Team Focus: Could Andrea Pirlo Fill Landon Donovan's DP Spot at LA Galaxy?

They have built their reputation on being Major League Soccer’s marquee team. From the signing of David Beckham to the capture of Robbie Keane, the LA Galaxy bring shimmering glamour to North American football.

So it is perhaps unsurprising that with Andrea Pirlo linked with a move to MLS it is the Galaxy that are being speculated as a possible destination for the Italian legend.

They aren’t just the biggest name in MLS but very possibly the best team, with Bruce Arena’s side leading the league’s Western Conference and Supporters’ Shield standings. So the appeal of the Galaxy is the strongest MLS can offer a player of Pirlo’s stature and ability. But should Arena really target the deep-lying playmaker? After all, it could require a dramatic shift of philosophy to accommodate him at LA.

As a midfield unit the Galaxy are a fluid and overtly mobile group. Juninho is the pass-master for LA but even still, the Brazilian is an energetic performer, alongside Marcelo Sarvas, who himself is a dynamic central midfielder.

Robbie Rogers has failed to make any real impact at the club having been so desperately hindered by injury since joining last year. And of course, the Galaxy also have Stefan Ishizaki, the Swedish attacking midfielder who arrived from IF Elfsborg in the off-season before the 2014 campaign.

The idea, according to reports, is that Pirlo would take Donovan’s Designated Player spot for next season, with the USA international retiring at the end of the current campaign. Subsequently the Galaxy have to start thinking about how they will make up the key passes deficit that Donovan’s exit will leave behind. The 32-year-old leads the league with an average of 3.4 key passes per game, giving an indication of just how important he is to LA, even at this stage of his career.

It could be the case that the retirement of Donovan could see the Galaxy switch to a one-striker system, with the extra man – Pirlo – slotting in as an anchor behind two midfield operators slightly further up the pitch.

Ishizaki is probably the Galaxy’s most creative player, besides Donovan, averaging two key passes per game. So could the Swede keep his place, with Juninho making way for Pirlo in a new look midfield three?

Pirlo has yet to play a game this season as he recovers from a hip injury, but going on the basis of last term he is still central to the way Juventus play. He was still their most prolific passer of the ball, averaging 69 passes per game. He also led Juventus in key passes, making an average of 2.3 per game, placing well ahead of his midfield partners Arturo Vidal (1.5) and Paul Pogba (1.3).

But the appointment of Max Allegri over the summer, following Antonio Conte’s resignation, could see the Old Lady take a different direction without Pirlo, who the process of phasing out has already begun for club and country.

This might be a timely opportunity, not just for the LA Galaxy, but for Pirlo too, who must start to plot his next career move, if indeed there is to be another move. Of course, it’s likely that with Donovan’s retirement opening up a DP slot, the Galaxy are putting out a number of feelers to several players around Europe and even further afield.

Pirlo will be one of a number of options, and with the midfielder set to turn 36 next May the Galaxy may be wary of using a DP slot on a player who is likely to call it a day in the next two years, at the very most.

Arena is a master at tuning his side towards the business end of the season, and once again he has done it in 2014. The Galaxy have won six of their last eight league games, drawing the other two. Their narrow win over FC Dallas was further confirmation of their status as favourites for the MLS Cup, for which playoffs will start at the end of October. If this is Donovan’s farewell tour of the US there has been plenty of tickertape so far.

It is perhaps a mark of just how successful Donovan has been at the LA Galaxy that the club should look to someone like Pirlo as a replacement. Because he wouldn’t be a replacement at all.

The two men play in completely different positions. Going for Pirlo would almost be an admission from the Galaxy that they could never replace Donovan. Whatever happens after his retirement, the LA Galaxy will be a very different team.

Do you think LA Galaxy should sign Andrea Pirlo to replace Landon Donovan? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below