Pascal Jansen has revealed he is prepared for ‘a big night’ at Yankee Stadium this Saturday, as his New York City FC side hosts Orlando City SC in their 2025 Home Opener.
Saturday’s meeting between City and the Lions carries historic significance, as it marks the tenth anniversary of the two teams’ first clash in MLS. Both clubs entered the league in 2015. They started the season by meeting in Florida in a game that ended 1-1.
Speaking to the media on Thursday, Jansen acknowledged the significance of the occasion and the importance of the day in relation to club history.
"It's going to be a very big night," Jansen said. "I was told it’s the 10th anniversary, and the game back then was also against Orlando, so emotions will be there. It’s a big night."
The matchup will also give City the chance to bounce back from two difficult road games to open the season. They began the 2025 campaign with a 2-2 draw against Inter Miami CF and followed that with a narrow 1-0 defeat against LAFC.
"Traveling to Miami and Los Angeles has been a thing, but looking at the games, we did okay, but not more than that,” Jansen said. “So we're looking to do better than the previous two games, and what better chance to do that than at home."
Jansen joined the Club this offseason and that means Saturday’s game will also be his first match in charge at Yankee Stadium.
"I’ve had the pleasure to be at one fan event and they made it very clear what they expect from the team this season, not only in the home opener, but in general," he said. "I sense that everybody's looking forward to this moment — wanting to see the team again and see if we're going to do better than the previous seasons.”
He later added: "I can't compare it with the years before this season because I wasn't part of the process then, but we're looking forward to this game," he said.
"The guys are really anxious to prove themselves again. The fact that it's going to be Orlando again puts a lot of emotions there as well.
"One of my coaches, Mehdi [Ballouchy], has also played in that game, so he knows how that feels, and we're going to use that emotion to prepare ourselves to be ready for this game.”
While the big occasion is firmly in the team’s sights this week, Jansen emphasized that the focus remains on improvement week by week as they look to secure a first win of the campaign.
"For us, it's mainly about becoming a better team than we were last week,” he explained.
“As I said, the previous two games, we did okay, but we didn't get the results we were looking for. So it's a big opportunity for us, for our home fans, to do better."
The Dutch coach also noted the physical toll of starting the season on the road, with City covering more miles than any other team during the opening two weeks.
"I just saw a schedule that we've traveled the most of all MLS teams in the previous two games. So it's going to help playing at home," he said.
"We were close to getting good results in the away games, but not good enough. So hopefully now, with the homecoming — the home opener with the fans there, we’ll do much better. I know the guys are looking forward to it, so all together, I'm hoping for a good match."
New York City FC take on Orlando City SC at Yankee Stadium on March 8. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30PM ET.
