HANOVER, N.J. — The New York Red Bulls defeated Atlanta United twice in a record-breaking regular season capped by clinching the Supporters’ Shield on Decision Day presented by AT&T.
So the Red Bulls should be considered favorites ahead of their anticipated Eastern Conference Championship clash against the Five Stripes right?
Not so fast, said Red Bulls coach Chris Armas.
“That question is not surprising and I’ve seen the dialogue out there, even on Major League Soccer’s website: Atlanta being the underdogs,” he said after training on Tuesday. “For me, it’s a little bit ridiculous.”
Part of that, according to Armas, comes from a perceived lack of respect for what his club accomplished this season.
“I mean, no one talks about the Red Bulls, no one really does,” he said. “No one really talked about the points. Really, it’s for others to talk about. [Bradley] Wright-Phillips is not talking about that, but they didn’t talk about that. They didn’t talk about too much the Supporters’ Shield, the 71 points, finishing the season with five wins, the records. It’s not talked about, yet all of a sudden we’re the favorites?
“It’s a little bit confusing, but to be honest it doesn’t matter. It really doesn’t. Who’s favored, as we look in any sport, point spreads, what does it really matter. The whistle will blow, we’re there for two [games] and we’ll have our time to show who we are.”
In the short history between the teams, the Red Bulls have won three of the four regular season meetings, with the teams playing to a 0-0 draw last October at Red Bull Arena. New York have outscored Atlanta, 7-2, in those games, but again, midfielder Sean Davis doesn’t see the Red Bulls having an advantage in the two-legged series.
“I don’t see us as favorites at all, actually,” he said. “It’s the playoffs now, we know how talented Atlanta is, they’re a fantastic group. I think at this point we just have to turn the page and reset. I think that’s the mentality we’ve had throughout training these last couple of weeks and I think that’s something we have to stick to. We know how good of a team they are, especially at home, so we need to show up on Sunday and be ready to go right from the opening whistle.”
The mentality among the Red Bulls is the Audi 2018 MLS Cup Playoffs are a competition completely different from the regular season. Success in one doesn’t necessarily dictate success in another.
But if there is one carryover from a pair of two-goal wins this year for the Red Bulls — 3-1 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on May 20 and 2-0 at Red Bull Arena in late September — it’s that Atlanta may be looking for revenge.
“Maybe if there is any sort of dynamic that those previous matchups can bring to this, it’s that they want to avenge those losses,” goalkeeper Luis Robles said. “They want to right the ship in the sense that they want to get rid of that goose egg and that only builds more pressure for us.”
