HARRISON, N.J. – The New York Red Bulls have enjoyed a successful September by putting together a four-game unbeaten run, and they have done it in a new formation.
Head coach Mike Petke has opted to line the Red Bulls up in a 4-2-3-1, with Eric Alexander and Dax McCarty playing the key roles as dual holding midfielders. Not only have the two veterans strengthened a defense that has had major issues this season, but there seems to be a real positional understanding between one another.
Their on-field chemistry is not entirely surprising, given that they played together at FC Dallas before becoming teammates once again in New York, but it is a big reason why the Red Bulls have gone 3-0-1 in September against some talented opposition.
“We still give some goals away and easy opportunity for the other team, but I think we’re in a better shape playing like this,” Thierry Henry said. “We always, most of the time, have 10 guys behind the ball – nine, sometimes – and it’s easier to defend that way. We all know we can score goals – we didn’t have a lot of games this year when we didn’t create, when we didn’t score … [but] we were a bit too open sometimes when we were losing the ball, and having those guys there and also the team working hard, it’s better for us.”
The tactical adjustment started in the 2-1 win over Sporting Kansas City on Sept. 6. Since McCarty was too often finding himself as the only player supporting New York's back four, Petke asked McCarty and Alexander to both stay deeper. It was a move that required more discipline and sacrifice from the two midfielders, who are capable two-way players, and it is a move that has stuck due to New York’s ensuing success.
“That comes down to two huge players for us, Dax and Eric, over the last four games being that stop-gap, the clog in the middle,” Petke said following the team's win over the Seattle Sounders on Saturday. “It’s one thing that I don’t think I’ve fully convinced them, and over the last year-and-a-half I haven’t been able to convince Dax until lately that it might not be beautiful and might not be sexy, this type of role. But this type of role is going to get you to a higher level, this type of role is going to help this team, this type of role is going to win us games. He’s as close as I’ve ever seen him in my year-and-a-half as a coach here, so he’s buying into it.”
The duo's impressive displays in more withdrawn positions also mean that Designated Player midfielder Tim Cahill is unlikely to claim a regular starting spot for the time being. Cahill showed in 2013 that he can be a difference-maker at forward or in the midfield, but the impressive form of the league's leading scorer, Bradley Wright-Phillips, and New York’s new formation will make it tough for Cahill to fit in.
That is not to say that the Australian international will have no place on the team. As Cahill showed this past weekend when he scored his second goal of the season to ice the game against Seattle, he can be a valuable substitute by adding a different dimension to the attack or by solidifying the defense with grit and tenacity in midfield. It might not be an ideal role for Cahill, but it is one that could work best for the Red Bulls.
“What an attitude he had coming off the bench and making a difference,” McCarty said of Cahill against Seattle. “His goal was obviously great for him, great for his confidence because he’s been unlucky. He should have, obviously, more goals this year. I think it was his hold-up play, his willingness to mix it up with the big center backs. That’s what you expect from your big players, and he came on and made a big difference for us.”
Franco Panizo covers the New York Red Bulls for MLSsoccer.com. He can be reached by email at Franco8813@gmail.com.
