Omir Fernandez scored before halftime to win the Hudson River Derby, 1-0 the Red Bulls over NYCFC. It’s just the third road win all season, but it’s their biggest win of the year. Gerhard Struber pushed all the right buttons, while NYCFC continue their struggles.
New York Red Bulls shutout NYCFC 1-0 in Hudson River Derby rematch
Team News
NYCFC make a few changes from the 1-1 draw at Red Bull Arena. Due to red cards for Keaton Parks and Maxime Chanot, Nicolas Acevedo starts in midfield. Another surprise sees Talles Magno and Isamel Tajouri-Shradi start alongside Maxi Moralez up the pitch, Jesus Medina is on the bench. They support Valentin Castellanos, who scored City’s only goal on Wednesday night. Striker Heber also makes the bench.
The New York Red Bulls make a few changes of their own. Kyle Duncan starts in three-man-defense, while Dru Yearwood is fit to start in midfield over Wikelman Carmona who is on the bench. However, there is concern as striker Fabio is out due to a calf issue, per the club. Patryk Klimala leads the line, scorer of the latest goal in MLS regular season history.
NYCFC Lineup (4-2-3-1): (C) Sean Johnson; Gudmundur Thorarinsson, Alexander Callens, James Sands, Anton Tinnerholm; Nicolas Acevedo, Alfredo Morales; Ismael Tajouri-Shradi, Maxi Moralez, Talles Magno; Valentin Castellanos
New York Red Bulls lineup (3-4-3): Carlos Coronel; Andrew Gutman, Sean Nealis, Tom Edwards; John Tolkin, Dru Yearwood, (C) Sean Davis, Kyle Duncan; Omir Fernandez, Cristian Casseres Jr, Patryk Klimala
First Half: Omir Fernandez gives the Red Bulls the lead
It was a fast start as expected, Maxi Moralez fired off the games first shot in the first minute, off target. NYCFC nearly grabbed the lead off a corner but the header was once cleared off the line, then saved by Coronel.
John Tolkin went into the book, the first yellow card of the match. The Red Bulls squandered a golden three-on-one chance, ultimately led to nothing. The Red Bulls would eventually take the lead in the 43rd minute. Duncan would serve a low cross across the box for Fernandez to smash low past Johnson. Just the second goal of the season for the man from the Bronx.
The first half would end with the Red Bulls up a goal. First half stats see six shots apiece for each team, only one shot on target for NYCFC. This game has been much cleaner, less physical than the one last Wednesday night. NYCFC have had all the possession, but the Red Bulls own the lead.
Second Half:
The Red Bulls thought they had doubled their lead, but Klimala was offside after putting the ball in the back of the net. Another shot a few minutes later by Yearwood would be saved by Johnson. Gerhard Struber made his first subs of the match with Andres Reyes and Tom Barlow entering for Edwards and Klimala.
Another Red Bulls sub was made, Wikelman Carmona coming on for goalscorer Fernandez. NYCFC made their own double sub, Heber made his return for Thorarinsson and Malte Amundsen for Callens.
NYCFC nearly tied it but another fine stop by Coronel kept the Red Bulls in the lead. Thiago Andrade entered the match for NYCFC, the final sub for Tajouri-Shradi. Danny Royer entered the match for the Red Bulls in place of Casseres Jr. NYCFC huffed and puffed, but the Red Bulls escape with a 1-0 win.
Three Takeaways from NYCFC vs New York Red Bulls
Omir Fernandez shines again. The Bronx native scored the game winner in the Bronx and has proven himself to be a key player. Fernandez has stepped up and has made the most of his opportunity. Expect more out of the young winger.
Gerhard Struber’s tactical masterclass. He set up his team to pick and choose its moments, and it paid off. There were moments of worry, but Struber pushed the right buttons in a statement win.
NYCFC are struggling, others are taking advantage. While they remain 3rd in the East, they’re just one point above Orlando and Philadelphia. They’re two points above Montreal who owns the last playoff spot. Ronny Deila has much reason to be concerned.
