Can two stars coexist in the same proximity without their team getting burned? Can two players who have magical skills with the ball learn to live without it?
It’s a question that split up Shaq & Kobe, has baffled Stephon Marbury & Jamal Crawford, and is now being asked by the MetroStars. How well they answer it – how well they find a way to mesh midfielders Amado Guevara and Youri Djorkaeff – will likely decide whether they’ll be champions this season, or also-rans.
“No, there is no problem that way,” Djorkaeff said. “We are fine.”
The MetroStars took a 1-1-2 record into yesterday’s game at the Meadowlands with visiting San Jose. After Guevara had 10 goals and 10 assists last year to be named MLS MVP, the club added Djorkaeff in the offseason in anticipation of arguably the greatest playmaking tandem in league history.
In 1998, Djorkaeff won the UEFA Cup with Inter Milan and the World Cup with France, then earned a European championship with Les Bleus two years later. But after going winless their first three games, they didn’t notch their first victory until Djorkaeff suffered a strained calf that kept him out last weekend and left him doubtful yesterday.
“Players need time to develop an understanding. Time will make that understanding better,” said coach Bob Bradley. “As much as everyone wants to talk about Amado and Youri, we’ve always been challenged to figure out how to use Amado, more attacking more defending. Similarly, we’ll have the same situation with Youri. He’s capable of doing a lot of things.”
While Djorkaeff is indeed capable of playing forward or anywhere in the midfield, it’s hard to ignore the fact that with him off the pitch, Guevara returned to form in a 3-1 rout in Colorado, scoring his first MLS hat-trick and the club’s first since 2002. Many have wondered if each will have to sacrifice part of their game to accommodate the other.
“That’s soccer. Sometimes you have games when nothing goes your way and then you have a game where everything goes in,” Guevara said. “Having a player like Youri makes things easier. The quality of player that he is, the other teams are always keeping an eye on him.
“It gives me more room to operate and you’ll see that a lot of the teams that were marking me closely last year now have to watch somebody else. That gives me more space to maneuver. I don’t think it’s got anything to do with giving up part of my game or Youri giving up part of his game. It’s a total effort; it’s everybody giving his maximum to (win).”
