Patrick Vieira doesn’t have to look far to find the blueprints for Hudson River Derby glory.
The Frenchman describes NYCFC’s 2-0 win at Red Bull Arena in June as “nearly perfect” and is urging his side to put in a repeat performance when the teams meet again on Sunday.
With home field advantage this time around, Patrick believes hard work will be crucial in sealing a series win against the team’s cross-river rivals for the first time in club history.
Vieira told NYCFC.com: “I think playing at home is a huge advantage, and we managed to win over there.
“We played a really good game, I would say nearly a perfect one. If we want to win this game, we need to be at our very best.
“All the games will be really difficult, especially the derby ones, so if we want to take those three points we have to work really hard and we have to play much better than we did against Toronto.”
READ: A-Z of the Hudson River Derby
That 4-0 Toronto defeat clearly still rankles with Vieira, who admitted after the game at BMO Field that the Eastern Conference leaders were the better team on the day.
Now he’s calling upon his men to bounce back in one of the biggest games of the season so far.
“I think the Toronto one was a difficult one, of course,” the NYCFC Head Coach reflected.
“When you play against a team like that, if you are not at your best, if you are not performing on the day, you become really vulnerable, and we were not good on the day, and it was a difficult one.
“But, you know, we have a next one. It’s a big one, against the Red Bulls, and that game is as important as the Toronto one. So, it will be important for us to bounce back.
“We’re playing against a team who are having a really good period at the moment, they’ve played well, they’re scoring goals, so it’s going to be difficult, of course.”
As Patrick emphasized, Red Bulls are on an impressive run at present, winning their last four matches.
However, he wants the team to approach the game like it was any other in order to extend NYCFC’s unbeaten run in the Bronx.
Vieira added: “I think it’s like any other game, but of course because it’s the Red Bulls, that makes it a bit more special. But at the end of the day, it’s three points on the table, three really important points for us, and we’re going to give our best and try to get these three points.”
