HANOVER, N.J. – After three straight losses, some rest for the weary is on the horizon.
A bye week will offer the chance for an out-of-form New York Red Bulls side to step away from the pitch in the hopes of getting back to their winning ways.
“When you’re winning you don’t want a break,” midfielder Lloyd Sam told MLSsoccer.com. “But the facts say we’ve lost three in a row, so it’s good to have a little break. We’ll refocus on what we need to do. It was nice, but we’re already back to work.”
That focus has seemingly let them down in recent weeks, as second halves have been particularly unkind for New York. In their past six matches, the Red Bulls have conceded 11 times, with all but one of those goals coming in the second 45 of the match. The lack of sharpness in the latter stages has been evident, but the team contends they are taking measures to correct the downward trend.
“I don’t think it’s fatigue,” Sacha Kljestan said after training. “I just think it’s a bit of concentration and a bit of that hunger that we showed a lot of in the beginning of the season. [Lately] we’ve kind of dropped off a bit. I feel like the hunger’s not there, so we need to go back to the basics, go back to how we started the season and everything will be OK. I still have a lot of confidence in our group.”
Perhaps their only saving grace lies in their relatively safe standing in the league table, although hardly by virtue of their recent form. Despite a paltry 1-4-3 record over their last eight matches, the Red Bulls remain in a playoff position thanks in large part to their inclusion in the Eastern Conference. By contrast, their 17 points would see New York near the cellar of the Western Conference in ninth place.
Regardless, the Red Bulls are far from satisfied with their recent play. And while seemingly addressing one concern from earlier in the season, a new hurdle has presented itself.
“At first we were saying that we need to get the first goal, and that was a big emphasis,” Sam added. “Now, it seems like we got the first goal the last couple of games, but the results haven’t been there.”
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After winning each of the first four games in which they’d tallied first, New York have now dropped two straight, away to Seattle and Houston, when staked to a 1-0 lead.
“Certainly we can do a better job of not giving away so many easy chances,” head coach Jesse Marsch said. “But it’s also been the case that we don’t give a whole lot away, but everything that we do give away goes in.
“It’s been two difficult environments that we’ve gone into, so it’s hard to pinpoint exactly [what’s wrong], but we need to be sharper and smarter and better.”
