Nick Cushing believes his side are playing for two trophies as they seek to advance in Leagues Cup.
New York City FC take on the Columbus Crew on Saturday night in their Leagues Cup last eight matchup.
Cushing is eager for his side to play the best teams in the region, and if they can advance past Columbus not only will they be one step closer to the coveted Leagues Cup trophy, but also one of the available spots for the Concacaf Champions League.
“You get through to the round of eight and into the round of four and you've definitely got two games,” he said.
“It's almost like playing for two trophies. Everybody in the competition now is playing to win Leagues Cup, but if you don't get the opportunity to play in the final, the third and fourth place playoff game carries a Concacaf Champions League place.
“After watching Columbus this year and watching the year that Seattle won it - they actually beat us in semifinal - being a competitive team in Champions League against the best team in Concacaf is a real good marker of being a special team.
“For us, the opportunity to play for a Champions League place, to fight for a trophy, is exactly where we want to be as a team, that is our aim and our goal.
“Getting through the round of eight, getting through this game is the priority. You have to advance to be in the mix to play for the prizes.”
Cushing also took time to highlight the development of Christian McFarlane during the competition.
The teenage defender has started all four of City’s games in the competition and earned plaudits for his performances.
“I think in this tournament in particular, Christine McFarlane,” Cushing said when asked which young player has benefitted most from Leagues Cup participation.
“You put a guy in at 17 who's played four games previous to going into this competition – and Kevin O’Toole is ready to go back in – but Christian is holding the shirt.
“That’s what you want. When I put younger players in you understand that you're putting them in and you're exposing them to the game, but sometimes you get a little shining light of somebody that grows a lot faster than what you expect and he’s just embracing it.
“He's a guy that he's just taking it in his stride and is showing that he has real capability.”
