New York City FC took home all three points against Toronto FC on Saturday.
Goals from Santiago Rodríguez and Kevin O'Toole gave City a 2-1 win.
Here are Five Points from the game...
Tough Start
It certainly wasn’t in New York City FC’s game plan to be a goal down after seven minutes.
Jahkeele Marshall-Rutty’s opener was something of a gut punch considering City’s bright start to the contest, but the Boys in Blue didn’t let that stifle their self-belief. They rallied quickly and created a handful of good half-chances prior to Santiago Rodríguez’s equalizer.
While the start wasn’t ideal, City’s response to that setback was brilliant, and the players deserve credit for turning things around to emerge with three points on the night.
O’Toole Time
With the contest delicately poised in the second half, City needed a breakthrough.
Step up Kevin O’Toole with his first goal for New York City FC. The left-back’s header crashed off the underside of the crossbar and it was clear from O’Toole’s celebration what the moment meant to him. His well-timed run and Julián Fernández’s brilliant trivela cross came together to give City a much-needed advantage.
“He's just someone who will give everything for the group,” teammate James Sands said after the game. “He’s not about getting attention and so I think in the end it's kind of fitting that he goes and scores the game winner and becomes the hero because he would never seek attention for himself. We’re all so happy that he scored.”
Congratulations Kevin, hopefully it’s the first of many.
Sensational Set Piece
Yankee Stadium held its breath - a sense of anticipation filled the air.
Santiago Rodríguez put the ball down and took a step back, he was ready to strike. In a matter of seconds, Rodríguez had changed the complexion of the contest thanks to a wonderful freekick that left Toronto’s goalkeeper helpless.
It was the kind of magical moment that highlights why Rodríguez a special talent. His relentless pursuit of success not only handed City an equalizer but also helped establish the team’s path to victory. A standout showing from Rodríguez, he was central to the team claiming a victory.
“Santi is the guy that can be the talisman,” Nick Cushing said. “He came back with a huge desire this season to score more direct free kicks - to add goals to his game - because he is dangerous in offensive moments.”
Happy At Home
The dismissal of Keaton Parks came unexpectedly for City and with significant time left on the clock.
It would have been easy for the home side to fold or suffer a lapse in concentration, with Toronto possessing attackers that could easily punish a moment of weakness.
Instead, the group rallied, and with some tactical tweaks, they were able to repel Toronto and hold onto the advantage for three points.
Goals
In our Keys to the Match, we identified the goal-heavy nature of this contest historically.
Things didn’t slow down on Saturday with a further three goals to add to the total tally – which is in line with the average for this game. City managed 17 shots on the night with an expected goals total of 2.2 – suggesting they could and possibly should have had more goals on the night.
City’s attacking prowess has been well-documented and Saturday saw them convert that potential into goals, which ultimately drove them to victory.
