Alexi Lalas: Loans from MCFC will count as DPs

Head coach Jason Kreis made news recently when he said that NYCFC will "have the ability to take four players on loan from (Manchester City".

Now soccer analyst and former defender Alexi Lalas appears to clarify how that might work:

Loans to @MLS: Rule is, as long as player isn't from "parent club", salary cap charge is based only on what league is paying player.

— Alexi Lalas (@AlexiLalas) February 14, 2014

So if I'm reading this correctly, because the four players would be coming from NYCFC's parent club, they would have to conform to MLS salary cap regulations or be paid as Designated Players. That would explain why Kreis is looking specifically at their U-21 and U-18 squads, to find young talent that wouldn't impact his ability to also sign high-profile DPs.

But... four? Are they adding another DP slot by 2015?