HANOVER, N.J. – Already missing starting fullback Roy Miller due to suspension, the New York Red Bulls have been left with the tough task of preparing without his likely replacement.
The Red Bulls will host the New England Revolution in the first leg of their Eastern Conference Championship on Sunday (1:30 pm ET, NBC/NBC Live Extra), and face a dilemma of sorts given that backup Ambroise Oyongo is currently away on international duty.
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Oyongo started in Cameroon’s scoreless draw with Ivory Coast in an African Cup of Nations qualifier on Wednesday, and is not expected back in the New York area until Thursday.
That means the 23-year-old defender – who head coach Mike Petke all but confirmed would fill in for the suspended Miller immediately after the Red Bulls advanced past D.C. United last round – will likely not train until Friday at the earliest, leaving him with just two days to get up to speed with the preparations for Sunday’s game at Red Bull Arena.
“Of course it puts us in an awkward and interesting situation: That we’re working on things leading up to this game and he’s not with us. But we’ve covered ourselves with more than one scenario in that spot,” said Petke. “We’ve been working on that spot with the other available players that we feel can do it. I feel that no matter who we go with, we’re covered.
“If it’s Oyongo, we’re confident with his ability to come in with just two days and listen to what we’ve been doing and drill it in his head and he won’t miss a beat. If it’s somebody that we’ve been looking at over the last week, well, he’s been doing it the last week. If he’s going, [it’s] because we’re happy with the way he’s done.”
Some of New York's potential alternatives include starting Richard Eckersley on the left flank and inserting rookie Chris Duvall on the right, or deploying reserve center back Armando out wide. Still, Oyongo seems to be the player most likely to get the nod, given that he has usually replaced Miller when the Costa Rican has been absent this season.
A few concerns linger, however. On top of having to play catchup in terms of the game plan, Oyongo has to deal with lengthy travel and recovery, and has no prior experience in the MLS Playoffs, presented by AT&T.
The latter concern might be negated somewhat by his recent international experiences with Cameroon. But it could come into play – just as it has in recent years with some of the more seasoned players on the Red Bulls.
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“I’m a firm believer in, you have to learn from your experiences. And it’s funny, people say in soccer all the time, ‘Age doesn’t matter. If you’re good enough to play, you play,’” said midfielder Dax McCarty. “I think that’s true on one hand. On the other hand, you need to go through bad experiences to be able to learn from them and be able to correct them.
“You have to go through that pain. You have to go through that hurt to really be able to learn from those mistakes.”
Petke and the Red Bulls sound far from worried, though. Oyongo has stepped up and performed admirably when asked to do so in 2014, and the combination of his capable defending and fearless attacking skills has them plenty confident that he can get the job done.
If he is summoned, that is.
“I don’t think the MLS Playoffs are going to intimidate him, not at all,” said Petke. “I don’t have any concern with that whatsoever.”
Franco Panizo covers the New York Red Bulls for MLSsoccer.com. He can be reached by email at Franco8813@gmail.com.
