The expansion side selected forward Khiry Shelton with the second pick in the MLS SuperDraft, two days after the club added U.S. international Mix Diskerud.

PHILADELPHIA — Jason Kreis isn't a patient man. Says so himself. For someone who went straight from player to coach, being away from the field for 13 months has been no easy task.Yet Kreis hasn't exactly been inactive since he left Real Salt Lake to become New York City FC's first coach in December 2013. The 42-year-old spent six months in England shadowing Manchester City's coaching staff, and also has been scouting talent while slowly building a roster.There's no substitute, however, for leading his own training sessions. Devising his own gameplans. Picking his own lineups. With preseason kicking off next week and the season opener less than two months away, Kreis' wait is nearly over."All of us involved in the club are really pleased to be moving forward and to have a date on our minds — starting next Friday — when we're going to be able to start working with this team," Kreis told reporters at the MLS SuperDraft. "We're extremely thrilled with the group that we have right now and extremely thrilled to get back out on the field."It's been a long time for me."With the team's spine already established through a mixture of trades, signings and expansion draft picks, NYCFC added two more pieces to the puzzle during Thursday's draft: No. 2 overall pick Khiry Shelton and second-rounder Connor Brandt.A versatile forward out of Oregon State, Shelton ended up with NYCFC — but only after the club turned down what Kreis described as "quite a bit" of allocation money. Now, he'll presumably compete with Patrick Mullins and Tony Taylor for the opportunity to back up or play alongside star striker David Villa, though Kreis did temper short-term expectations."I love that he's an attacking prospect," Kreis said. "You can start with his physicality. You look at the size of him. He's the fastest kid available in the draft. You think about what he can be. I think he's a kid that's going to need some development and need some time and some patience and some love. I see a top-class striker possibility in the years to come."Added Shelton: "I'm a very hardworking, attacking player, and I like to score goals. So that's what they're getting. I know they're excited."One player who won't be in the mix for NYCFC this preseason, of course, is midfielder Frank Lampard. Much of the dialogue surrounding the club in recent weeks has centered on City Football Group's decision to keep the England star at Manchester City until the end of the Premier League season — delaying his MLS debut until July. The revelation that he didn't sign an official contract with NYCFC last summer heightened the club's public relations quandary.For Kreis and sporting director Claudio Reyna, it's a situation they've accepted and moved past as the club ramps up its preparations for the 2015 season."I think now we've made enough comments about it and there have been statements, and we're moving forward," Reyna said. "Frank is coming in July, and we're really excited. It was never the intent to play out this way, but at the end of it, we're getting a great player and MLS is getting a great player. He's very, very committed to NYCFC."The club softened the Lampard blow Tuesday by using the top spot in the allocation order to sign U.S. national team midfielder Mix Diskerud. The 24-year-old gives the expansion club a unique talent and marketable personality to help fill the void left by Lampard's absence.While Diskerud already has a trip to the World Cup under his belt, the NYCFC brass believe the silky playmaker is just scratching the surface of his potential."I certainly don't think Mix is a finished product," Kreis said. "If that's my belief, I think that's a pretty darn positive thing. He's a guy that has some really useful tools, he's dynamic, he's creative, he's hardworking. He's able in the midfield to give us that technicality that we're looking for, as well as the movement that we're looking for."Beyond the big names, NYCFC has assembled a slew of steady veterans. Chris Wingert and Ned Grabavoy proved themselves under Kreis at RSL. George John, Jason Hernandez, Josh Williams and Jeb Brovsky are dependable MLS defenders, while Ecuadorian center back Andres Mendoza cut his teeth in South America. Josh Saunders and Ryan Meara have shown they can get the job done in goal.These players may not comprise an MLS Cup contender. But after 13 months on the job, Kreis has finally seen a patchy collection of players turn into a true squad."We can say very clearly that we're very, very happy with the group that we have right now," Kreis said. "Do we think we can improve upon it? Yeah, probably a little bit around the edges. If we had to go into day one of the season with the group that we have now, I can tell you with a straight face that we'll be pretty competitive."

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