With the flagging Columbus Crew in the midst of a 13-game winless MLS run, the prospect of playing up to eight games in 22 days and the fact that they are locked in a tight battle for playoff spots, the New York Red Bulls knew that they needed to take the full three points on Saturday night at Crew Stadium.
For much of the night however, the Red Bulls had a scant amount of chances on goal (generating three shots on goal), while a determined Columbus side was able to control the brunt of the game as they won, 1-0.
Though it has only been two games in which New York has been shutout - the Red Bulls tied D.C. United, 0-0, in its other MLS match, head coach Bruce Arena acknowledged his concerns about the team's ability to find the back of the net.
"We just didn't get a lot of quality opportunities [tonight]," said defender Todd Dunivant. "I think our service from the wide areas hasn't been that good, we haven't had a lot of balls that had put them under pressure and I think we need to do a better job of whipping in crosses behind the defense and putting them under more pressure."
Some of it had to do with fatigue, as the Red Bulls played two of its more emotionally straining games in the past week - an exhibition versus Ronaldinho and UEFA Champions League winner, FC Barcelona and the draw with D.C. United last Wednesday.
"We just moved the ball a little bit slower than the other night [against D.C. United] and gave them time to get behind the ball," said goalkeeper Tony Meola, who made three saves.
"We have an unusual number of games over the next couple of weeks and ... these guys need time off. They don't need more practice," Arena said.
For Arena, in only his second official MLS game at the helm of the team, he said he needs more time to figure out what combinations work well and to get a sense of his squad. Arena indicated that he will rest some of his players for the team's U.S. Open Cup quarterfinal game against D.C. United this upcoming Wednesday.
"I think it's too early to tell right now. I need more games to get a sense." Arena said.
"For whatever reason, the legs weren't there and mentally, I thought we were tired as well," Dunivant said. "We weren't making the little plays you need to do to win game and even though they didn't have a lot of chances, we had enough mental breakdowns to give them that one look and they punished us for it."
Wolyniec makes New York return
Less than 24 hours after joining New York for the third time in his career, forward John Wolyniec made his 2006 debut for the Red Bulls, coming on as a substitute for Edson Buddle in the 80th minute. Wolyniec was acquired by the club from the Los Angeles Galaxy for a pair of draft picks on Thursday.
Prior to being traded, along with a partial allocation, to Columbus for Ante Razov, the last game that Wolyniec played for New York was on June 4, 2005 at Los Angeles in a 2-2 draw. Eighteen of Wolyniec's 25 career MLS goals were scored when he was with New York, including the season-high 10 he hit in 2004.
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