NEW YORK -- The newest team in Major League Soccer is doing its part to fill Yankee Stadium with stars. New York City FC introduced Frank Lampard in Brooklyn on Thursday after signing the 36-year-old former Chelsea midfielder to a two-year contract. "Why not New York? Talk about ticking all the boxes. I want to carry on challenging myself." Lampard said at a news conference . "Thats a great challenge, isnt it? City of hopes and dreams. Thats where you want to go to and play isnt it?" The club owned by Manchester City of the Premier League and the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball previously signed David Villa of Atletico Madrid. Both City and Atletico won league championships last year, meaning the expansion soccer team set to begin playing home games at the ballpark in 2015 is also bringing more champions to the Bronx than Yankee Stadiums full-time tenants have lately. The news conference was held at Brooklyn Bridge Park, where several soccer fields share space on a pier in the East River across from Lower Manhattan. A couple dozen fans, many in blue Chelsea jerseys, gathered around to listen, at times cheering and getting laughs from the dais, where Lampard was flanked by club sporting director Claudio Reyna , chief business officer Tim Pernetti, and coach Jason Kreis. Lampard, who has scored 211 goals for England and Chelsea, became the latest international star to move to MLS. Most famous was David Beckham, who joined the Los Angeles Galaxy in 2007 from Real Madrid. "I think this is an incredibly exciting time for the league," Kreis said. Lampard is "a rare talent, one that scores a lot of goals from midfield, yet is also a disciplined defender and someone who reads the game brilliantly." Lampard was asked about a widely reported encounter with American travellers in 2001, shortly after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, when he and teammates were fined following reports they were behaving drunkenly and boorishly in front of the distraught Americans. "I was naive and a young boy at the time and I have some regrets," Lampard said. "I categorically didnt insult anyone, set out to insult anyone, behave badly in front of Americans or in fact anyone. Ive tried in the last 13 years at Chelsea to build up -- well, to just be a good man really and not just be a good footballer, but a good man off the pitch. ... Unfortunately it was very much misreported at the time in England and its actually a chance for me to finally say that." Lampard, speaking with the skyline behind him across the river, said he "of course" plans to visit the Sept. 11 memorial. "You visit this great city, you know what it means to New Yorkers. I think you go and pay your respects, so yes I will," he said. Kreis said the team examined the situation and considers the matter resolved. His newest player is someone with strong feelings about New York. "I want New Yorkers to hear that and see that," Lampard said. "Its up to me to show them here and prove the footballer I am and the person that I am." James Milner Jersey . -- Canadian Erik Bedard pitched into the fifth inning in his bid to win a spot in Tampa Bays rotation, helping the Rays beat the Toronto Blue Jays 6-3 on Saturday. Roberto Firmino Jersey . -- Edwin Encarnacion hit a three-run homer, Colby Rasmus drove in two runs and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Detroit Tigers 9-4 on Saturday. http://www.liverpoolgear.us/Authentic-Divock-Origi-Liverpool-Jersey/ . Roy says he will know more about Duchenes potential playing status Sunday. Duchene has been out since damaging the MCL in his left knee when he ran into a teammate against San Jose on March 29. Hes been skating on his own all week, before joining the team Saturday hours before a pivotal game in a series tied at 2. Naby Keita Liverpool Jersey . -- The Washington Redskins coaching staff distanced itself from other coaches Thursday by siding with ownership -- and not the players -- in the NFLs labour dispute. Curtis Jones Liverpool Jersey . JOHNS, N. LONDON -- Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal -- and sometimes both -- appeared in all 10 Wimbledon finals from 2003-12, combining to claim nine of those titles. Neither made it that far in 2013. Not even close. Federer lost his second match at the All England Club. Nadal exited in the first round, a year after bowing out in the second. With play at Wimbledon starting Monday, Federer and Nadal are eager to return to the heights they once reached with regularity at the grass-court Grand Slam tournament. They sound certain that they are prepared to fare better than 12 months ago -- and, as might be expected from a seven-time champion, Federer came right out and called himself "a contender." "I feel like, yeah, if things click here, I should be able to win the tournament," Federer said Saturday. "I feel I have a very good chance again this year. I hope to utilize my fitness, the amount of matches Ive played this year," he added. "So Im really coming in with a much better feeling." Federer tuned up for Wimbledon, where he is seeded fourth, by winning a title on grass at Halle, Germany, last weekend. That showing gave Federer all the assurance he needed that his game is in prime form at the moment, especially on the slick surface he dominated for a decade. Last season, Federer explained, there were "certain things I wanted to do, but I couldnt figure out or couldnt do it." "This year," he continued, "I feel all the options are there. Return, serve, serve and volley, come in, my backhand -- everything is working to my liking. For that reason, I feel Im a bit more relaxed mentally, because I know it is there. I clearly want to do better than last year, theres no doubt about it.dddddddddddd" So does the second-seeded Nadal, of course. He reached five Wimbledon finals and earned a pair of trophies, including by edging Federer 9-7 in the fifth set in 2008. They met in three consecutive title matches at the All England Club from 2006-08, and could meet in the semifinals this year. First things first, though. Nadal has a test in the first round against big-hitting Martin Klizan, then could face Lukas Rosol, the man who stunned the Spaniard in 2012s second round. The third round could bring a challenge from tough server Ivo Karlovic. For now, Nadal is most pleased with the state of his left knee, which acted up during his 7-6 (4), 7-6 (8), 6-4 loss in 2013 to 135th-ranked Steve Darcis, saying it "hurts less this year than last year." Thats allowed Nadal to put in longer hours than usual on the practice courts this week, a key as the nine-time French Open champion transitions from clay to grass, on which he has lost three matches in a row. A year ago at Wimbledon, a 6-7 (5), 7-6 (5), 7-5, 7-6 (5) loss to 116th-ranked Sergiy Stakhovsky ended Federers streak of getting at least to the quarterfinals at 36 consecutive major tournaments. It was Federers earliest Grand Slam defeat since May 2003. Somber that day, at least Federer can joke about it now. He said that when he ran into Stakhovsky on Friday, they kidded around about how they could only meet in the final this year, because they were drawn into opposite sides of the bracket. "So its all good for both of us," Federer said, then paused before delivering the punch line: "For me, at least." ' ' '