New York City FC take on Red Bulls this Saturday in the Hudson River Derby.
For this edition of 'The Away End' presented by Berkeley College & Rennert International, we spoke to James Birle, a reporter covering the Red Bulls for WFUV Sports.
Hi James, thanks for speaking with us. How long have you been covering the Red Bulls?
My name is James Birle, I'm a senior at Fordham University in the Bronx and I've been covering the New York Red Bulls for Fordham's flagship sports radio station, WFUV Sports, for three seasons now, having started at the end of my freshman year.
What has been your highlight during that time?
During that time, I would say that the biggest highlight was being there at Red Bull Arena to cover the Red Bulls' 5-2 win over Charlotte FC in the Wildcard Round of the 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs. Elias Manoel continued to be a nightmare for Charlotte, bagging his first hat trick for the club and becoming the first RBNY/Metrostars player to notch a hat trick in the postseason. It also marked the Red Bulls' first playoff win since 2018, a long-awaited result.
How would you evaluate the Red Bulls 2024 season?
The Red Bulls have had an up-and-down 2024. They started the season really hot, winning four of their first six games under new coach Sandro Schwarz and playing their best soccer in six seasons. Shortly after, though, the team dealt with squad issues with important players like top goalscorer Lewis Morgan and goalkeeper Carlos Coronel being called to their respective national teams and others like Peter Stroud and captain Emil Forsberg being sidelined long-term with injuries. Not to mention the outgoing transfer of midfield regular Frankie Amaya to Liga MX's Toluca in the summer, the Red Bulls hit a rough patch in the summer, having won just two matches out of 17 in all competitions since Forsberg's injury at the start of June. They've only barely been able to cling onto that all-important 4th place position in the Eastern Conference standings.
The Red Bulls have become a bit predictable of recent, dominating play for long stretches of the match but lacking match-winning quality in the attacking third. Without Forsberg, they've managed just 19 goals in those aforementioned 17 games, helping them reach a league-leading 14 draws. Should this pattern continue, they'll have no problem qualifying for the playoffs for a record 15th straight season, but they'll really struggle to do damage against the best teams in the East. However, if they can capitalize on Forsberg's return and the recent goalscoring form of strikers Dante Vanzeir and Elias Manoel, there's reason to believe that the Red Bulls are capable of surprising teams in the postseason.
What do you think makes the Hudson River Derby so special?
The Hudson River Derby is special because it's the world's game in the world's city. What more could you want? NYCFC and the Red Bulls maintain two of the most passionate fan bases in MLS and it's a tantalizing rivalry to be a part of. It may fall behind "El Trafico," "Cascadia" and the "Hell is Real Derby" in national coverage, but in just ten seasons we've seen baseball-themed celebrations, New Jersey-inspired insults, the Red Wedding and NYCFC's first MLS Cup. Stars like Frank Lampard, Bradley Wright-Phillips, David Villa, Luis Robles, Taty Castellanos and Sacha Kljestan have come and gone. It's easy to forget we're still in the infancy of this New York Derby with all that has already happened, but the best still lies ahead.
What do you think will be the deciding factor in Saturday’s game?
Saturday's game could be decided by which team has a better killer instinct in the final third. It's been no mystery that both New York teams' biggest struggles have come in front of goal, with the Red Bulls sixth in the Eastern Conference in goals with 46 and NYCFC in seventh with 43. Neither team has had a stand-out at the striker position for a while now, with each team's leading scorer being a natural winger, with Lewis Morgan for RBNY and Alonso Martinez for NYCFC both at 12 goals apiece. Outside of those two, it's likely going to be up to Manoel and Vanzeir to provide the goal-scoring prowess for New York and Mounsef Bakrar alongside wingers Santi Rodriguez and Hannes Wolf leading the charge for City. Should Forsberg be ready and available from the start, though, the Red Bulls have shown that there's an extra level they can reach.
Do you have a prediction for the game?
My prediction for Saturday is a Red Bulls 2-1 win. While a draw may look like the most likely outcome looking from afar, the home-field advantage has been kind to each of these teams in the New York Derby, exemplified best by NYCFC's deserved 2-1 win over the Red Bulls earlier this season. The Red Bulls have been leaving points on the table for too many games in a row not to turn up on Saturday ready to win, but NYCFC looked up for a big challenge in their own right in a good 1-1 draw to Messi and Inter Miami last weekend. I could really see this going either way, but I give the slight edge to the Red Bulls as they'll be in their own house on their side of the Hudson and there's a real chance Emil Forsberg plays a significant role for the first time in months.
