3 things we learned from the dominating win over the San Jose Earthquakes

It was a busy month of May for New York City FC as they had to play six matches, with three on the road. They exceeded all expectations and won five of the six games to collect 15 points to put themselves just a few points behind FC Cincinnati for second place.  

This run of matches is all thanks to the team, with the offense clicking, the defense dominating, and players on the bench stepping up when given the chance to play. They also got back club legend Maxi Moralez on Friday after missing over eight months with an ACL injury. He was a part of the victory over the San Jose Earthquakes, which saw the Pigeons put five into the goal.

All is going well for the Boys in the Blue as their horrific first month of the season is completely past them. Nick Cushing has finally found his groove and has improved tactically as he made crucial subs that impacted the match, rather than ruin them.

 With a long list of things to discuss, here are three things we learned about the 5-1 win over San Jose.

3 things we learned from the win against San Jose

1. Spiderman is back for NYCFC 

Moralez returned to the pitch for the first time this season and was greeted with a roar of screaming fans as he entered for Hannes Wolf. His legacy to the team will never be forgotten as he enters his eighth season. The question is what his new role will be for the team.   

Now that he is older, Moralez is not expected to be an every day starter like he is used to. Still, he will be a valuable piece off the bench, especially after assisting one of the goals on Friday. Whether he is on the pitch or the bench, the Argentine will bring a leadership presence and loads of experience to the Pigeons as they head into the summer with more to play for.

2. Alonso Martínez the super sub 

Alonso Martínez subbed onto the match and was indeed the game changer. He recorded three goals in about 10 minutes, which is the fastest hat trick ever in club history, beating out both David Villa and Valentín Castellanos. This puts him at six goals in 10 appearances. When given the chance to play, Martínez is thrilling to watch as he has shown his talent in the last few matches.   

However, he continues to share playing time with Julián Fernández, Agustín Ojeda, and Malachi Jones. This is a good problem that Nick Cushing has in that he has more than one option of players to start in the attack. Therefore, if a player is injured, then another one can slide in his place. For Martinez, he has already shown his talent and is set for more starts with a big month of June coming up.

3. Wrapping up an amazing month of May

After opening the month with a disappointing 2-0 loss to the Colorado Rapids, NYCFC have not looked back and since have won five matches in a row. They are among one of the league’s best defensive teams, especially with Matt Freese among the league leaders in saves. Winning away from home was the biggest improvement, taking victories in Toronto, Philadelphia, and New England.   

Not to mention the huge Hudson River derby win over the New York Red Bulls that put the Bronx side ahead of them in the standings. Everything seems to be clicking for NYCFC as they close out May as one of the top teams in MLS. Looking ahead to June, they will have some challenging games. This includes fixtures against the Columbus Crew, who won the 2023 MLS Cup, and the LA Galaxy.