HARRISON, NJ (October 4, 2014) – It took Thierry Henry less than 2 minutes into the second half to sign his name to another Red Bulls victory. In a match that was built up to be another Bradley Wright-Phillips goal fest, it was Wright-Phillips with a clever step over that allowed Henry to score a sitter in the 46th minute, giving New York the victory and a valuable three points in the hunt for a ticket to MLS’ fall carnival.
RBNY: Henry, Red Bulls top Houston Dynamo 1-0
After a week of supposition and turmoil, one would have to expect Henry to come out and make a statement. That statement was loud and clear when he netted his tenth goal of the season, and his 51st all-time MLS goal. Henry talked about the match and finishing the opportunity. “We knew it was going to be difficult against them but we battled and scored one when we needed to score actually on the goal where maybe it didn’t look like it was going to be a goal right from the start and we had other opportunities where we maybe should have done better but at the end of the day we won and that’s the most important thing,” he stated.
The missed chances that Henry spoke about were plentiful. Wright-Phillips nearly had his league leading 25th tally, when his left-footed rebound shot rang off the crossbar in the 23rd minute. The woodwork played a role again in the 38th, when Henry’s direct kick went off the very same crossbar. Houston goalkeeper Tyler Deric was able to stymie Wright-Phillips again in the 58th, when the Englishman was in on goal with only the goalkeeper to stop him after Henry put a perfect pass in his path.
The Red Bulls showed focus on the task at hand, defending effectively while resting Chris Duvall and missing Jamison Olave on yellow card accumulation. In their stead, Armando and Rich Eckersley were both effective in relief. In fact, Eckersley seemed to find himself in a position to be dangerous on the attack. Bradley Wright-Phillips seemed to spend too much time on the flank, not very often finding space in between the opposing centerbacks where he has continuously been successful putting the ball into the back of the net all season. Towards the end of the second half, Houston poured on pressure, having the lion’s share of the possession for long periods. Despite that, New York was able to hold on to get the most favorable result they could.
Of course, the drama off the pitch spilled onto the field at Red Bull Arena. Tim Cahill, coming on as a substitution for Eric Alexander, playing a pivot position in midfield, received a red card in limited action, leaving his club down a man for the closing minutes of this match. On Friday, there were multiple reports of Cahill vocally and publicly expressing his displeasure at being held out of the starting lineup, claiming that his continued international duties were the reason.
Manager Mike Petke addressed the claim in postgame. “To suggest that a player was not in the lineup because of an international call-up is both ridiculous and laughable. We had four games left, three now, that are huge. To suggest that we would leave a player who we think could help us out because he’s going to the national team…We’re proud of him, we’re proud of Roy (Miller), we’re proud of (Ambroise) Oyongo for going to the national team. They represent their country and they represent the club,” Petke said.
Petke paused momentarily, and continued, bristling further, “Guys, we won 1-0 in a massive game tonight…It’s become a big story but it’s not. It’s not a big story. It’s a story that started from reporting that was inaccurate, assumptions made. I addressed it a second ago. The story tonight is a 1-0 win and guys that worked hard about it.”
That hard work has put Petke’s club into sole possession of fourth place, and only two points behind Sporting Kansas City for third position in the East with three matches left to play. Next Saturday, New York welcomes Toronto FC, who drew the Red Bulls in their last visit to Harrison. Currently, Toronto sits in sixth, below the thin red line, with a game in hand, and lost 3-0 to the Los Angeles Galaxy on Saturday night.
Captain Henry framed up the three remaining matches nicely, “I’ve been in this league for a little while and you know, you have to take it game by game. I’ve been here for four years and the guys that have been here with me for a little while know that always it’s a must win game. Every team we play is a must win game because we had some difficulty to find some consistency this year and thankfully for us, we’re on a good run now and we have to keep on going.”
One has to think that if the Red Bulls continue to keep their eye on the common goal, and keep the off pitch drama at bay, they can solidify a playoff berth. The next obstacle in their way is Michael Bradley and Toronto FC.
Photo Credit: Rob Tringali/New York Red Bulls
Thank you for reading. Please take a moment to follow me on Twitter – @Russ_McKenzie and Last Word Soccer Club. Support LWOS by following us on Twitter – @LastWordOnSport – and “liking” our Facebook page.
Feel free to discuss this and other footy related articles with thousands of fans 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?
