HARRISON, N.J. – If the New York Red Bulls are to win for the third time in eight days this weekend, they will do so with nearly the same lineup that got them this far.
Fresh off a pair of victories against Sporting Kansas City in the regular-season finale and the Eastern Conference Knockout Round game, the Red Bulls will host rivals D.C. United on Sunday in the first leg of the Eastern Conference semifinal series of the MLS Cup Playoffs, presented by AT&T.
Which team will win the series?
New York are feeling some fatigue after a tough week that saw them play in Kansas City last Sunday before returning home for Thursday’s dramatic 2-1 win, but that won’t dissuade head coach Mike Petke from sticking with mostly the same group of starters.
“You could expect one change, tactically,” Petke said after Saturday’s rainy and cold training session at Red Bull Arena. “Aside from that, we’ll obviously get a better understanding after practice now about guys how they’re feeling, but not major changes at all.”
It’s unclear who Petke’s one lineup switch will be or if perhaps he’s bluffing ahead of the team’s fourth matchup this year against DC, but it’s hard not to envision the Red Bulls making a lineup adjustment after this week’s short turnarounds.
Last Sunday’s game and Thursday’s tight affair have forced New York to spend the past couple of days trying to rest and recover rather than training hard, and on Saturday the club had a very light practice in an effort to be as fresh as possible for Sunday.
“We had regeneration,” said Bradley Wright-Phillips, the hero from Thursday’s win who now has a banner with his initials and regular-season goal total of 27 over section 127 at Red Bull Arena. “The day after the game we came and had a knock around and then we’ve come back here today, watched some video like we normally do, and go from there.”
By comparison, D.C. United should be well rested going into this one. They have not played since last Saturday’s 1-1 draw at the Montreal Impact, and have been able to prepare as they normally would throughout the week.
It might be a tough ask to have New York beat DC given their drastically different walk-ups to the match, but the Red Bulls are confident that they have enough left in the tank to start this series off on the right foot.
“Very, very challenging, but it’s reality, just part of what we have to deal with,” Petke said. “The guys seem and look good. Everybody seems pretty healthy. Obviously, it would be stupid to think some of them aren’t a little bit tired, but I’m certain that game time tomorrow they’ll be up for it.”
