IMAGE, MATT KREMKAU FOR EMPIRE OF SOCCER

by DAVE MARTINEZ

While Frank Lampard says he will not “go out with a whimper,” he is going into the 2016 season with a limp.

EoS has learned the New York City FC playmaker is nursing a calf injury stemming from a training ground knock. He has not played a single preseason match this offseason.

Despite his injury, Lampard is expected to be eligible for selection for the club’s season opener at Chicago. Fitness may be a concern, but Lampard did manage to work his way through the first two weeks of two-a-day training, staving larger concerns about his conditioning and stamina.

If Lampard’s calf injury sounds familiar, it should; a similar knock kept him from debuting last season in an early July encounter against Toronto FC. Instead, he made his NYCFC debut just over two weeks later against the Montreal Impact at Yankee Stadium.

This is just the latest in the off-again, on-again issues surrounding NYCFC’s marquee DP signing. Originally slated to start the 2015 season with NYCFC, Lampard saw through his Manchester City contract to the end of the Premier League season. A delayed debut in July forced the Chelsea legend to make his first NYCFC appearance on August 1st, 2015. After two matches, injury issues once again crept up on the 37-year-old midfielder, forcing him out of the lineup for another three weeks.

Lampard became a larger contributing figure towards the end of NYCFC’s inaugural season, but that was not enough to see the club into the playoffs. With his contract ending this season, this will be his final guaranteed year to turn his fortunes in MLS around.

NYCFC open their 2016 campaign against the Chicago Fire at Toyota Field on March 6th.

Editor’s Note: Lampard did take part in the first preseason scrimmage of the year , earning the start alongside Andrea Pirlo against Florida Gulf Coast University.