The 2015 New York Red Bulls season could potentially be a grueling one. The club’s management has undergone a complete overhaul, from nearly from the ground up. The leader of this club for the past five seasons, Thierry Henry, has retired from the sport entirely, leaving a massive hole in the offense for this upcoming season. The regular center backs from last season have been released or traded away. On top of all of this, fans were blind-sided by news that coach Mike Petke had been fired. Petke lead this team to the Supporter’s Shield in 2013 and the Eastern Conference Finals in 2014. Not only has this angered many fans, but a whole campaign to fire the sporting director Ali Curtis, the man responsible for Petke being let go, and to get Red Bull to sell the team has been taken to the streets, literally. A billboard was posted near the New Jersey Turnpike recently with “#RedBullOut” on it. Clearly, the fans are not supporting the energy drink’s management of the club.
2015 New York Red Bulls Season Outlook
Tim Cahill is now rumored to be heading to a club in the United Arab Emirates, which will leave another Designated Player spot open, and a lot more cap room for the club. The Red Bulls have money to spend, but as training camp approaches it doesn’t seem like they will be bringing anybody new to the mix. They don’t have a Thierry Henry lined up, or another Tim Cahill-like player to fill their shoes. Cahill’s commitment to the club this past season has been rather questionable, so fans could welcome somebody who will take the role as a Designated Player a bit more seriously.
It is clear that the Red Bulls need more attackers, and more core defensive players. As of right now, they don’t appear to be picking up anybody new. Center backs are more crucial since they cannot just rely on Luis Robles to save every shot on goal. Bringing up youth system players or college kids won’t cut it, as they lack professional experience. It will take time to adjust if they play nearly every match, but the season could wind up an utter disaster from it; it’s a massive risk.
Up front, the loss of Cahill could be major to the club. They do have Peguy Luyindoila, but he is getting up there in age. They need someone who is young, but has the experience to set up Bradley Wright-Phillips or who can support him. Henry could play an amazing ball, but he is no longer around. Wright-Phillips needs a new partner to deliver a world-class pass or cross into the box. Wright-Phillips can score, a lot, but he can’t do it by running up the field by himself like in a video game. He will need service, and where that is going to come from is a question mark.
Red Bulls management could try South America for some young talent, or they could try Europe to find some players a tad passed their prime and bring them over. Money talks and if they can offer more than what their current club is paying them, chances are they may just get a player to come to MLS. Celtic F.C. has some talent that the Red Bulls could possibly use and Scottish football has been on the decline since Rangers got sent down to the Scottish third division. Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Norway and other smaller leagues could also be some places to look for talent in Europe. The leagues are a tad better than the MLS is currently, and it wouldn’t be too difficult of a play adjustment.
The MLS season starts in less than two months and team just appears to be just sending away their players. As of right now, the outlook is bleak ever since Ali Curtis came into the picture and removed Petke. The fans are not happy, management doesn’t appear to care too much about it, the situation is an utter mess. If management doesn’t do anything soon, the season will wind up a disaster.
Thank you for reading. Support LWOS by following us on Twitter – @LastWordOnSport and @LWOSworld – and “liking” our Facebook page.
Feel free to discuss this and other footy related articles with thousands at r/football.
Have you tuned into Last Word On Sports Radio? LWOS is pleased to bring you 24/7 sports radio to your PC, laptop, tablet or smartphone. What are you waiting for?
