Andrea Pirlo has ideas about why, in his mind, the quality on offer in Major League Soccer lags behind European football.
Speaking, ironically enough, at a promotional event for the league, the 37-year-old Italian identified what he feels is the primary reason MLS is not held in the same esteem as its overseas counterparts: undue focus is placed on physicality as opposed to skill.
"It's a very hard league to play in. It's very physical, there's a lot of running. So there is a lot of physical work and to me, in my mind, too little play," the New York City FC midfielder told Reuters' Henry Engler on Friday. "What I'm talking about is actually a system or culture. I don't mean that the level of technical skills are low. I just mean there is a cultural void that needs to be filled."
Pirlo, omitted from Italy's provisional squad for Euro 2016 on Monday - a fate that also befell reigning MLS MVP Sebastian Giovinco - said the issues begin at the youth level, where young players aren't taught the necessary technical skills to thrive when they hit the professional ranks. He offered Barcelona's youth program as a counterexample.
Related: Giovinco, Pirlo omitted from Italy's 30-man provisional Euro 2016 team
"They pick them and they train them in much more than just running," he said. "They train them in stopping the ball. Here that doesn't happen. So when a young man becomes a professional in the United States he still has some gaps that need to be filled when playing on the field."
The former Juventus midfielder is in the midst of his second year with NYCFC, and has noticeably struggled to cope with the athleticism of his new peers. It was no secret that his legs simply couldn't keep up during his final tenure with the Bianconeri, but now he's no longer flanked by superhuman athletes like Paul Pogba and Arturo Vidal, his lack of mobility is being severely exposed.
As such, his comments should be taken with a grain of salt - and how much he knows about the American youth system is also up for debate.
Still, it would be difficult to find someone who doesn't agree with the World Cup winner's sentiment that the standard of football, from a technical perspective, is superior in Europe.
