3 things we learned from NYCFC’s draw against the Chicago Fire

New York City FC returned to the grind following their Leagues Cup campaign over the summer. They showed their potential against top teams. However, they still need to work on a few more things to see results against the elite teams. The Pigeons entered the match in fifth place on the table, with Chicago Fire FC down in 14th place. The visitors lost Swiss star Xherdan Shaqiri after mutually terminating his contract, leaving the side with less depth in the attack.

The Boys in Blue faced the Chicago Fire on Saturday in Queens. A field where they always saw success, the ball was already in their court after having taken the win against the side last season at Citi Field in a 1-0 victory during Decision Day 2023. After their strong Leagues Cup tournament, it was expected for them to get a win during Kids Day at the stadium.

Things turned for the worse, again, as NYCFC took a frustrating 2-2 draw over Chicago. Despite the Alonso Martínez brace, the Queens team played defensively. However, they allowed a crucial goal during the final 15 minutes of the match, with a penalty call leading to the second goal during extra time.  

Surely, there is much to be discussed. Here are three things we learned from NYCFC's 2-2 draw against Chicago.  

3 things we learned from NYCFC’s draw 

1. Alonso Martínez is him 

Following the fastest goal in club history from Martínez, he was given another opportunity to start at the No. 9 position for the team on Saturday. He put NYCFC on top early, scoring a brace in less than 10 minutes. Three of the four shots attempted Saturday were on target, with two landing in the back of the net. His speed and pace resulted in success at the striker position.

In 18 MLS matches, Martínez scored 10 goals, including three multi-scoring games. He could be the answer that NYCFC has been missing, a consistent striker. At 25 years old, the Costa Rican has his starting role in the bag as he is set to continue to practice his chemistry with the team in the attack to improve his form even more.

2. Why are Nick Cushing’s substitutions a problem?

The NYCFC players were on a role Saturday, maintaining most of the possession through 75 minutes of the match while cruising their way to a win. This prompted Cushing to remove Maxi Moralez, Santiago Rodríguez, and Martínez, their top three attackers. This resulted in a lack of chemistry in the midfield, leading to the two goals for Chicago. Removing all three players was the key issue, especially their number one player Rodríguez.

This is not the first time that NYCFC has lost games in the final half of the game, losing to FC Cincinnati during the Leagues Cup 4-2 after going up 2-0 during the first 60 minutes. Should Cushing be more cautious of his substitutions? This is the million-dollar question if the Pigeons want to improve on keeping their winning result.  

3. Should the MLS refs take more accountability? 

This is the second time this season that NYCFC has been a victim of poor referee calls. During the earlier season clash with the Columbus Crew at Yankee Stadium, two huge calls led to them scoring two goals and taking the disappointing loss. While the penalty kick call on Tayvon Gray was sadly correct, there were numerous calls, or rather no-calls, that were not.

One of the biggest was a possible penalty kick in the box that was missed by the referee. It appeared Rodríguez was fouled, but there was no VAR review. There were also a few no-calls on fouls throughout the game. NYCFC is not the only team that is a victim of poor calls, as it had been an issue in MLS all season. Though NYCFC did not have much power in a situation like this, the issue should be looked at as it could lead to close seedings in the MLS Playoffs.