Patrick Vieira has welcomed the pressure the final Hudson River Derby of 2017 brings to him and his squad.
The NYCFC Head Coach has masterminded two MLS derby wins out of two so far this year and he’s eager to make it three when the teams meet at Red Bull Arena on Friday night.
For Vieira, trusting the gameplan will be crucial in giving his side the best-possible chance of emerging with the three points.
Vieira told NYCFC.com: “We played a really good game away from home – the pressure is still there because it’s a derby game and it’s going to be a really important three points for both teams.
“There will be a lot of pressure of course but we’re going there with a good gameplan to try and improve our performance which will allow us to have more chance to win games.”
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Toronto FC currently lie seven points clear at the top of the Eastern Conference.
For Patrick, the Canadian outfit may already be out of sight when it comes to the Supporters’ Shield race but he’s called upon his players to keep fighting and improving every time they take to the field.
“I think Toronto are top and when you look at the way they’ve bene playing, it will be very difficult to catch them,” Vieira considered.
“I think they are already in a really good spot and they will have a good chance to win it, if they haven’t already All the other teams will have to compete for the second spot and we are one of those teams.
“We have to keep in our mind that if we want to win games we need to play and every time you play you give yourself more chance of winning games. We have to improve, we have to play better as a team and that’s what we’re going to try to do.”
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NYCFC have won their last three games and can make it a joint club record fourth by securing the series sweep vs. Red Bulls.
Key to the recent run of good form has been contributions off the bench from substitutes eager to show what they can do and this desire and energy late in games has pleased the Head Coach.
Vieira added: “In 95 minutes, anything can happen – I want everybody to feel concern because when you’re on the bench, when you come on you have to bring something to the team – to bring the energy.
“That’s been working really well for us in the last few games.”
