son Hugo plays in the academy of New York City FC.

The MLS side's first team boasts such names as David Villa, Frank Lampard, Andrea Pirlo and Andoni Iraola, and Hugo Gonzalez is with the under-14 team.

Aged 13, he has played in eight fixtures - seven of which as a starter - in the US Soccer Development Academy, a league where he would face teams from the lower echelons of the MLS, NASL and USL.

Hugo uploaded a photo to Instagram of the match between his team and Atlanta United FC, a fixture that was played on October 30.

Playing with the number 11, Hugo played 80 minutes of the match as New York City drew 1-1.

He does not appear to share the same goalscoring instinct as his father, however, after not managing a goal in any of his opening eight fixtures.

Just like his older brother Jorge, who plays for Fordham and was recently league champion, Hugo is making his first steps in the world of football.

More games: friv

Chelsea's John Obi Mikel open to playing in MLS with Frank Lampard

Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel says he would be interested in reuniting with former teammate Frank Lampard in Major League Soccer.

Ex-Blues midfielder Lampard has been in impressive form for New York City FC this season with 12 MLS goals, having struggled during his first campaign with the club.

"There was absolutely no doubt that Frank wouldn't go out there and succeed," Nigeria international Mikel, 29, told Goal. "I am happy that he is back to his best, doing what he loves to do and, one day, who knows, I may go over there and play with him, or play against him."

John Mikel Obi has yet to play for Chelsea this season.

Mikel has yet to feature for Chelsea this season under Antonio Conte, but he is determined to force his way into the Italian's plans.

"I know it is going to be difficult for me to get back into the team because I have missed the whole preseason," Mikel said.

"The manager obviously has his philosophy of the way he wants to play and I need time to get back into the way he wants to do things. It will be difficult, but it is one challenge that I am looking forward to. Like everyone knows I don't run away from a challenge."

Frank Lampard scores first hat trick in New York City FC history

He got the party started on Saturday, and over the 90 minutes, made history.

Frank Lampard scored his first career hat trick in MLS, and the first in New York City FC history, during a 5-1 rout of the Colorado Rapids at Yankee Stadium. Lampard's first tally came in the 28th minute, as he stretched to poke home Diego Martinez's cross through the box.

The game immediately went into a 40-minute weather delay after that goal, with lightning in the area, but NYCFC's dominance continued, and Lampard capped off his hat trick with two late goals, first from the run of play in the 81st minute, and then converting a penalty, only the second allowed by the Rapids this season, three minutes later.

Lampard has now scored eight goals this season, and those have all come in New York City's last eight games. The former England international is on fire, and that has corresponded to his team's rise to the top of the Eastern Conference, where they remain following Saturday's win.

WATCH: Frank Lampard reveals all in a game of 20 Questions

It's been a rough start for Frank Lampard with his new club New York City FC. His move to MLS has been marred by an ill-timed loan move and a few injury problems.

In his first season with the club he managed to play in just 10 matches while scoring 3 goals. Supporters and media have all criticized him for many different reasons. That all escalated this season when more injuries kept him on the sideline for the first few months. When he finally returned to the field, NYCFC fans greeted him with boos.

That negativity has finally subsided as the Chelsea legend has returned to full fitness. He's finally beginning to settle in, as his first goal of the season this past weekend shows.

Lampard sat down with the club's media staff and played a game of 20 Questions where he provided answers on fun topics like his favorite meal, what profession he'd take up if he wasn't a footballer, and who his favorite sports team (outside of NYCFC) is. Shockingly he didn't say Chelsea.

England's player pool shrinks as only 33 per cent of Premier League stars qualify for Three Lions

Managers shy away from picking young, home-grown talent.

ON the face of things, Roy Hodgson has plenty to be happy about from the 2015-16 Premier League season.

The English top flight celebrated a homegrown star as the top scorer — with Harry Kane winning the Golden Boot — while players such as Dele Alli have burst onto the scene with devastating effect.

Then there’s this term’s success story — title-winning Leicester — whose English core including Vardy, Danny Drinkwater, Marc Albrighton and Danny Simpson has shone brightly all season long.

