Surviving The Lion’s Den: RBNY Defeat Orlando City, 2-1
Pre-Game Thoughts
After a week of some well needed rest, RBNY was back down south, as they prepared to take on Orlando City in one of the best game environments in MLS. After handing Orlando a loss earlier in the year, RBNY would hope to sweep the season series to take all six points from another Eastern Conference powerhouse. After a well-deserved draw on the road in Atlanta last weekend, confidence among the players and fans was high. However, going against Daryl Dike, Nani and the rest of this Orlando side wouldn’t be easy. I was excited that this RBNY side finally got some rest between fixtures - rest for this team is probably the best medicine from this crazy congested schedule. I was worried that our poor road record would follow us to Florida, but as always I trust the process and this young Red Bull side. RBNY always seem up for the challenge, no matter the opponent, and I didn’t believe that this match would be any different.
Starting XI
The Lineups were announced and there were some interesting moves made by head coach Gerhard Struber before this key Eastern Conference matchup. To start, the amazing partnership of strikers Patryk Klimala and Fabio Gomes Netto was brought to life again. In the midfield, Struber employed the diamond, which we last used when Caden Clark was healthy. Starting in Clark’s place was RBNY youngster Wikelman Carmona, joining Sean Davis, Dru Yearwood and Christian Casseres Jr, who recently returned from international duty with Venezuela. On defense, RBNY return to a back four, with John Tolkin, Sean Nealis, Tom Edwards, and Kyle Duncan getting the start. Finishing it up is Carlos Coronel, the goaltender who would be looking to continue to silence haters inside the Red Bull fanbase with another stellar performances. This lineup would hope to continue its run of form and I truly believe that as long, as their attitudes remain focused, this team would be able to get out of Orlando with a result.
Game Recap
As the game kicked off, I noticed right away that the signature Red Bull high press was starting to bully the Orlando back line. After only a few minutes, you could see that they had no answers for New York’s game plan – in fact, a passing error created by this constant pressure would lead to the opening goal. An errant Orlando pass led to a quick Red Bull transition, which would setup Casseres for a weak-footed curling shot that he finished with ease, giving RBNY a massive early lead on the road. Casseres seems to have brought some energy back from his international duties, which paid in giving the Red Bulls the early advantage. With that said, Orlando wasn’t going to sit back and take this abuse - Chris Mueller continued to put pressure on the RBNY back line, giving Coronel a few things to worry about and keeping this game interesting. Orlando would keep their foot on the pedal for most of the first half Orlando, consistently putting pressure on the Red Bull back line but, to me, there was nothing to worry about. 30 minutes in, outside of the opening goal, Orlando owned most of the game. RBNY would have a few chances here and there, but nothing that would trouble this Orlando side. New York had some great long balls and good link-up play, but they unfortunately had nothing to show for it.
“An errant Orlando pass led to a quick Red Bull transition, which would setup Casseres for a weak-footed curling shot that he finished with ease, giving RBNY a massive early lead on the road.”
At this point, I was worried these miss chances would come back to haunt this RBNY side. Pressure from Orlando would eventually lead to a deadly ball into the box and, after a clumsy challenge from Edwards, a penalty for Orlando just minutes before the halftime whistle. The call seemed very soft but, after looking at the replay myself for a few moments, I could see a push off and understood the call. This is the moment Orlando have been looking for – it was their chance to get back into this game. Much to the dismay of the home fans, a massive penalty save form Coronel would keep Orlando off the scoreboard just before the half. Though each side would get one more good opportunity before the half ended, RBNY would head into the locker room with a 1-0 lead.
As the second half got underway in Orlando, RBNY get off to a very quick start. Yearwood missed a golden opportunity to give New York a 2-goal advantage. As I said before, I was worried that these missed opportunities would come back to haunt the Red Bulls. Nonetheless, the Red Bull high press looked great and continued to terrorize the Orlando back line. Orlando would continue to get chances of their own, but with some outstanding saves from Coronel (who was easily putting in a team of the week performance), RBNY would maintain their lead. In the 59th minute, a massive error from Nealis would lead to Orlando finally getting on the score sheet. Some pressure from Dike would cause Nealis to turn the ball over just outside the Red Bull 20-yard box, which led to a sweet Chris Mueller finish. Just like that, this game was all level with plenty of time still to be played.
“Orlando would continue to get chances of their own, but with some outstanding saves from Coronel (who was easily putting in a team of the week performance), RBNY would maintain their lead.”
In this moment, I was thinking about all of those chances New York had missed - it looked like Orlando would make a final push, take the lead and finish off this Red Bull side. As they’ve shown throughout this season, New York wouldn't go away that easy. With chances coming from all over the field, anyone could see we were in for one hell of a finish. New York started to build up play and had a ton of time on the ball. A combination of pressing and line-splitting passing would lead to a beautiful lay off by Klimala that would give Fabio the opportunity for a simply-converted finish. This massive moment gave RBNY the edge with only roughly fifteen minutes left in the game. Fabio and Klimala had been giving the Orlando defense problems all game – finally, this pair broke through and got a goal. The game-winning goal would be the end of the major talking points of this contest - the last ten minutes would not lead to many big plays. Orlando tried to get themselves back in with massive long balls and throwing their whole team into the attack, but to no avail. The final whistle blew and New York would grab their first road win of the year and complete the season sweep over their Eastern Conference foes.
Final Thoughts
I love this Red Bull team – yeah, I said it. Every time I watch them, I'm hooked. This team is not supposed to be ready to compete against teams like Orlando, who are on the short list of teams expected to make a run for silverware. And yet, this new, young and talented Red Bull side doesn’t care - they are not bothered by who, what or where they have to go to grab a result. The Red Bulls are a side that has gelled so well and so fast that you can’t help but be impressed. RBNY did everything right again and are not only grabbing good results against good teams, they are doing it in a style all their own. I want to give my personal Player of the Match award to Carlos Coronel. Coronel has been absolutely incredible since the first day he arrived, taking full responsibility for his role and showing what he can do. RBNY get a few days off before a midweek clash against the Philadelphia Union at Red Bull Arena. I am hoping the team gets some rest knowing they have face a very tough opponent only a few days from now. We know how well this team does at home and I hope the crowd is there to back them when they need it most.
As always I am here for it all.
