New York City FC were back to winning ways on Saturday night against Inter Miami CF.
Here’s Five Points from great performance, presented by Etihad Airways…
Maxi Masterclass
If Maxi Moralez was frustrated with how New York City FC’s Leagues Cup campaign ended this week he channeled that frustration into Saturday’s game against Inter Miami CF.
The veteran playmaker produced a fantastic performance that was further evidence of how intelligence can trump physicality on a soccer field. Moralez played a key role in both of NYCFC’s goals, with his assist lending itself to fantastic technique that found teammate Taty Castellanos in acres of space to convert.
For the second goal, watch Moralez in the build up to the penalty. He peels away into space to receive Malte Amundsen’s throw in before quickly playing a pass to Thiago Andrade to shoot. Either side of these moments were a scrapbook of beautiful flicks, tricks, and smart decisions that underline why Moralez is such an important cog in this machine.
Maxi is aging like a fine wine, and we should enjoy every last drop of it.
Taty’s Back
To see Taty Castellanos celebrate a goal is a joyful thing.
The Argentine striker started the season in red hot and form, and after a comparatively leaner spell, he’s back in the goals with five in his last six games. The 22-year-old now has eight goals in MLS this season to go along with his six assists, which is an impressive total for a man that has been ever-present this season in attack.
While he is slowly creeping towards his best ever MLS season in front of goal, it’s worth celebrating everything he brings to the team. Castellanos is not only important in holding the ball up for NYCFC in the final third, but he’s also a tireless runner.
We saw that trait several times against Inter Miami, and it almost allowed him to complete a first half hat trick.
“He is difficult to play against,” Ronny Deila said of Castellanos after the game. “He’s playing all the games and put out that performance today when he was fighting like he did on Wednesday night. It’s something I’m really impressed by.”
Us too Ronny, us too.
Progress
NYCFC’s last outing in Major League Soccer was a polarizing affair.
The fact the Boys in Blue found themselves in an identical situation on Saturday posed an interesting test of character. Inter Miami have enough dangerous players to cause any team problems , and Phil Neville sent out his side with an increased intensity in the second period.
To their credit, NYCFC not only withstood the early test but flipped the momentum and saw out the rest of the half in relatively comfortable fashion. That was not only impressive given the team’s midweek exertions until the wee hours, but also because it would have been easy to bend and wobble.
This team keeps setting standards for itself to maintain, and Saturday was a high bar.
Young & Vibrant
If there was a theme to the second half against Inter Miami on Saturday it was young and vibrant.
Ronny Deila subbed in Santiago Rodríguez, Jesús Medina, Talles Magno, and Andres Jasson during the second 45 minutes to switch up the attack and introduce some fresh legs.
At 24, Medina was the elder statesman of the group, but the fact this team has such a strong foundation of young players bodes well for the future.
Both Deila and sporting director David Lee deserve credit for the work they have done in constructing a squad that is balanced in terms of age and experience. The end product of that work is an exciting squad that can be both aggressive off the ball and beautiful on it.
Sand’s Big Night
James Sands is not resting on his laurels.
The Gold Cup champion was given a big test on Saturday night marking Gonzalo Higuaín – a striker that has played at the highest level for both club and country. One of Higuaín’s biggest strengths remains his intelligence off the ball, and we saw that throughout the game with his runs well-timed to try and exploit lapses in concentration as well as a defender’s blindside.
By the end of the 90 minutes, however, not only had Higuain failed to score but so too had Miami. Sands performance can best be summed up in one second half moment. After stepping out to play the veteran forward offside, he rushed back to poke the ball away from him and earn a foul in the process.
Credit must also go to Sands’ defensive partner Maxime Chanot, but for a player just escaping his 21st birthday, this was a big performance and one he should take tremendous pride from.
