The New York Red Bulls may have needed a late wonder goal from Wilman Conde to avoid defeat against rivals D.C. United, but that’s not stopping them from feeling a bit dissatisfied with their 2-2 draw at RFK Stadium.
The Red Bulls put forth one of their more aesthetically pleasing road performances on Wednesday night, controlling possession in large stretches, creating some good looks on goal and taking an initial lead through a Joel Lindpere strike.
HIGHLIGHTS: DC 2, NY 2
Their error-prone ways cost them once again, however, as two mistakes by the usually steady Bill Gaudette erased all that and put New York in a hole they eventually climbed out of thanks to Conde’s heroics. Still, the Red Bulls know that the three points were there to be had.
“We should have won this game,” head coach Hans Backe told reporters after the game. “In the second half, we totally controlled it, in a way just waiting to score the winning goal. Unfortunately two mistakes are very costly when you play on the road and I mean scoring twice on the road you should win the game.”
Backe was not the only one to take that stance after the match. Several Red Bulls players also expressed their dismay at having to settle for a draw in a match they felt they were clearly the better side in.
“There’s a sense of disappointment amongst the lads that we didn’t get the result,” midfielder Tim Cahill told reporters after the game, “because I thought we dominated the play, we created a lot of chances and there was a lot of criticism after the last game.”
OPTA Chalkboard: New York keep it tight in late going
Wednesday night’s even affair saw the two clubs end their regular season matches at 1-1-1 on the year, but United were the ones to come away with the Atlantic Cup based on goal differential. Regardless, New York still does not see their southern rivals as being superior to them.
“We know that when we put pressure on DC,” said Lindpere, “they are not better than us.“
Franco Panizo covers the New York Red Bulls for MLSsoccer.com. He can be reached at Franco8813@gmail.com.