Yet — as is seemingly the case more and more often these days — all is not right in the Premier League for our homegrown heroes.

With the 2015-16 season now drawn to a close, it's emerged only 33 per cent of players on show were English — accounting for 176 stars in total.

Compare that to last season, already a lowly 35 per cent — 186 players — and it makes for grim reading.

So where lies the problem? Is it lack of talent in our clubs’ youth ranks or are they just not being given the chance at the highest level?

Tony Carr — the man who helped develop a startlingly talented generation of youngsters at West Ham in the 1990s, including Rio Ferdinand, Michael Carrick, Frank Lampard and Joe Cole — insists it’s all down to lack of opportunity, not pure talent.

He said: “The biggest problem isn’t talent. It’s opportunity.

“I don’t mean to be disrespectful, but there aren’t enough managers who are brave enough to put young players in.

“Their job is on the line every week, so a lot of them prefer to go with experience.

“But then you look at the way Dele Alli has come on at Tottenham, since coming from MK Dons, and how well Harry Kane has done, and that’s what can happen when they’re given the opportunity by a manager who is brave enough to do that.”

If Carr is to be believed, youngsters just need that prolonged stint in the first XI to show what they can do.

The Hammers man claims bosses aren’t brave enough, bold enough to plump for youth.

But look at what does happen when a manager has taken the plunge — or been forced to take the plunge.

Take another of this season’s bright spots, Marcus Rashford. The Manchester United youngster hardly set the world alight at Under-21s level, but he has thrived on the biggest stage.

The striker, alongside Jesse Lingard under Louis van Gaal, has done far more than an expensive import such as Memphis Depay — arguably the flop of the season in any league.

Then there’s Tottenham’s Alli, brought in from League One outfit MK Dons; he burst into the first XI under the brave Mauricio Pochettino — much like the Argentine boss did with Harry Kane a season prior — and now is a near certainty to start for England in the European Championships in France this summer.

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp also opted to give youth a chance in the Premier League this season — handing starts to Sheyi Ojo, Cameron Brannagan and Kevin Stewart to name a few.

And have any of them looked wildly out of their depth? Hardly...

It just goes to show, the so-called ‘chasm’ between the elite youth level and the peak senior level isn’t as pronounced as the myth makes out.

Some club chiefs are adamant it is more of a canyon — while others, Poch and Klopp to name but two, show that the step up is nothing more than hard work and trusting in your kids’ talent.

These fearless youngsters are rewarding their equally plucky bosses when given the chance in the first team.

So why is the percentage of homegrown players getting their chance in the Premier League declining?

Money, the desire to be the best and ruthlessness are the main culprits.

If you’ve got £100million sitting in your kitty, why not splash out on that big name, experienced striker?

Well, if you’ve got an equally talented, albeit unproven, youngster in your ranks already, then give them a chance... They might just surprise you.

Frank Lampard given time off by New York City FC as he continues injury rehab

The former Chelsea midfielder is still to see his first minutes of the 2016 MLS campaign after picking up a calf strain during preseason.

New York City FC midfielder Frank Lampard has been given time off by the club as he continues his recovery from a calf injury, head coach Patrick Vieira has told EmpireofSoccer.com.

Lampard has missed NYCFC’s first five games of the 2016 campaign after picking up a calf strain during preseason and is set to sit out a sixth this weekend when Vieira’s side face Columbus Crew SC at MAPFRE Stadium.

The former Chelsea and England stalwart also struggled with the same problem last term following his summer arrival, making just 10 appearances and scoring three goals, but his manager is hoping to have him available for selection soon.

“We are a tight team, a really strong team,” Vieira told EmpireofSoccer.com on Wednesday. “We believe that the only way we can achieve our goal is to stick together. During the season, we’re going to face tough spells and our togetherness will get us through it. Frank is a part of it and I can’t wait for him to get back on the pitch.”

In other injury news, rookie midfielder Jack Harrison trained fully on Wednesday for the first time since the trade that saw him acquired from the Chicago Fire just minutes after being announced as the number one pick in the 2016 MLS SuperDraft.

The 19-year-old Englishman missed the entire preseason with a groin injury before being put on the disabled list on 13 March, but he is now back in training with the rest of the NYCFC squad and expected to be fit and available for selection before the end of the month.

