One lone mistake leads NYCFC to a Hudson River Derby loss to the Red Bulls

New York City FC knew the importance of winning on Friday night. Not only was the Hudson River Derby on the line, but the Pigeons desperately needed another three points. They need to win as much as they can, and they do not want to return to winless ways after ending the streak last week. Knowing what to do is one thing.

Putting words into action is another, but sadly, NYCFC could not get the win. The terrible time at home this season continued as the Boys in Blue fell 1-0.

NYCFC wanted to put on a great performance, especially since two coaching giants were there to watch the match. Mauricio Pochettino, who is the current head coach of the USMNT, and Pep Guardiola, who was most recently the manager of sister club Manchester City FC, watched the derby in what might be the last one or second-to-last one at Yankee Stadium.

Alas, the failure to put the ball into the goal and a mistake led to a loss, and the Red Bulls hopped over the blue side in the standings.

NYCFC lost to their rivals

NYCFC was ready to play, though, and they were full of energy when the match began. It was hoped that the Real Salt Lake win would provide confidence, and the team looked like a different team in their play.

Eventually, things settled down, but the Pigeons controlled the pace of play and excitement. The passes were crisp and beautiful, and everyone was on the same page. There were a few good scoring attempts during the first 30 minutes, including Nicolás Fernández Mercau’s shot that went just wide. Andrés Perea tried his luck with a powerful shot right at the goal, but it was saved.

Also in the first half, Luighi and Agustín Ojeda created opportunities in the box and near the end line. Ojeda had two brilliant passes into the box, but they were subsequently blocked and cleared away by the Red Bulls. Luighi also tried to score from near the goal, but Ethan Horvath got down quickly to force the ball out of danger.

There were concerns that the Red Bulls were figuring out the game, as the New Jersey side became more threatening right before halftime.

Hence, NYCFC needed to find more shots on target and subdue the surging attack from the red side. The Boys in Blue continued to have solid attacking chances, but that was not good enough. Luighi should have scored in the 52nd minute with nobody in front of him, but he curled the ball on the ground slightly wide. Not scoring came back to haunt the Boys in Blue in the 57th minute.

It was a poor mistake that opened the scoring for RBNY. James Sands had a weak pass that allowed Julian Hall to creep up and steal the ball. With only Matt Freese in front of him, the goalkeeper attempted to stop him by coming out of the box, but that attempt was null and void. Hall easily slotted the ball into the goal, and it was another embarrassing goal allowed by the Pigeons.

That was a perfect moment to describe the season. NYCFC was playing decently well, but one lone mistake killed them. Despite a continued attacking blue presence, the Red Bulls were wide awake. There was a shift, and the fans around Yankee Stadium could feel it.

The major problem, though, was not that visitors were dominating. The Boys in Blue had their chances. But they were dealing with a hungry defense that made it challenging to get the ball into the net.

There was a fantastic moment for Alonso Martínez, who came on as a substitute. He had the ball and tried to make it go through Horvath, but an intervention instead forced a corner kick. In addition, Thiago Martins had a few header attempts, including the 81st-minute attempt at the top center of the goal. But the Red Bull keeper again had other ideas.

Notably, the rivals never found the back of the net again. But NYCFC never found it at all, and once again, fans watched an awful loss. One mistake was all it took. A 0-0 draw would have been better at this rate.

Hopefully, this is not the start of another winless streak.

Add us as a preferred source on Google