Last Word on Sports and View From South Ward would like to welcome Brian Looney onto the team!
With 11 games played so far, the Red Bulls have 3 wins, 3 loses, and 5 draws adding up to 14 points. That isn’t too bad, they are in the last playoff spot, but the teams out have games at hand. So how do they become more consistent?
Forwards Thierry Henry and Bradley Wright-Phillips have been debatably the best goal-scoring duo thus far in the season. (Wright-Phillips leads the MLS with 9 goals and Henry has 3 goals and 4 assists.) So needless to say they are here to stay.
The defense so far has been less than stellar, especially in the last game against the Chicago Fire where they made way too many costly mistakes. But the great goalkeeping of Luis Robles has bailed them out on most nights.
But, something that could work is a change in the Red Bulls midfield. There are a few options on how to exactly change them up, so here’s a list:
- Change the formation to 4-1-2-1-2
Throughout the season, the main formation that coach Mike Petke has been rolling with is a 4-4-2. This formation has worked in the past for New York, especially last season, but that was the past, and maybe they need a fresh new formation.
With this formation, you can still have Henry and Wright-Phillips at the top, Cahill at the CAM spot, and Alexander, Sam, and Luyindula rotating on the wings. The only questionable spot is the CDM position behind Cahill. You can stick McCarty there, but usually that spot is for a big man that can win headers, and that is certainly not him standing in at 5’9”.
2. Change the formation to a 4-5-1
This is a risky change, but one that could be beneficial. Usually I would say to put Henry as the lose striker, but with the season that Wright-Phillips is having, the choice is easy. That leaves Henry in that #10 role right behind Wright-Phillips.
Now that is the risky part, Henry would have to buy into not pushing up all the time, but instead trying to thread Wright-Phillips with that killer pass to send him in on goal. Then you would have McCarty and Cahill as the RCM and LCM, leaving Sam, Alexander, and Luyindula as the winger options.
This formation is most beneficial for keeping great possession in the midfield, which would work well for New York because they have very skilled midfielders that can keep great possession and pass the ball around while frustrating the opponent.
3. Work through the summer transfer window.
The summer transfer window is always the better of the two because it is in the offseason of almost every league in the world besides the MLS. Most players would rather transfer to a new team in the offseason than during the middle of the season.
As stated before, I believe that a must get is a big center midfielder that can win almost every header that comes their way. Another viable option could be a speedy winger that can be sent to the corner flag and send in crosses towards Henry and Wright-Phillips.
It shouldn’t be too hard trying to find someone to make the switch to the MLS side, New York has a big soccer market, and they play in the shadow of the greatest city on the planet. But a better choice is looking in the MLS that is used to the league to come in.
So those are some great options, in my opinion, to change up the Red Bulls midfield to make them just a bit better. They have been good do far, but maybe they need a change to refresh them and make things feel new.
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photo credit – Marc Fiorilli [email protected], all rights reserved
