Let’s be honest, all five takes from our 2-0 victory over Philadelphia Union could have centered around David Villa’s remarkable 90th minute goal which clinched the win.
Instead, we’ve limited ourselves to just three on that subject as we reflect on a beautiful night under the lights in the City of Brotherly Love.
1. THAT Goal
Was that the greatest goal NYCFC has ever scored?
Connoisseurs will all have their favorite types of goals, be they long rangers, team moves or acrobatic strikes but this was an instant classic of its genre from the reigning MLS MVP.
In his postmatch remarks, Villa told reporters that he only took on the shot because he was fatigued which shows that defenders can’t even rely on tiring out NYCFC’s leading marksmen as a way of stopping him.
Scored from 53.5 yards, the furthest distance an MLS goal has been scored from since these records were started in 2012, it was right up there with the greatest goals ever seen in this league.
Villa Maravilla!
2. Try, Try, Try Again
If at first you don’t succeed…
Just in case you thought this might be a fluke, Villa rattled Andre Blake’s crossbar with a very similar hit in last season’s meeting at Yankee Stadium.
His Head Coach just felt like it was proof, in case there were any doubts at this stage of his career, that we are fortunate to be watching a player with David’s talent week-in, week-out.
Vieira said: “It’s one of the best goals in the league so far. It’s good for us because that gives us the three points. It was an important goal and an unbelievable goal.”
3. He’s Done it Before…
… not only has David tried that before in an NYCFC shirt before, he’s actually scored one before much earlier on in his career.
When he was at Valencia, Villa scored from the midfield against Deportivo, beating goalkeeper Jose Francisco Molina with a 50 yard strike.
It’s something he works on in training too, as he told reporters after Friday night’s game.
4. Harrison Stepping Up Again
Villa took the headlines for his goal but we shouldn’t forget about some of the other key contributors in this win.
Jack Harrison came off with 20 minutes to go but he’d already done the damage by then, netting the opening goal and causing the Philadelphia defense no end of problems with his intelligent movement and fearless, slaloming dribbling.
Harrison spoke of needing to add new elements to his game to keep defenders guessing in the offseason and from the evidence of the opening weeks of 2017, he’s done just that, looking a threat every time he picks up the ball and remaining involved in the game throughout.
5. Clean Sheet
Few were talking about NYCFC’s defending after the game but it deserves mentioning after the team earned another clean sheet which will be equally weighted in value by Vieira as the Villa wonder goal.
The whole team takes responsibility for defending in Patrick’s masterplan but let’s just shine some of the spotlight on the central defenders, Maxime Chanot and Alexander Callens who were both excellent once again in Philadelphia.
As well as being an intelligent and tough defender, Callens plays a vital role in his side’s buildup play, while Chanot showed his worth with a huge sliding tackle at 1-0 to end a Philadelphia break in the nick of time.
If he hadn’t gotten there, the tone of this article, as well as the moods of NYCFC fans the world over, would have been many shades darker than it is…