However, per MLS roster rules, the former Manchester United trainee will not be eligible to make his debut for the club until their game against the Montreal Impact on 27 April.

Deco: Paul Scholes was better than Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard

Former Chelsea star hails Man United great ahead of Liverpool and Chelsea legend.

EX-CHELSEA star Deco has hailed Paul Scholes as the greatest English midfielder he has played against — ahead of Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard.

Deco, 38, spent two seasons in the Premier League with the Blues, where he played alongside Lampard and against Manchester United great Scholes and Liverpool legend Gerrard.

He told Squawka: “I played with and against so many fantastic players in midfield like Gerrard.

Deco has had his say on the greatest English midfielder he played against

“I had the opportunity to play with Lampard together at Chelsea. I think, because he was a different type of player to all other types of English midfielder, Paul Scholes was the best player that I saw playing for an English midfield and one of the best players in the world.”

And the former Barcelona star believes England’s current crop are missing the likes of Scholes.

He added: “Maybe it’s the generation, but I think this kind of player always exists.

Deco has hailed Paul Scholes as one of the best players he saw play in the world

Steven Gerrard is snubbed despite being a Liverpool legend

“England has a lot of fantastic players. What I say is that in midfield, with his style Scholes could play at any club.”

Deco also played alongside Barca legend Xavi for four seasons between 2004 and 2008.

And the midfielder reckons the emergence of similar players who are great passers of the ball is why possession football has dominated in recent years.

Deco played alongside Frank Lampard at Chelsea

Deco said: “I think at the moment there are some great players like that.

“At Madrid, Modric. Iniesta is still playing. Xavi. In my generation, Paul Scholes was a player like that.

“There are not so many players with this style because I think most of the players are box-to-box, not about controlling the game, keeping the balance of the team.”

MOURINHO BELIEVES CHELSEA LEGEND FRANK LAMPARD WAS BEST PREMIER LEAGUE PLAYER ‘FOR ONE DECADE’

Former Chelsea manager José Mourinho hailed Blues legend Frank Lampard as the best Premier League player for a decade, in a recent interview in Singapore.

The Portuguese visited Singapore recently for business reasons, but caused quite a stir in England after choosing to break his silence regarding speculation about his future. Although Mourinho was typically coy in his responses, he did confirm that he is looking to return to management as soon as possible.

However, the former Chelsea manager also had an opportunity to reflect on his career when Singapore’s Straits Times asked him to name the best player he has coached. The 53-year-old listed several legendary names — one of which was Blues’ great Frank Lampard.

“It is very unfair for me to say that,” said Mourinho, when asked to select his best ever player. “Many times people asked me to do my best team with all the players I have, and I think it’s very unfair. Who was my best player, it’s so hard and so difficult to say, and I coached some of the best players in the world.

“I had incredible players. At Chelsea, in my first period I had Frank Lampard, probably the best player in the Premier League for one decade.”

Mourinho also name-dropped some other iconic names in his answer: “I went to Inter [Milan], I had [Zlatan] Ibrahimovic, I got [Javier] Zanetti. I got to Madrid, I had [Cristiano] Ronaldo. I come back to Chelsea and I find other top players.

“I have so many, they gave me so much, it’s not fair to say this is the one. It’s impossible to win so many things without the players so I respect all of them.”

Lampard’s incredible consistency was invaluable to Chelsea’s cause

Frank Lampard will rightly go down as one of the Premier League’s greatest ever midfielders, but it was his uncanny ability to stay fit and perform at a high standard season after season that was of such value to Chelsea.

The Englishman played a minimum of 30 Premier League games every season between 2001-02 and 2011-12, with the exception of only two campaigns (2007-08 and 2010-11). The goalscoring midfielder also found the back of the net 20 times in all competitions for five consecutive years between 2005 and 2010.

As the player who still holds the record for most number of consecutive Premier League appearances (164) for an outfield player, Lampard is a standard for young midfielders around the country to aspire to. It is easy to understand why Mourinho, as well as the managers before and after him, saw the New York City midfielder as an essential piece in the Chelsea jigsaw.