HARRISON, New Jersey – The New York Red Bulls began Sunday's season opener against Toronto FC with a Supporters' Shield celebration and banner-raising ceremony.
By the end of 90 minutes, nobody at Red Bull Arena was in a partying mood.
Despite controlling most of the play against Toronto FC, the visitors – more accurately, reigning Landon Donovan MLS MVP Sebastian Giovinco – found a pair of openings in the final 10 minutes to send the Red Bulls to a 2-0 loss.
So, what happened? Well, part of the credit goes to Toronto for their preparation – and the rest can be chalked up to New York’s form and fitness.
"With the first game of the season, you know we are not going to be our sharpest," head coach Jesse Marsch said. "We had moments where normally you see us create better chances off of certain plays or finish plays off, and we don't quite do it.
"I am not discouraged by that. I knew today wasn't going to be our sharpest day because it is the start of the year."
That, of course, isn't meant to take away from Toronto's performance. Greg Vanney's side put in a physical and disciplined performance, patiently defending throughout the first half of the match and exposing the Red Bulls' weary legs in the second en route to an unlikely victory.
"They came in with a gameplan and executed better than we did – and they wind up winning," Marsch said. "Congratulations to Toronto. We have to be sharper at moments and understand this is often what games look like when we play here."
Midfielder Lloyd Sam echoed his coach's sentiments, crediting Toronto for "slowing the game down, sitting back and trying to make it a difficult soccer game." Still, like his coach, Sam said the result isn’t an indicator of the season to come.
"We had a couple of chances, but their tactics were pretty good," he said. "They looked like they prepared for us for a while and knew what to do."
