NYCFC midfielder Santiago Rodriguez (20) plays the ball against Bulls defender Andres Reyes (4) and midfielder Daniel Edelman (75). (Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports)
By Michael Lewis
FrontRowSoccer.com Editor
The defining moment in New York City FC’s 2-0 triumph over the Red Bulls?
Easy.
It came less than a minute after the opening kickoff.
Alex Callens headed home a pass off a corner kick 50 seconds into the match to start the Cityzens on their way to victory and the Red Bulls to a struggle of a match in the Hudson River Derby at Yankee Stadium.
“Right from the start it was a battle and then we gave up a goal a minute in and it showed that those guys were ready to play,” midfielder Daniel Edelman said. “I don’t think we were ready right from the beginning.”
Yes, the Red Bulls tried to bounce back and had a couple of close encounters, but outside of midfielder Lewis Morgan, they don’t have a consistent scoring threat.
“We had our moments again and we were on them, but it was definitely a playoff type game,” Edelman said. “We just needed more energy and enthusiasm. We can’t have our heads down or show any sort of fear being down 2-0 in the 70th minute. We still have to show that there’s hope and that we can come back from the deficit.”
Ah yes, the deficit, which became reality because of sloppy marking by the Red Bulls on a pair of set pieces – corner kicks – to be exact – which buried the visitors in the first half.
“It was our mentality in those moments,” Edelman said. “We thought of it as a moment to take a break, and at the end of the day, you have to want the moments. You have to want the defensive corner kicks and you have to be alive in those moments and want the ball to come into your area. That wasn’t us today.
“It showed in those two moments. They took advantage of it and we weren’t able to clear the ball, and the ball bounces a certain way and they’re ready for it and pounce on it. It’s something that I think we’ve been good at the whole season, but it just shows that against these good teams that we’ve got to stay focused in these moments and really be aware of anything that can happen.”
Not surprisingly, head coach Gerhard Struber was quite disappointed with the result and the way his team defended those corner kicks. Santi Rodriguez scored indirectly off a corner kick in the 23rd minute.
“It’s normally absolutely not what we show on set pieces,” said Struber, who said the Red Bulls were one of the best MLS sides in defensive structure.
“I think it’s the first time that we struggled in this direction. I would say we were not on the same page. In the first situation, we were not sharp enough to come in and get good position for the first touch. … [On] the second one, the problem was that we didn’t step out in the right time. I think this was the biggest problem. … This killed us today. This is very painful that set pieces made the difference, but it’s a big part in a football game. We were in these moments a little bit sleepy.”
