The New York Red Bulls (0-1-1) open up Red Bull Arena to its fans for the first time in 2013 against much hated rivals, DC United (1-1-0). Fresh still are the wounds of the Eastern Conference semifinals, where DC bounced NY in their own stadium. This will be the first of three matches between these foes this season, battling for both one of five spots in the Eastern Conference playoffs and the Atlantic Cup.
Since the exit from the playoffs, a lot has changed in NY. Upper management has all new faces, gone are some fan favorites in Joel Lindpere, Jan Gunnar Solli and some not so fan favorites in Rafa Marquez. Hans Backe is no longer in command; for Mike Petke is now calling the shots from the technical area. NY has brought in some MLS veterans, some journeyman, a dead ball specialist, and some surprising young faces. DC has not done much, most notably the addition of longtime MLS vet Carlos Ruiz.
New York, coming off a gut-wrenching loss in San Jose where they saw an 83rd minute 1-0 lead slip to a 2-1 loss after Miller Time (which normally only comes out in the playoffs) reared its ugly head, is looking for its first win of the season after dropping halftime leads in their previous two matches.
Backline in Flux
After consecutive weeks of New York’s defense having mental lapses that cost them points, Mike Petke told reporters on Thursday that change is coming to the backline. There is no indication of what kind of change that will consist of but NY fans can only hope it sees Roy Miller, who has been called up for Costa Rica’s World Cup Qualifiers against the US and Jamaica, on the bench. Best-case scenario would be to slot Heath Pearce at left back and give Markus Holgersson his first minutes of 2013. Reports out of Red Bull practice say Holgersson is one of the hardest workers in practice and I’m still not personally sold on Heath Pearce as a center back or Connor Lade as a fullback. Even though Petke says the barklage/Kimura race is still hot, I would expect Petke to give the young Barklage the nod as last time out against DC United, he scored to stunning first half goals.
Playing Smart
After the 3-3 draw in Portland, Petke talked about going back to the basics and playing smart soccer. Well in San Jose, someone forgot to tell the backline and Luis Robles. NY was lucky to only lose 2-1, as San Jose was unable to capitalize on a lot of NY’s boneheaded plays. On more than one occasion, a NY player threw the ball back to Robles who, under pressure, had to bomb the ball out of his area. On all occasions, the player taking the throw didn’t even look to see who was open, they just threw it back to Robles, making all Red Bull fans (and probably Mike Petke) sweat. Besides the throw-ins, there were a few back passes that were unnecessary. To make matters worse, Luis Robles decided to try and juggle the ball 5 or 6 yards away from his own net and almost easily gave San Jose a goal. If some players didn’t understand Petke’s instruction on simplicity, I bet they do now after watching that tape and having Petke breathe down their neck all week in practice.
Offensive Spark
It’s a little unfair to say the offense needs a spark after scoring four goals in five games, however, some of the players need a bit of a spark to get them going. While Espindisola once again was mobile, his strike partner in Thierry Henry has been stagnant. This time last year, Henry was coming off a magical return to Arsenal and started off the season with a bang at home. Maybe it is the way NY has been lining up away but Henry has not really threatened for goal. NY did miss Juninho in SJ and it is probable he will see time against DC but it is unknown in what capacity. If NY has Juninho in the midfield, Henry can stay closer to the backline that should be getting pushed back by Espindola. It’s at this point most would expect me to complain about Tim Cahill’s lack of production but I won’t. I want Tim Cahill to keep doing what he is doing. In NY’s better half, Cahill was finding a way to get on every ball into the box he could. Sure he mishit one clear chance and headed it off of Dax McCarty on another, but the fact he keeps finding this space makes me believe the goals will start flowing soon. Also, he’s our best defender on set pieces in the defensive third and no one takes note of that.
DC’s Midfield
While DC will be missing MLS veteran John Thorington, they get back a guy by the name of Dwayne De Rosario. Never heard of him, you say? Well let’s just say De Ro has won four MLS Cups, two MLS Cup MVP’s, a league MVP, and has scored over 100 goals in MLS. Along with the likes of Chris Pontius (a Red Bull killer), Nick Deleon (the making of a Red Bull killer), and Perry Kitchen, New York has their work cut out for them.
This is going to be a very physical game that should get some players blood boiling, if it’s not already. NY’s midfield will need to posses the ball and keep DC’s midfield from winning the second ball inside of NY’s defensive area. With the way this rivalry has played out and how talented both teams are, it’s a game I’m not willing to predict until I see the actual lineups. However, if Roy Miller does see the field on Saturday, I will predict louder boos for a New York player by the NY fans over any DC player for the first time.
(image courtesy of newyorkredbulls.com)
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