Harrison, NJ (April 10th, 2018) – On a frosty night at Red Bull Arena, the New York Red Bulls faced a do or die situation. In the end, a tremendous performance by Chivas Guadalajara’s keeper Rodolfo Cota was enough to derail New York’s CONCACAF Champions League run. The performance resulted in a scoreless draw, which provided enough for Chivas to go through to the CCL Final.
Rodolfo Cota Leads Chivas to Eliminate Red Bulls from CCL
With five players brought up through the Red Bulls system starting, head coach Jesse Marsch’s ambitious tactic of moving striker Bradley Wright-Philips into the midfield should have worked. It matched Derrick Etienne Jr. up against Chivas centerback Carlo Salcido. The match-up should have allowed Etienne Jr. to capitalize on the speed advantage. However, despite plenty of opportunities, New York failed to get the ball behind Cota.
The Red Bulls seemed off rhythm all night. They ended the first half with a 55% pass completion. Despite this, New York had all of the quality chances in the match. Unfortunately, Cota was there every time, his best work coming in the second half.
Tim Parker Contributes on Both Sides of the Ball
With Chivas at a clear disadvantage in height, Marsch sought to deploy his centerbacks in as many attacking positions as possible. This largely worked in the first half as players like Tim Parker and Aaron Long crowded the 18-yard box on Red Bulls corners. Some of the best chances of the night came on set piece opportunities.
Parker also contributed on the defensive end, cutting Chivas attackers off as often as possible. Additionally possibly New York’s best chance came in the final moments of the match when Long attempted a diving header. Again, Cota was there.
New York’s frustration was obvious at the end of the match, with Alejandro ‘Kaku’ Gamarra getting involved with several of the Chivas players.
New York returns to MLS play on Saturday at 1 pm. They face the Montreal Impact at Red Bull Arena.
