HANOVER, N.J. – The New York Red Bulls have won all four #NYderby matchups so far and they’re coming off a memorable 7-0 victory the last time they met five weeks ago.
But the Red Bulls are claiming that they will be the angry team heading into Sunday’s rematch (Noon ET; ESPN in the US, TSN4 in Canada; ticket information) and it is their recent dip in form that they say has them foaming at the mouth.
After a 1-6-0 start to the season, the New York rebounded by winning six of their next eight, including that historic 7-0 victory, to take them within distance of the top spot in the Eastern Conference standings.
But now their fortunes are on a slight decline, as they limp into the derby with just one point from league matches at Real Salt Lake and Columbus. Then, on Wednesday, they were eliminated from the US Open Cup by Philadelphia, a match that saw head coach Jesse Marsch ejected then embroiled in a ball-throwing incident.
All three matches saw the Red Bulls score first, only to squander their lead and drop points.
"I actually think that even though we haven’t gotten these results on the road lately, there’s been some really good play and we’ve just let games slip away from us in different ways,” Marsch said on Friday following a short training session. “Mentality – guys are angry right now. They are angry that we are out of the cup, they are angry that we let points slip away on the road. We’re all angry.
"I think that will be reflected in our performance. I think we’ll have a real edge. That will be reflected in our performance.”
New York City FC, on the other hand, took some lessons from the heavy defeat in May and they’ve rebounded. Winners of their last two, the squad is high in confidence following last week’s 2-0 win at the Seattle Sounders. They also have had a full week of training between then and now, rest denied the Red Bulls, who have been on the road for three matches in seven days.
The Red Bulls aren’t expecting NYCFC to change much from the style they’ve shown in recent weeks. Patrick Vieira himself has recently insisted that they will continue to play out of the back — a system that has lifted them to second place in the East, one point ahead of the Red Bulls.
“I think more than anything we’re going to see a team whose competitive will is at a much higher level,” Marsch said. "Maybe there are tactical changes that [Vieira] makes, I think they’ll stick to what they’ve done pretty much the whole season. Maybe some small changes and nuances to some of their tactics. They’ve been successful in what they do, so I don’t think they’re going to go away from that.
“I expect to see a team that, again, the competitive effort that they put into the game, I expect it to be the highest they’ve ever had, the highest of the year.”
