NYCFC earns the 2-0 victory over the New England Revolution

New York City FC remained at home with a showdown in the Bronx against one of their rivals, the New England Revolution on a breezy night at Yankee Stadium on Saturday.

With news of the second phase of the new stadium approved, the Boys in Blue prepared for another match in front of their fans, who cannot wait to have a place of their own after nine years and one MLS Cup title. However, the team still needed to improve their form following their draw to Atlanta United FC last week. 

NYCFC entered their second match of a long five-match homestand, where they desperately needed to come out with a winning record as they sat third to last in the MLS standings entering Saturday. Mounsef Bakrar continues to lack form while Matt Freese is becoming one of the top goalkeepers in the league following his stellar starts for the side. 

New England have also struggled this season, as they sat last in the East with a 1-4-1 record. However, when these two face off, there are always fireworks and a very entertaining match. NYCFC put on a wonderful show, which resulted in a 2-0 win over the Revolution.   

NYCFC take the 2-0 win over the New England Revolution 

Mitja Ilenič returned to the Starting XI after Tayvon Gray had a strong performance last weekend. Also, Agustín Ojeda got his first start for NYCFC in the attacking midfield, while the rest of the lineup remained unchanged.  

It was a quiet first half as both teams battled it out, though NYCFC had the better opportunities to get a goal. As per usual, both Santiago Rodríguez and Hannes Wolf were pressuring the attack while almost putting them on top early. An injury to the Revolution's DeJuan Jones delayed the match, while VAR also overturned a red card decision to Ian Harkes, keeping it at 11 v 11. 

It only took 12 minutes of the start of the second half for NYCFC to find the back of the net, as Ojeda scored a beauty of a goal at the edge of the box to put them on top in the 57th minute. All this was due to Wolf’s build-up in the box, as he continued to shine. 

Julián Fernández also came on the pitch as a substitute and was instantly a threat while keeping the momentum going. It was a risky substitution, with Nick Cushing deciding to take off Wolf.

For Bakrar, he continues to struggle with placement, recording two shots (zero on target) while going scoreless another day. On the bright side, Malachi Jones was able to get some opportunities in front of the net. He’s been impressive since he was drafted as he continues to work on getting minutes in MLS play. 

Just as the match was wrapping up, Fernández went out with a bang with a brilliant shot outside the box to end the game 2-0. It was also his first goal of the season after he proved to be the right substitution for Cushing’s side.  

Freese finally was able to keep his first clean sheet of the season, and well deserved too with five saves in a solid match. He will also be in line for another MLS Team of the Matchday following his performance. 

Not only was this NYCFC’s second win, but it was also their second win in Yankee Stadium. The fans were electric as always, while also watching the team’s best performance of the season against a division rival. 

This win should be a good boost for the Pigeons, who will want to keep this good run of home going to climb back up the table. Cushing’s tactics worked for once while taking complete domination and relying on the young players to step up. They will return to Queens next Saturday as they welcome another rival to the Big Apple in D.C. United at Citi Field.